Using Aaron Franklin's Method for Brisket


 
Noe said:
Mache if you want to cook the ultimate brisket its not hard, Take the largest roaster pan you can fit on the top grate of your WSM, set the wire rack inside the roaster pan, add 1"-2" of liquid in the pan, place your rubbed brisket inside the roaster pan fat side up the pan will protect the meat from the direct heat and the fat cap will protect the brisket from the top, cook brisket @ 275+ till done. No need to foil or butcher paper, guaranteed your brisket will be just as good if not better than Franklin's. Make sure the original water pan is removed during this cook.
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Noe,
That's great tip. I'm going to smoke a 17 lb packer tonight and i want to try your methode. So i need some more info, please.
Wich liquid in the pan ( water or broth or beer) ?
Meat on the rack does not touch liquiq. Right?
Obviously, no foil at all, never. Right?
Fat side up trimmed a little or nothing?
No water pan w/ or w/o water at all. Simply i remove it. Right?
How long does it thake to finish. I plan to start smoking at midnight for next lunch 13 hours later. Is it ok w/ 17 packer brisket, considering resting period (1 or 2 h better)?
 
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Enrico what I would use for the liquid if I did it this ways would be a decent red wine or a good beer, something along the lines of Irish Red, Porter or a Stout. What I used would depend on what I have on hand at the time and what I think would compliment the rub I am using.
 
Mache said:
4. Let the brisket come to room temperature. Place the brisket fat side up on the grate next to a disposal loaf pan filled with water. Smoke with your favorite wood until you until reach an internal temperature of 165F.

5. At 165F first check the bark to make sure it is solid, nice color, and well set.
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I use this general method, too, and really like it. My experience has been that the packer's flat (at 275-300 grill temps) tends to hit 165 before I have that deep mahogany color I like. (Especially if I wet-age the packer for awhile.) So, I'm likely cooking way into the stall before I wrap in BP. Now, I don't even probe for temp; I wrap when the color is where I want it.

I always use a dry, foiled pan and mesquite lump--which I like for flavor (added wood is typically 2/3 mesquite and 1/3 pecan or oak)--and the lump allows me to add pieces as needed to juice up the temp.

After 90 min in BP, I'll probe the flat for tender. When it's finally there from a tenderness perspective, it sure flops & wobbles when it hits the cutting board!
 
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EnricoB said:
Noe,
That's great tip. I'm going to smoke a 17 lb packer tonight and i want to try your methode. So i need some more info, please.
Wich liquid in the pan ( water or broth or beer) ?
Meat on the rack does not touch liquiq. Right?
Obviously, no foil at all, never. Right?
Fat side up trimmed a little or nothing?
No water pan w/ or w/o water at all. Simply i remove it. Right?
How long does it thake to finish. I plan to start smoking at midnight for next lunch 13 hours later. Is it ok w/ 17 packer brisket, considering resting period (1 or 2 h better)?
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Liquid of your choice, meat does not touch liquid, foil or butcher paper is up to you i myself never foil, i never trim just score the fat down to the meat, simply remove the pan your roaster pan takes the place of the water pan, i normally cook 12-14lb briskets at 275-300 average time 5-7 hrs every brisket is different. I personally rest my briskets 1/2hr -1hr and slice. Good luck and happy easter.
 
Noe said:
Liquid of your choice, meat does not touch liquid, foil or butcher paper is up to you i myself never foil, i never trim just score the fat down to the meat, simply remove the pan your roaster pan takes the place of the water pan, i normally cook 12-14lb briskets at 275-300 average time 5-7 hrs every brisket is different. I personally rest my briskets 1/2hr -1hr and slice. Good luck and happy easter.
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Noe, I'll have to give that a try sometime, especially if it goes that quick! Where you measuring temp? Do you recommend more smoke since it's in the pan the whole time?
 
Dave Russell said:
Noe, I'll have to give that a try sometime, especially if it goes that quick! Where you measuring temp? Do you recommend more smoke since it's in the pan the whole time?
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Dave i measure temp at the dome exhaust vent, no extra smoke is needed just smoke as you normally would.
 
Just finishing up a 12-pounder using the Franklin method @ 250. It's been hard to keep the temp steady, since it's been on and off breezy here. Put it on at 11:00p last night. It's now 12:30p here and it's temping at 185 and as expected, not quite fully tender yet. The wind has been driving me round the bend. it'll be still for a half hour and the temp will shoot up to 280-ish, then pick up to 10mph+ and the temp will dive to 220. I've been trying to resist the urge to chase the temp, but alas, I am weak. Probably making the problem worse.

I started with a 17lb. Choice packer and trimmed about 2 lbs of fat. I measured it and it was way too long to fit in an 18.5, so I had to chop about 3" of the flat off just so I could wedge it between the handles. I cubed it up and froze it -- It'll get mixed with chuck and pork rib trimmings for burgers.

Noe, I used to use a candy thermometer clipped to the exhaust vent and found it to be fairly accurate. Then I installed a lid thermometer on my old 18.5 and much to my chagrin, found it to be wildly erratic -- sometimes off as much as 50 degrees. I use a Maverick now and it's much more reliable. If I can locate the old candy thermometer, I may go back to monitoring the exhaust vent temp.

