Brisket fail questions...

You can always wrap it up with some broth and continue to cook it in the oven until it falls apart. If it did dry out, can be put in a crock pot with enchilada sauce and turned into some killer tamale meat or chili. The flats sometimes don't probe tender until 205 to 210.

I foil mine at 150. I haven't done a brisket that large though, just a 6lb and an 8lb.
I would imagine that would help keep some moisture in though at an earlier time.

BevoBurn96 said:

You can always wrap it up with some broth and continue to cook it in the oven until it falls apart. If it did dry out, can be put in a crock pot with enchilada sauce and turned into some killer tamale meat or chili. The flats sometimes don't probe tender until 205 to 210.

Click to expand...

^This. cup of beef broth with a couple tablespoons worcestershire and a 1/2 stick unsalted butter.

Thespanishgrill said:

PS not sure if it matters but it was a 12.5 pound select from smart and final

Click to expand...

From my own experience after killin' many a brisket. I'll never do a select again. Choice or better for me. You say you went around 250*F? How accurate was your temp reading? Sounds undercooked my Friend.

There are folks here that can make a leather boot tender, I'm just not one of them. Don't Give Up! :thumb:

Toast said:

From my own experience after killin' many a brisket. I'll never do a select again. Choice or better for me. You say you went around 250*F? How accurate was your temp reading? Sounds undercooked my Friend.

There are folks here that can make a leather boot tender, I'm just not one of them. Don't Give Up! :thumb:

Click to expand...

I'll second that. I'd always just bought whatever I could find cheap. Not anymore. I did a USDA Choice brisket the other day and put absolutely no special effort into it. It was without a doubt the best brisket I've ever smoked!

The grade of the meat matters, to the extent that a Choice, or Prime is easier to get tender. But, the same rules apply. You have to apply the right amount of heat, over the right amount of time, to get it tender. I think you are still over-complicating things here.

First off, don't rub the night before, there is no need, and potentially, some problems. Rub it about an hour before you start cooking. For me, this system has worked over and over with Smart & Final Select packers, usually from Excel Packing.

1. remove from cryo, wash and trim of fat.
2. go fire up cooker
3. rub the packer
4. wait for fire to get stable, this takes about an hour, it rarely takes less
5. plop the meat into the cooker, close and let it run
6. check after an hour, see where cooker is, at grate temperatures between 250°F and 300°F, I will let it run. If I am short on time, I will adjust to 300°F.
7. do not open or mess with the brisket for at least 4 hours, as long as you are under 300°F.
8. Go out and probe it, if it is tender, remove, if it is not, leave it, return in another hour to hour and a half. Never probe the point, that means nothing. Only probe the flat, at the thickest part.
9. repeat until the flat is tender. Never under 250° or over 300­° except for special situation.

Almost every brisket I cook is a select grade all the Aluminium foil in Ky and all the added liquid to a wrap or an injection wont make it tender or moist. You have to cook it right. That means PROBE TENDER in the thickest part of the Flat.
BBQ RULES for SUCCESS

"YOU CAN NOT COOK GREAT BBQ ON A CONSISTENT BASIS COOKING TO AN INTERNAL TEMP OR BY TIME(XXX MIN PER LB) YOU MUST COOK BY FEEL!"For a Brisket that is probe tender in the thickest area of the flat, Pork Butts when the Bone wiggles lose, Ribs pass the Bend Test. These are the only reliable methods to indicate the proper time to declare the cook completed with success.

Select grade Second slice off the Falt

The last 2 briskets I cooked were 12.5-13# also. I trimmed a lot of fat off. More than a pound probably. Smoked at 250 for right at 10 hours. I foiled at 150 and pulled at 203 in flat. I personally think you need to cook longer. I agree with the others, don't worry about the point. Probe tender in the flat, the temp could be anywhere between 190-210 IT probably. May have to overcook one to figure it out. That's how I learned.

No, if you are truly at 300°F, then check it at four hours. If you are at a grate temperature of 250°F, then check it around 7 hours. It will be that much different in amount of time. This all assumes you are not wrapping.

It likely won't be done at 7 hours, but, you will start to get a feel for what is happening.

For the record, I dislike using internal temperature or time, alone, for guidance. I tend to poke the meat with my fingers, but, that would require a lot of coaching, or lots of cooking. I feel that I can poke, or squeeze the brisket and get a good feel for where I am in a cook. But, that is ridiculous to try and teach

Thespanishgrill said:

If that's the case then I would have needed to let it roll on even longer, it just felt like it was getting tougher but I'll let it roll next time and not use my digital thermometer and try and cook by feel.
Do you foil or no foil?

Click to expand...

Butcher paper

250º for 9 hours sounds too short a time in my experience.
Biggest indicators on what you're doing wrong will be if the flat is dry, and the fat isn't rendered down then it's undercooked.

It is really hard to get over that mental block of continuing to cook when you already think something is tough, but that is the case with brisket. If it ain't probing yet, it ain't done.

I don't foil typically.
At 250* it normally takes me 12 hours on my drum. I would say that from 185* to probe tender around 200* would probably take another 2 to 3 hours. If you were lifting the lid frequently checking starting at 185*, I doubt you'd ever get there. You're loosing too much heat opening the lid, especially with the flat on top and fat cap down.

Try again. I typically start checking for probe tender around 195* and usually need another 30 mins to 1 hour.

And remember, after you pull, allow to rest for 15 mins to 20 mins before wrapping and into a coooler.

Thespanishgrill said:

I had to put this question to you guys. I'm going to let my next one ride until it's probe tender but a friend of mine was suggesting pulling it in 190 range and just leaving it wrapped and coasting into the higher temp. From what I've read that's not the most reliable way but what do I know.
Let me know your thoughts please

Click to expand...

BluDawgs Brisket

K.I S.S. some of the best brisket you will ever eat! Total cook time including the rest 8 hrs or less. I promise it will be as moist as mornin dew on the lilly, tender as a mothers love, pure beefy smoky goodness.

1 packer 12-15 lb
Trim off the hard fat on each side of the flat thin the fat cap to 1/4"

Mix your Rub
1 part kosher salt 4 parts Med grind Black peppa by volume( this is a true 50/50 BY weight)
apply a coat of rub you need to be able to see the meat through the rub clearly.

Pre heat the pit to 300 deg
place brisket on the pit Fat Cap Down and point to the firebox unless it is a RF cooker then point to away from FB

Maintain pit between 275-325 if cookin on a stick burner
cook Brisket 4 hrs
remove from pit wrap in a single layer of Butcher paper Return to pit Fat cap up.
after 1 hr probe the thicket part of the Flat only! If it isn't *probe tender it will be within 1 hr.
once it is probe tender remove from the pit keep it wrapped in the paper you cooked it in and allow it to rest on your counter until the Internal temp reaches 150 this will take about two hrs.
Don't ever slice more than you can eat big pieces retain moisture and won't dry up on you like slices will.


*PROBE TENDER>This is the feel that is mimicked by cutting room temperature butter with a hot knife, there should be no drag