Run away brisket or bad probe?

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mottman

Got Wood.
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Last night I trimmed my brisket, leaving about 1/4 inch fat or so, put the rub on and put it in the fridge. Its about a 4 pound packer.

This morning I fired up the WSM, got it humming and stable between 225 and 250. Then I pulled out the brisket put the probe in the middle and the the brisket on the smoker. My first indication of something wrong was that the temp read 68 right after pulling the meat out of the fridge. Then, after about half an hour the temperature read around 120 and now after almost an hour on the smoker its reading 155, where I planned to pull it and wrap it.

Does that seem a little fast rising to you? I know its a smaller cut, but it seems that at 225 or 250 even it shouldn't have risen that fast. This is the second brisket I've ever done so I'm still trying to figure out the whole process.
 
I moved it to another spot and it read 150 and got back up to 155 after about 10 minutes.

I then decided to try it out on the palm of my hand. Pulled the probe and was able to hold it right after coming out of the meat. It finally settled at about 96.5 in my hand. Seems odd that I would be able to hold it right out of the meat if it really was 155.
 
I did a brisket on the 4th at exactly your temps. The temps climbed to 150ish within the first hour and a half to two hours. Then they stalled for quite some time. It took about 9 hours and 190* or so but probed really tender when I pulled and wrapped it and into the cooler it went for a few hours. It'll hit the stall for a while and climb up really slowly. I check around 180* to see if it's probe tender then pull it. I don't solely go off temps. Probing tender determines when I pull. The temp is just a rough estimate for me.

A question for you. Are going to pull at 155 and wrap it and rest it or are you pulling it to wrap and throw it back on the grill until 180-190? 155 is way to early to pull the brisket off and let it rest.
 
I was going to wrap it and put it back on the smoker.

Its getting close to two hours on and at about 162. I'll wrap it and put it back on for a while till I get to 185 then start probing for tenderness. That was the plan anyway.

Its just going way faster than I expected. We plan to eat around 6 and its noon here now. I was hoping to fully pull it and let it rest around 430 or so, but the speed of it so far has me thinking it will need to be pulled earlier than that to not over cook it.
 
I cooked a 15 1/2 lb packer for the fourth. I set the bws at 205 and was amazed at how fast it cooked. 10 hours and it was done. Anyway, I had a bad probe right off the bat. Lucky I had a spare.
 
155 That fast in an hour is probably a bad probe... Invest in a good thermometer and probes.

Your cook is only as good as it's weakest link.....
 
mottman said:
Last night I trimmed my brisket, leaving about 1/4 inch fat or so, put the rub on and put it in the fridge. Its about a 4 pound packer.

This morning I fired up the WSM, got it humming and stable between 225 and 250. Then I pulled out the brisket put the probe in the middle and the the brisket on the smoker. My first indication of something wrong was that the temp read 68 right after pulling the meat out of the fridge. Then, after about half an hour the temperature read around 120 and now after almost an hour on the smoker its reading 155, where I planned to pull it and wrap it.

Does that seem a little fast rising to you? I know its a smaller cut, but it seems that at 225 or 250 even it shouldn't have risen that fast. This is the second brisket I've ever done so I'm still trying to figure out the whole process.
Click to expand...
That cow must have been all of a week old.
Do your self a favor and get a Cow Poke Therma- Pen, it has the fastest read, guaranteed accurate,Lifetime warranty against Mfg defects, never needs batteries, No leads to break, never needs calibrating, About 4.oo at your local hardware emporium.

 
May be a little quick, but that is a tiny, tiny brisket and probably very thin.

There are many approaches to monitoring brisket cook progress.

One school is to just "learn" how to do it with ice picks or whatever. That is certainly a noble goal and you should get to "nirvana" in only a few hundred attempts. 8)

The other school is to monitor the temp as you have done and adjust as needed as the cook progresses. That approach reduces the learning curve substantially and saves a ton of time, money, and frustration. 8)

The desired end result with either approach is "probe tender" and not some temp on a thermometer!!
The thermometer is a tool to get you to the desired end result.

You are on the right track IMHO.

Keep us posted.

TIM
 
We recently bought a cow that wound up being about 430 lbs hanging weight. This is from that. I'm not sure what to think of the butcher since we had to specifically ask for the brisket as it wasn't part of the standard cuts. Is that typical? All of the other cuts, steaks roasts etc have been delicious, but a little small. I think the cow was on the smaller side to begin with. It was our first time buying a whole cow.

But yeah, it seemed like a pretty small brisket to me when I first saw it.
 
I wouldn't assume that it will be done too early.
you may need 200 to be tender and it may take several more hours
( in my very very limited experience ).

Brothers, correct me if i'm wrong.
i'm only talkin' to ease this man's pain.

also...I was advised yesterday by a brethren that you can put that brisket in the cooler ( when it's done) and, if properly insulated, it can wait there for several hours till dinner time...when it will come out still hot and juicy.

good luck.
 
The_Kapn said:
May be a little quick, but that is a tiny, tiny brisket and probably very thin.

There are many approaches to monitoring brisket cook progress.

One school is to just "learn" how to do it with ice picks or whatever. That is certainly a noble goal and you should get to "nirvana" in only a few hundred attempts. 8)

The other school is to monitor the temp as you have done and adjust as needed as the cook progresses. That approach reduces the learning curve substantially and saves a ton of time, money, and frustration. 8)

The desired end result with either approach is "probe tender" and not some temp on a thermometer!!
The thermometer is a tool to get you to the desired end result.

You are on the right track IMHO.

Keep us posted.

TIM
Click to expand...


About an hour ago I went and checked and saw that it was stalling around 160 (per the suspect probe). I foiled it and put in about a cup of beef broth mixed with a little apple juice and put it back on. The WSM is holding steady at 235 and the probe says the meat is about 168, slowly rising. I have it set to notify me at 185 to start checking for tenderness.
 
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