When to rub brisket?


 
W

William Schmitz

TVWBB Fan
I'm planning on a brisket cook tomorrow. Wondering about the pros and cons of doing my dry rub today, wrapping and letting them sit overnight vs. waiting until shortly before they go on the smoker (high heat brisket).

I have learned that I don't like my pork ribs or shoulder rubbed early, as I think the salt makes the meat taste hammy . . . however I do usually salt my steaks several hours, if not a full day, before I grill them them. I like the way the salt penetrates the meat and the moisture it pulls out of the steak, which I think helps create a beautiful sear and crust.

So my instincts are to do it to my brisket, not that I need to worry about a sear, but to get the salt flavor to penetrate the meat, without using an injection. Any thoughts? Pros? Cons? Will I be more likely to end up with a dry brisket?

Thanks, and have a great Fourth of July!

Bill
 
I would put the rub on the brisket while your getting your smoker ready. Don't forget your camera tomorrow.
 
I think it probably depends on your rub, what it consists of. I have rubbed my brisket and my ribs the night before the cook with my favorite Texas BBQ Rubs, and they come out fantastic.
If you are just using a salt and pepper rub probably just shortly before the cook should be fine.
Just my observations so far.
 
Personnel preference, I add the night before and hit it again with just before it hits the smoker.
 
I think so much depends on how much salt is in your favorite rub. I make most of my own rubs now so I don't have to worry but some rubs are very salty and that's when the meat will start to cure if put on too soon. Taste it and see or check out the label for the sodium percentage.
 
So a quick report. I decided to rub it the day before. I make my own rubs, so they are usually pretty low salt, and often no salt. This one was a combo of brown sugar, sugar in the raw, ancho chile powder, smoked paprika, black pepper, white pepper, adobo (cumin based), garlic powder, onion powder and coffee. I salted the meat pretty aggressively as it was a really big brisket (17 lbs brisket trimmed down to 12 lbs), added the rub and wrapped tightly in foil and put in a cooler with ice.

The next day I injected with a mix of beef broth, apple cider, apple cider vinegar and a little rub. I fired up the smoker and got it on about 10:00 AM. It was too big for the smoker so I cut off a portion of the point which I planned to use for burnt ends. Smoker ran between 300-325 the whole time. Used Jack Daniels wood chips and a little apple for flavor.

After four hours, it had reached 165 degrees so I pulled it off and wrapped it in foil with more of my injection mix. Point section was also wrapped at same time. Both went back on for anther 2.5 hours. At that point, I checked it with a probe thermometer for tenderness and temp (read 205, and very tender). I was little concerned that I had overcooked it due to the high temp, but took it out and let it rest, still wrapped for almost two hours. The point I cubed and tossed with a little extra rub, some BBQ sauce and then went back in the smoker in a pan for the 2 hours, while the remainder was resting.

A couple of observations on final product. First, I had never tried to do burnt ends before. Wow! They were amazing. Like meat candy: a little crusty and sweet on the outside, but tender as can be all the way through. That is now going to be a staple for the future. Secondly, I've never let my brisket rest this long. I think it made a huge difference. The meat was perfectly sliceable, but still full of moisture, and tender as could be. Having watched BBQ Pitmasters, I tried the pull apart test and it was dead on!

As for whether or not rubbing early made a difference, I'm not sure. It certainly had no adverse affect. Meat remained tender and juicy. I think the flavor was really nice, but can't be certain if that was from the rub penetrating the meat, or the injection. That said, if I have time in the future, I think I will rub my briskets a day ahead of the cook.

Hope this was informative. Here are a few pictures for the cook: http://brisket7513.shutterfly.com/pictures#n_5

Thanks,
Bill
 
Excellent job and post! And what's with this Shutterfly? Sure as heck has to beat out Photobucket, which I cannot stand. Nice job man!
 
Thanks, guys. No question this was far and away the best brisket I've ever done, and frankly the best I've ever eaten anywhere. I'm usually my own harshest critic, but damn this was good. Now, the question is whether I can ever reproduce this, or will this be my white whale? LOL

And, yes, Shutterfly is a really good site and very easy to use. Highly recommended.

Bill
 
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