First smoked brisket
 

http://i70.photobucket.com/albums/i1...ps3824905f.jpg

im good with ribs and really good with pork shoulders, but decided its time to try a brisket.

the taste was great, just was too tough, not sure what i did/didnt do, but will try again in a couple weeks.

180-200 for around 10-11 hours, 1 hr wrapped, 2 hours rest, took it to 180 degrees meat temp.

Looks good from here! You pulled it about 20 degrees to soon.

thanks, but i think if i would have left it in there any longer it would have been a board.

Ramp up the heat to 250 at least next time. And check for probe tender(when putting a thermo in is like sticking it in a tub of butter) Start checking for this at ~195. It could take up to 205 to be tender.

And yes that is way to low, thats nearing beef jerky temps. You almost had one huge piece of jerky.

im getting alot of mixed info, i was told by a person that makes great brisket (i have eaten it alot of times) to pull it at 165, i rendered a ton of the fat, i really dont see how it would soften up with more heat and longer. :(

You either misunderstood the dude who said 165 or he does not know what he does.

Brisket is done at 195-212. If you cook it at those extra low temps, you will dry it out before hitting your target. Try just a little hotter pit (smoke a lot of great briskets at 225) and if you are afraid of drying it out, foil it when you get to a nice color.

IT WILL SOFTEN UP somewhere around 200 degrees (if you do not dry it out).

Cook @ 225 or higher and cook it longer The test is the probe goes in like it is Butter

Also, what are you using to smoke with? equipment wise.

this is when i was restoring part of it, but this is my pit

http://i70.photobucket.com/albums/i1...ps216e47e4.jpg

i have smoked a few briskets with a friend is getting me into this.

but some we took to 185 and some to 205 and those were fairly dry as well, not sure but it has to be something small that we are doing wrong.

I get mad when my WSM gets under 250°. Just makes things take longer.

A higher temp will make 'er more tender. Like Hawgfather said, it needs to 'feel right'

I agree with the above mentioned advise about higher cook temps. You may want to try smoking at 250*. The Texas Crutch method is also a good way to go. Smoke it at 250* until the meat gets to 150* then wrap and continue till the meat hits 200* Pull it and wrap in a towel or blanket put into a pre warmed ice chest (put some hot water in it then empty before you add the wrapped meat) and let it rest for an hour or more.

im just not a fan of high temps, i was a big science person in school, more heat can draw out more moisture. but too many of yall are telling me the same thing.

now i want to take off of work and do it again LOL

thanks guys!

The magic wont happen in a tough piece of meat until you break it down by getting it around 200. Same concept as pulled pork from a pork butt.

You will often get what seem like mixed messages if you study the methods practiced by various board members here. That's because there is not always one way to smoke any particular meat. You have to examine the various methods and try them out to see what you prefer. The results are generally successful but not identical.

In this case it seems that the results were not fully successful. I hope you enjoyed the brisket nevertheless.

As to how more time/higher temp will produce more tender meat, one of the reactions that takes place during cooking is that connective tissue in the meat fibers softens and dissolves at a certain temperature. You are correct that if you try to get to that temperature too fast, you risk drying the meat. However if you do not reach the threshold temperature to dissolve the connective tissue, the meat will remain, uh... firm. :wink: As far as moisture goes, there is a lot locked up in the muscle fibers. Beef brisket contains about 71% water so you have a surprising amount to work with. If you don't do anything too extreme, you will not drive enough off to make the meat dry. At the point where you removed the brisket, there was still plenty there locked in the fibers that would be released as the meat continues to cook.

You have tried one strategy and found it not to produce results that please you so I'm happy to see that you are ready to try something different. :thumb: