Small Brisket - Some Questions


 
C

ChristopherCG

TVWBB Fan
Hi all. I am relatively new to the WSM but have had great success with baby back ribs and spare ribs. I was thinking of doing a small brisket but have been intimidated by the length of time to cook. If I get a 5lb brisket how long will it take to cook? I will only be cooking for a small group so I don't need a lot of food.
 
Originally posted by Christopher_C_ G:
Hi all. I am relatively new to the WSM but have had great success with baby back ribs and spare ribs. I was thinking of doing a small brisket but have been intimidated by the length of time to cook. If I get a 5lb brisket how long will it take to cook? I will only be cooking for a small group so I don't need a lot of food.
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It depends if you cook it low and slow or high heat. I like to cook briskets in the 245º-260º range until the internal temps hit 160º-165º, then double wrap in foil and continue to cook until tender. Generally I begin checking for doneness around 185º-190º, but temps are only a guide, tenderness determines 'done', not temperature. Cooking as I described, a 5lb brisket should take between 5-8 hours to cook.

Other folks choose to cook briskets via high heat method and they should chime in soon with how to cook them using high heat.

Whatever way you do it, have fun and enjoy!
 
I think I'd prefer to cook low and slow similar to how I cook ribs. My ribs take about 4-5 hours at 250 so 5-8 hours sounds about right for a brisket. I'd like to be able to eat the brisket the same day I start cooking it!

Being new to brisket, is it hard to carve properly? Hate to spend 8 hours cooking something and then screw it up on the cutting board when it's done.
 
Originally posted by Christopher_C_ G:
I think I'd prefer to cook low and slow similar to how I cook ribs. My ribs take about 4-5 hours at 250 so 5-8 hours sounds about right for a brisket. I'd like to be able to eat the brisket the same day I start cooking it!

Being new to brisket, is it hard to carve properly? Hate to spend 8 hours cooking something and then screw it up on the cutting board when it's done.
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Plan on 10 hours total, that way 'if' it takes longer than anticipated you won't run out of time to let it rest. Once the brisket is tender, if it's a while before dinner, put the still foiled brisket in a dry cooler wrapped in a towel. That will hold it for a couple hours HOT until it's time to eat. If it finishes sooner, simply let it rest on the counter for 30 minutes or so, then open the foil and let cool 10-15 minutes before slicing.

Look at the brisket before you cook it and find the grain, then at the very end of the brisket, cut off a small piece perpendicular to the grain. This will be helpful once the brisket is done and you will be able to tell where to begin slicing. Slice between 1/8"-1/4" thick slices.
 
Hello Christopher and welcome. I've cooked dozens of briskets and I average 1 hour of cook time per pound regardless of the size of the brisket. My smoking temperatures, according to my lid temperature guage, is usually between 240 and 260, with the target being 245 ish. I never foil Brisket until I remove it from the smoker and place in a cooler for resting.

Good luck and let us know how it goes.
 
Originally posted by Clay Cope:
Hello Christopher and welcome. I've cooked dozens of briskets and I average 1 hour of cook time per pound regardless of the size of the brisket. My smoking temperatures, according to my lid temperature guage, is usually between 240 and 260, with the target being 245 ish. I never foil Brisket until I remove it from the smoker and place in a cooler for resting.

Good luck and let us know how it goes.
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Interesting. So you don't even throw on the grill or oven at the end to speed things along? You just leave on the smoker the entire time and the internal temp gets to 205 or whatever it's supposed to be? I would prefer to do it this way personally.
 
So I went to a local grocery store looking for a brisket. All they had was 2 lb first cut brisket. I'm not even sure what that means. It looks like the flat part of the brisket with the point already removed. It's small and flat. Looks a little like a london broil. Not sure how to cook this sucker. It looks nothing like the monsters I've seen on this forum. Any advice would be appreciated.
 
Originally posted by Christopher_C_ G:
So I went to a local grocery store looking for a brisket. All they had was 2 lb first cut brisket. I'm not even sure what that means. It looks like the flat part of the brisket with the point already removed. It's small and flat. Looks a little like a london broil. Not sure how to cook this sucker. It looks nothing like the monsters I've seen on this forum. Any advice would be appreciated.
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Chris, if you have a grinder, grind that 'piece' of brisket you have and make burgers.....brisket burgers are awesome. But that piece of brisket is gonna tick you off in the end if you cook smoke it. Honestly, I would not bother smoking it.