Jeff
 
Being inspired recently by Franklin's briskets (and everyone else here) I made my first attempt at brisket this Easter morning on a mini-wsm. 6.5lb Costco brisket, 250 temps on Kingsford competition charcoal, with bottom vents 1/2 open, top vents nearly closed, water pan full of water. Came back from church 4 hours later to mop it with some apple cider vinegar and refill the water pan. Mopped again 1 hour later. Pulled it out at the 6 1/2 hour mark. Let it sit for an hour wrapped in paper. It tasted fine, but didn't have the tenderness I see in Franklin's videos. It wasn't necessarily "dry" or "tough" (those are very loaded words to a sensitive bbq guy). In fact, the fatty parts were quite tender and moist, but most of it felt a bit... how should I say, LEAN? I know I must be doing something wrong--either letting it cook at too high temps, or not cooking it long enough. Or maybe I just need a larger, better quality brisket. Also, I realize it's important to cut directly against the grain. If you cut at an angle you'll end up chewing harder. Some pics to share:

 
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Assuming it was just a flat, I've had to cook faster and use foil to get them done in under 1hr/lb. How did you check for tenderness?
 
For me, they didn't pull apart as easily as in Franklin's video. Also, I believe they are supposed to lie like stopwatches in a Dali painting when placed on a plate's edge. Mine didn't do that.
 
ChangL said:
For me, they didn't pull apart as easily as in Franklin's video. Also, I believe they are supposed to lie like stopwatches in a Dali painting when placed on a plate's edge. Mine didn't do that.
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Cook till it feels like poking through warm butter when probed, let the IT* fall to 170, then keep wrapped and hot for a couple or more hours if you can. I posted a pic on the second page of my most recent one. If smoking a flat by itself I'd probably wrap in foil.
 
The idea with the BP is to prevent the bark from drying out and getting too crusty. Using water helps to an extent. I've smoked lots of brisket with and w/out water, BP etc.. The best ones I've done started out with a quality brisket (prime,lots of marbling) wrapped with BP just as the bark has set. If there is little humidity in the air water helps quite a bit, although it's a bit messy to work with sometimes. I don't like using temp probes anymore with brisket.. I like going by look and feel. I use a bamboo skewer and I want it to go in like a hot knife through butter. Resting 3+ hour is ideal. The best one I've done recently was rested 9 hours.. it cooked faster than I thought (9 hours) and I wasn't ready to serve it till late in the day. I also have to agree, a WSM can't match the smoke flavor from an offset smoker.

Yes Franklin uses all natural Creekstone briskets.. and his brisket is da bomb!
 
I tried my brisket again today and figured out some ways to improve on them:
1. Cut thinner slices. No more than 1/4 inch, or a pencil's width.
2. Make sure you are cutting directly perpendicular to the grain. Yesterday, I was cutting at an angle, and that basically doubled the surface area of the grain length. The brisket's grain actually turns at an angle in the middle somewhere. Adjust accordingly.
3. Perhaps it was also because I let it sit wrapped on the counter until I put it in the fridge overnight. Today, with the appropriate cuts, it was pulling apart easily.

 
There ya go! Glad you didn't have to cook another one to see what the tenderness is like! Cutting pencil width slices against the grain with a fairly sharp knife is helpful, indeed! Looks good!
 
Noe said:
Mache if you want to cook the ultimate brisket its not hard, Take the largest roaster pan you can fit on the top grate of your WSM, set the wire rack inside the roaster pan, add 1"-2" of liquid in the pan, place your rubbed brisket inside the roaster pan fat side up the pan will protect the meat from the direct heat and the fat cap will protect the brisket from the top, cook brisket @ 275+ till done. No need to foil or butcher paper, guaranteed your brisket will be just as good if not better than Franklin's. Make sure the original water pan is removed during this cook.
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Thanks Noe! I tried this method over the weekend and got the best results I've gotten on brisket to date. I'll probably experiment with liquids and rubs, but I'll be using this technique as the starting point.

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That does look good. What kind of liquid did you use? I've got to cook a brisket for a graduation party in about two weeks and I think I will try this method. I need to get a wire rack. What kind is the one you used?

Wayne
 
I just got a generic wire cookie grate from Bed, Bath & Beyond. Next time, I'll probably use some rolled aluminum foil under the legs to adjust the height a little. On liquid, I used equal parts beef broth, apple juice, and apple cider vinegar. I'm not convinced that the liquids imparted any flavor to it so may try water next time (maybe with a few herbs thrown in just in case).

I've only done this method once, after Noe suggested it (Thank you, Noe!), so I'd be curious to see whether Noe or some of you other more experienced folks have experimented with different liquids.
 
Late to the party but I want to weigh in that you need to monitor meat temps on the way up to determine when to start poking. It's easy to say the meat is done when a probe goes in like butter but it will still go in like butter way after the meat is done. I know some disregard internal temps but, unless you're really checking in the later stages of a cook, you can ruin an expensive brisket by overcooking.
 
Mache said:
6. Maintain 250F and starting checking for done at 190F internal temperature. Done means the brisket feels soft and pliable through the paper. You could also check for done by carefully unwrapping the brisket and poking it with a thermometer probe but if you are doing things right the paper is going to stick to the very carmely and sticky bark. I have tried this way and only succeeded in shredding the paper. Instead, I do the probe test by pushing a bamboo skewer through the paper. If the brisket needs to go longer, I seal the hole with a stack of three small pieces of butcher paper soaked in a little vegetable oil.
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I agree, I have even re-thought starting to check for done at 185F IT and not 190F IT.

-- Mache
 
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