Results of 1st brisket cook (pics included)

Well, since I got all that help from you guys, I guess it'd only be nice for me to give a recap as well as some pictures.

We went out to that Texas Spice Company (right down the road) and bought spices to make a rub. They had a prepared rub, so I bought one of those to test agaist the homemade one.

The first brisket is the homemade rub:


The second was slathered in apple sauce and then has their rub:


We decided to not put any rub on the fat of this one, just to see the difference.

My big mistake of the evening was not "marking" them with a toothpick or something, because I couldn't really tell the difference when I was done.

So now, I refer to them as "A" and "B", because I don't know which is which.

Brisket "A":




This one turned out GREAT! Cut great. Pulled apart easily, but not too easily. VERY GOOD!

Here's brisket "B":




This one was very juicy, yet tougher. It didn't pull apart nearly as easily. I don't know whether I just cooked it too much or whether it was a tougher piece of meat, or what.

Any tips on how to pick out briskets would be appreciated!


We cooked a bunch of fatties, since there were Jimmy Dean coupons in last Sunday's paper.

We cooked some normal ones and stuffeded others with Pepper Monterrey Jack along with diced jalapenos and diced red peppers. (one with just cheese/japs...another w/cheese/red....and one w/all 3)


I guess with all of these pictures, I should have labeled this thread NSFW. :grin:

I pulled em out at 170, foiled til 190 and threw em in a cooler. They were in there a little longer than I expected, because the cook was shorter than I planned.

I do have some questions, though, if anyone could help.

1. First, picking out a brisket. How do I get a good one? (This week was practice, and the big performance is Easter dinner)

2. My family likes their brisket "extra moist". Just cook it less?

3. In one thread, someone said they don't pull at 190, but when it "feels right". I have no idea what that means!!!

First, picking out a brisket. How do I get a good one

Click to expand...

Pick one that's flexible in the package, and has a nice fat cap that isn't too thick.

2. My family likes their brisket "extra moist". Just cook it less?

Click to expand...

This is the tricky part of brisket, more done=more tender, less done=more juice. Finding that perfect balance is the trick, it's gets easier when you've done a few.

3. In one thread, someone said they don't pull at 190, but when it "feels right". I have no idea what that means!!!

Click to expand...

Some people feel how flexible the brisket is (floppier=doner), others use a fork to stab the brisket and see if you can twist the fork in the tender area of the meat. Still others use a thermometer probe to check how easily it inserts into the meat.

I recommend you try all of these when you cook briskets and you'll have the hang of it in no time.

I see pics.

ok...this all makes sense....so if the fam wants the brisket kinda falling apart, i should cook it more.....

ok....so i went out and bought the Easter Brisket today. $1.36/lb at sam's

about to put together the rub today. cookin tomorrow evening.

so i'll cook it to about 170 internal.....wrap the thing in foil til the middle feels right (start checkin at about 185, but wait for feel)...... then take off the foil for more bark....then wrap and cooler?