You may need to go to a store and ask the meat man for a brisket, either whole or flat. Or go to a wholesale club and find one. You want a flat in the 6-8lb range or a packer in the 10-12lb range.
 
Originally posted by Larry Wolfe:
<BLOCKQUOTE class="ip-ubbcode-quote"><div class="ip-ubbcode-quote-title">quote:</div><div class="ip-ubbcode-quote-content">Originally posted by Christopher_C_ G:
So I went to a local grocery store looking for a brisket. All they had was 2 lb first cut brisket. I'm not even sure what that means. It looks like the flat part of the brisket with the point already removed. It's small and flat. Looks a little like a london broil. Not sure how to cook this sucker. It looks nothing like the monsters I've seen on this forum. Any advice would be appreciated.
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Chris, if you have a grinder, grind that 'piece' of brisket you have and make burgers.....brisket burgers are awesome. But that piece of brisket is gonna tick you off in the end if you cook smoke it. Honestly, I would not bother smoking it.

You may need to go to a store and ask the meat man for a brisket, either whole or flat. Or go to a wholesale club and find one. You want a flat in the 6-8lb range or a packer in the 10-12lb range. </div></BLOCKQUOTE>

Bummer. I knew something was up. It made no sense. How else can I cook this thing if not in the smoker?
 
Originally posted by Christopher_C_ G:
Bummer. I knew something was up. It made no sense. How else can I cook this thing if not in the smoker?
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You can cook it in the WSM, it'll be good pratice for you. Cook it around 250º till an internal temp of 150º and then wrap it in foil. Cook for another hour in foil and check it for tender. If a probe or fork inserted goes in with little to no resistance, then it's done. If not done, wrap it back up and cook for another 20-30 min and check it again. Yeah a 2lb. piece of a flat suxs, but you can still learn from it. HTH
 
Originally posted by Bryan S:
<BLOCKQUOTE class="ip-ubbcode-quote"><div class="ip-ubbcode-quote-title">quote:</div><div class="ip-ubbcode-quote-content">Originally posted by Christopher_C_ G:
Bummer. I knew something was up. It made no sense. How else can I cook this thing if not in the smoker?
Click to expand...
You can cook it in the WSM, it'll be good pratice for you. Cook it around 250º till an internal temp of 150º and then wrap it in foil. Cook for another hour in foil and check it for tender. If a probe or fork inserted goes in with little to no resistance, then it's done. If not done, wrap it back up and cook for another 20-30 min and check it again. Yeah a 2lb. piece of a flat suxs, but you can still learn from it. HTH </div></BLOCKQUOTE>

Ok. I will give it a shot. Got nothing to lose. I was going to go to Costco tomorrow to look for a proper one but as you say this might be an interesting experiment.
 
Originally posted by Christopher_C_ G:
I was going to go to Costco tomorrow to look for a proper one but as you say this might be an interesting experiment.
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You'll have to ask one of the butchers there for a Whole flat in cryo, as they cut the flats into pieces and put them on a styrofoam tray for the meat case.
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Christopher, sorry so long to respond. You are correct, I never remove from the smoker and place the brisket in the oven. I have no reason other than preference for not finishing in the oven. I'm not interested in speeding up the cooking process when I do BBQ.

I will usually try to mentally note when the meat hits around 180 internal temp, and then only check for tenderness to tell when it's done. Although no two pieces of meat are the same, I find that most of my briskets are ready around the 190 to 195 mark, in the flat. Again, that's just my preference.

I've also noticed that the brisket seems to be much better (again, purely a preference) after resting for the 2 to 3 hour period, rather than just 1 to 2 hours. My goal is to rest my briskets for 3 hours in foil after removing from the smoker.

Lots of preferences I've listed here. Everyone has their own methods and preferences that they develop. Also worth noting is that I am 90% of the time smoking a 12 to 15 lb whole packer.
 
I went to costco and they had 5lb flat briskets. No whole ones. I didn't ask for one. I figured I'd give my little baby 2lb a shot.

I've had it on the WSM for about 90 minutes. Internal temp is 152. I removed and foiled. Back on for another hour. If it is fork tender after the next hour, do I need to let it rest for a while? I'm a little confused since I'm only cooking the flat part. Clay - you mention letting it rest for hours. Is that only for whole briskets?
 
