Brisket Injection
 

This is really a comp question, which is why I put it in Comp BBQ.

I like the idea of injecting a brisket for comp, but you can see the injection sites when slicing. The slices taste great, but look terrible. Thoughts or tips?

ARe you talking about physical marks from the needle, or stained meat?

Todd,

Don't use an injection that stains, like with a lot of Soy Sauce.
Inject with the grain as much as possible.
Inject SLOW to allow the fluid to migrate.
Don't inject a "quick shot" and move away. Inject as much in one area (slowly) as it will accept, then move away some for the next load.

If heavily injected, place in pan in frig overnight to catch the liquid that leaks out. And it will if really loaded,

If you are serious about competition, invest in a brine pump.
Now, "That is an injector" to borrow from Dundee :lol:
Do a search, it has been discussed several times.

Never ever been a problem except the one time I injected soy into a turkey breast :lol:

TIM

Moderator note:
As to being comp specific?
We will leave this here for a day or two to get the comp perspective. But, we inject in "recreational" que also.

Flip the brisket every hour or so to help distribute the injection.

I'm not concerned about staining. I know how to avoid that. It is the physical marks in the meat that I'm concerned about. I'll try the "with the grain" approach and see if I can avoid issue.

Randy has a hog sirenge that we use at comp. Has a pistol grip handle and holds a lot of fluid. I'll have to get a picture someday.

Like this ?

http://www.alliedkenco.com/catalog/images/WI20330.jpg
This is what I use. Works great. I don't get any visible holes in the meat. Which needle are you using ? I use the one with multiple holes in it.

With the grain works well, you can also try using a smaller gauge needle.

I agree with Chris.. Check the thickness of the needle you are using... They can vary greatly. IToo thick a needle could easily spread the muscle fibers too far apart and make it difficult to close the gap to a less noticeable level as the internal temp is raised.

Whoa! I think my Christmas wish list just got a little longer! Where'd I find something like that?

I bought mine at alliedkenco.com but you can also get them at sausagemaker.com or from a vetrinary supply catalog. The one I saw in the vet catalog actually came with an extra barrel which I thought was nice.

Similar, but a different design.

I gotta have one of those. Used for intended purposes but never thought about using it for an injector.

Here's what we have.
http://www.qcsupply.com/Products/280.aspx

I see that they are around $50.00 (give or take a bit) and that they only hold a couple of ounces per load...still, the measured delivery is nice.

I still like my brine pump with hose that I got from www.butcher-packer.com. I sometimes inject copious amounts of pork or brisket and large volume pump lets me mix gallons of injection. Granted, it is $135.00 but has been worth every penny.

However, these measure dose injectors are really nice and would definately serve most of the brothers needs really well.

Its a matter of scale. For 2-4 butts per comp, what we have works great. Better than the small cajun injector size.