Prime grade brisket last week on the drum


 
Mark_E

Mark_E

TVWBB Super Fan
Brisket was 18.5 lbs, trimmed down to 13.5 lbs.

15 hours in pecan wood overnight at 225 and then morning at 275, when I pulled it, the flat read 189 and the point read 204, then 7 hours wrapped and holding at 150.

Started 10 PM, served 8 PM - I only opened the cooker once during the cook to take a peek and give it a quick spritz

I cooked it upside down since I was using a drum (Harry Soo method), so the point is on the bottom, fat cap on the bottom, flat on top, and a dry bowl above the fire to protect from direct radiant heat which is what Harry Soo does with his WSM

I was very happy with it - the point was great as always but the point is easy, right? The flat was very tender and juicy - more than I expected


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Crazy good. And 22 hours from start to serving? That is a long hold (in the oven I presume)?

I know a brisket can rest for a long time but this really shows the possibilities of an overnight cook! Nice job!
 
Richard S said:
Crazy good. And 22 hours from start to serving? That is a long hold (in the oven I presume)?

I know a brisket can rest for a long time but this really shows the possibilities of an overnight cook! Nice job!
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Yes, I actually wanted the hold in the oven at 150 F to go at least 10 hours but the IT moved a little slower than I expected. But it came out great anyway. This "Long hold at 150 F" thing is a method outlined by Steve over at Smoke Trails BBQ because that's basically what most of the famous BBQ places in Texas do. He calls this method a "silver bullet" because it's virtually foolproof and guarantees a tender juicy brisket without having to probe and guess whether or not to pull it at whatever temp. Just cook to 190, pull and hold 10 hours at 150, and you'll have brisket nirvana. I like it because I don't have to get up at 3 AM to start cooking. I used a Thermoworks Billows with my drum overnight.

Thanks for your comments, guys!

 
Mark_E said:
Brisket was 18.5 lbs, trimmed down to 13.5 lbs.

15 hours in pecan wood overnight at 225 and then morning at 275, when I pulled it, the flat read 189 and the point read 204, then 7 hours wrapped and holding at 150.

Started 10 PM, served 8 PM - I only opened the cooker once during the cook to take a peek and give it a quick spritz

I cooked it upside down since I was using a drum (Harry Soo method), so the point is on the bottom, fat cap on the bottom, flat on top, and a dry bowl above the fire to protect from direct radiant heat which is what Harry Soo does with his WSM

I was very happy with it - the point was great as always but the point is easy, right? The flat was very tender and juicy - more than I expected


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looks deelish. why such a heavy fat trim; 5# off?
 
Brett-EDH said:
looks deelish. why such a heavy fat trim; 5# off?
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I did it the same way I always do, roughly a quarter inch. I did take the mohawk off, it had some good meat on it so I cooked it separate alongside it like a small roast. Pulled it in the morning half way through - delish! Nice little morning snack. Good luck Sunday - my daughter's in SF.
 
Mark_E said:
I did it the same way I always do, roughly a quarter inch. I did take the mohawk off, it had some good meat on it so I cooked it separate alongside it like a small roast. Pulled it in the morning half way through - delish! Nice little morning snack. Good luck Sunday - my daughter's in SF.
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thanks. looking for a win. we got a good shot. i hope it'll be one of those ageless games.

hopefully you rendered that tallow. i have a container in my fridge and freezer of my last trimmings render. i have also started to trim less on Prime grades to help them retain their juices since so much of the internal marbling renders out of the cook.

i do miss a brisket on rye sandwich. might have to solve that in the coming months. with some spicy brown mustard too.
 
Brett-EDH said:
thanks. looking for a win. we got a good shot. i hope it'll be one of those ageless games.

hopefully you rendered that tallow. i have a container in my fridge and freezer of my last trimmings render. i have also started to trim less on Prime grades to help them retain their juices since so much of the internal marbling renders out of the cook.

i do miss a brisket on rye sandwich. might have to solve that in the coming months. with some spicy brown mustard too.
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You're darned right I rendered that tallow! Nothing goes to waste, bro. I got a huge pickle jar full of nice rendered tallow and also some wagyu tallow from Amazon. Actually I also have three 12 oz tin cans in the freezer for convenience filled to the rim marked beef, pork, and lamb. I actually saved some big wide slices of the fat and stuck them underneath the flat section of the brisket to provide extra thickness on that end - but just not trimming that part would have been smarter, right? Go Niners! I hate the Eagles
 
Richard Garcia said:
What Brand is your Drum Cooker?
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amazingribs.com

Oklahoma Joe's Bronco Drum Smoker Review

Oklahoma Joe's Bronco drum smoker is a low cost barrel smoker with hinged lid, gasket, side shelf, wheels, grilling capabilities, adjustable dampers, and ability to smoke low and slow up to 12 hours on one load of charcoal. What’s not to love? Read our review for the details on why we award this...
amazingribs.com

The stock charcoal basket can last up to 15 hours or so, but I was going to be cooking overnight in sub-freezing weather, so I used a customized oversized charcoal basket for this cook which can hold up to 20 lbs of charcoal. I've read the Pro Bronco charcoal (oversized) basket will also fit in there. And the Hunsaker vortex (oversized) basket assembly will work as well provided you put something under it so the flat bottom of the basket doesn't block the incoming air opening at the bottom center. Kept the cooker temp stable overnight with a Thermoworks Billows fan.
 
Mark_E said:
You're darned right I rendered that tallow! Nothing goes to waste, bro. I got a huge pickle jar full of nice rendered tallow and also some wagyu tallow from Amazon. Actually I also have three 12 oz tin cans in the freezer for convenience filled to the rim marked beef, pork, and lamb. I actually saved some big wide slices of the fat and stuck them underneath the flat section of the brisket to provide extra thickness on that end - but just not trimming that part would have been smarter, right? Go Niners! I hate the Eagles
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I’ve started to just shape my briskets and reduce heavy trimming. The real heavy fat in the point gets trimmed because that doesn’t render at all.

On the flat, especially with Prime, I just clean up that jelly like fat and mildly shape the super thin part and save those slices for burgers add ins.

My last prime taught me to not over trim the cap as it lost too much juiciness after the cook. Because prime cuts just render out a lot of fat on LAS cooks, IMO.

Your brisket does look spectacular. See if you like your next one with much less trimming. All that fat helps protect the meat and your hold method could be helping it too.

Go Niners! Beat the Eagles!
 
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Brett-EDH said:
I’ve started to just shape my briskets and reduce heavy trimming. The real heavy fat in the point gets trimmed because that doesn’t render at all.

On the flat, especially with Prime, I just clean up that jelly like fat and mildly shape the super thin part and save those slices for burgers add ins.

My last prime taught me to not over trim the cap as it lost too much juiciness after the cook. Because prime cuts just render out a lot of fat on LAS cooks, IMO.

Your brisket does look spectacular. See if you like your next one with much less trimming. All that fat helps protect the meat and your hold method could be helping it too.

Go Niners! Beat the Eagles!
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I think that's great advice - especially cooking it upside down on a drum or a WSM. Since you want the flat as thick as possible to retain moisture, and since the flat naturally bevels down on one side, why trim the fat cap near it??? It doesn't make sense. Funny I've never seen anybody suggest that before but most people (e.g. youtube) cook them on an offset which would be right side up. But still, the non-trim at the flat would still be beneficial, seems to me. Makes more sense than shoving fat slices under there like I did on this cook. I will do this moving forward... :-D

Go Niners!
 
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