Two Briskets at Once

[DavidWH]

Hi all. I have been enjoying my 18.5" WSM for the past year and have had great brisket results using the usual methods.....low and slow, butcher paper wrap later in the cook, Thermowork grate and meat temp. probe, etc. But now I am facing a huge crowd on July 4th, so I will need to smoke two briskets. Is there any difference in cooking times, etc. on the upper grate vs. the lower? My plan is to start the briskets the night before and switch their positions about 4 hours into the cook. Should I then insert the meat probe into the top or bottom brisket? Any past experience advice appreciated!

 

[jfortson]

My response would be yes and switch them as you mentioned. Another variable is that each piece of meat cooks differently which could be several hours. If you have Mavericks or other means of monitoring the temp, do that; or possibly a thermapen or other device when switching. The ultimate measure will be the tenderness test with a toothpick or probe such as the thermapen.

Just allow plenty of time and remember resting the briskets wrapped in a towel and in a cooler is a good thing. If one is ready first, it'll just have longer to rest.

 

[Andrew F]

Agreed, you are going to want to monitor both meats as you cook. If this is going to be one time thing, I'd go and get a cheep 2 probe remote thermo, stuff one probe in each hunk of meat, and use your thermowork meat probe to "check" the 'el cheep-o.

 

[J Hasselberger]

I don't use meat temperature to tell when a brisket is done, but it's good to start checking when it hits about 190. I'd start with the smaller/thinner brisket on the bottom so that it ends up on top at the end of the cook. Then give it the probe test for doneness. It will likely be done first (maybe), so you can pull it and move #2 up to the top grate. You might want to monitor the pit temp at both grates to give you more info. If you only have one pit probe, stick a meat probe through a potato and just set it on the grate.

Jeff

 

[JayHeyl]

I'm still re-learning how to use the WSM. I did 12 lbs of chicken thighs this weekend. They completely covered both grates. I didn't turn or rotate at all, just left them where I put them until I took them off. The ones in the center of the lower grate obviously cooked much slower than all the others. They were a good 20F lower internal temp when I pulled all the upper rack and most of the lower rack. And I had put the smallest pieces in the center. I moved them to the outside of the lower rack (should have put them on the upper rack) and they took another 20 minutes to finish. My fire was just about dead by then.

Obviously, brisket and chicken are literally two different animals, but this seemed a clear indication that the middle of the lower rack is significantly cooler than the outer edge or the upper rack.