Originally posted by Christopher_C_ G:
I went to costco and they had 5lb flat briskets. No whole ones. I didn't ask for one. I figured I'd give my little baby 2lb a shot.

I've had it on the WSM for about 90 minutes. Internal temp is 152. I removed and foiled. Back on for another hour. If it is fork tender after the next hour, do I need to let it rest for a while? I'm a little confused since I'm only cooking the flat part. Clay - you mention letting it rest for hours. Is that only for whole briskets?
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'If' it's tender and you're close to 'ready to eat' let it rest on the counter at least 30 minute, the open the foil and let cool another 30 minutes before slicing!

Resting for hours is not necessary, but helps redistribute the natural juices and let the meat reabsorb the juices forced out/rendered during the cooking process. You should always let meat rest and cool slightly before slicing.
 
I just checked it. Temp is 185. I stuck a fork in it and it did not seem very tender at all. I met quite a bit of resistance. I put it back on the WSM in the foil. Will check again in 30 minutes. Not feeling too good about this right now.
 
No go. Came out inedible. Totally dried out and very tough. Went right in the garbage.

What's the secret here? I smoked at 250 until internal temp was 160 (about 90 min). Removed and foiled then back on the cooker for another 75-90 min. Internal temp was 195 when I took it off but it never felt tender. Should I have cooked it longer? Or was I just working with the wrong kind of cut.

I'd like to give it another shot but I don't have 12 hours to spend on this so I'd like to use another flat cut.
 
I wish I could offer more insight, but I've never smoked just a flat, nor a piece of meat only 2 lbs. A friend of mine smoked a flat a month or so ago and loved it. I'll ask the size, and how he did it.

I've always purchased the larger packers. But as you noted, if you don't want to spend the 10 to 12 hours to low and slow them, your options would be smaller pieces of meat or the high heat method. You are correct that I rest large briskets 2 to 3 hours. As mentioned, I've never cooked a small brisket.

The High heat method seems to be popular on the forum, and most give it rave reviews. This may be a good solution to your problem. Cook a lot of meat in like 5 hours or so. I have no logical reason for not doing the high heat method and waking up in the middle of the night to start the low and slow brisket smoking, it's just what I do.

Costco up here in the northwest does not carry whole packer briskets. They only carry flats in the summer. Sams club always has whole packers and flats in stock up here.

Keep on experimenting. I would highly recommend a larger piece of meat though. Seems reasonable that could have been a factor in the meat being dry. Most of the flats I see up here are 4+ lbs.
 
Originally posted by Christopher_C_ G:
No go. Came out inedible. Totally dried out and very tough. Went right in the garbage.

What's the secret here? I smoked at 250 until internal temp was 160 (about 90 min). Removed and foiled then back on the cooker for another 75-90 min. Internal temp was 195 when I took it off but it never felt tender. Should I have cooked it longer? Or was I just working with the wrong kind of cut.

I'd like to give it another shot but I don't have 12 hours to spend on this so I'd like to use another flat cut.
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Chris, this is exactly why I recommended
Originally posted by Larry Wolfe:<span class="ev_code_RED">Chris, if you have a grinder, grind that 'piece' of brisket you have and make burgers.....brisket burgers are awesome. But that piece of brisket is gonna tick you off in the end if you cook smoke it. Honestly, I would not bother smoking it.</span>
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You started off with a bad, overly trimmed piece of the brisket flat....You missed out on some good burgers though!
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Glad to see you are ready to try another brisket, DON'T GIVE UP! You will succeed once you're given a good cut of meat.

Search around and find a flat of around 6lbs. Cooking in the 245º-260º range that piece of meat should take between 6-9 hours until tender. That's foiling at 165º and cooking until tender. Don't go by temp, but use temps as a guide to begin when to start checking for tender. I generally begin to check for tender around 190º, then every 5º from there. It's tender when you can easily slide your meat probe in the thickest portion of the flat.
 
Glad I read this thread, although not happy to hear about Chris' experience with this cut...

I am planning on smoking this weekend... Sam's Club has both 8lb'ers and the packers over 12.
Is it cool to smoke over night? I mean, if it is gonna take 12 hours, I'd like to have it ready for the late Sunday football games (including the Packer game at 7).
Suppose I could start it early Sunday mornin' about 4-5....
Any ideas?
 
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