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Question About a Brisket Purchase...

castlepines

castlepines

is Blowin Smoke!
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So, I've been feeling a little cocky lately about my smoking skills. After having a couple successes with my first two butts I've decided to do an "end-around" and move up to a brisket. I stopped at Walmart just for S's and G's and they happened to have a good sized (just shy of 16lbs) beef brisket on sale. Normally it's $2.38/lbs but was marked down to $1.67/lbs with the caveat that it must sold by 9/27. It's USDA select, not prime, but it's my first brisket so I didn't want to break the bank on it.

I will be out of town this weekend but am thinking about cooking this beast either on Sunday, Monday or Tuesday of this week. I don't want to freeze it only to thaw it a short time later if I don't have to. I'm wondering how long after the "sell by" date this thing will be good for if I just leave it in the fridge without freezing it. Thoughts?
 
It'd be good a week later ......besides Smoke fixes bad meats......:grin:

There was just an article put out the other day on the a Yahoo or somewhere on how much Good Food Americans waste because of those dates.
 
It will probably be fine for a few days, but unless you know how Walmart assigned that sell by date, or know the date that the brisket was originally packed, you can't tell for sure.
 
A little age is a good thing and don't be so fast to belittle a Select,they cook up just fine if it don't it aint the cows fault:roll:. Some of the very best briskets I have ever cooked have been graded Select.
 
Sell by, or best by dates are just suggestions. Most products last considerably longer. Great price!
 
It seems that most people still don't know that Beef is very different than
Poultry and Pork. Poultry and Pork will go bad fairly quick, and should be eaten
as fresh as possible. Beef goes "bad" much differently. Beef is best when it has
been aged, this improves its flavor and makes it more tender too.

Whenever I buy Beef, I plan to cook it 4 or 5 days AFTER the "use by date".
So wait until Tuesday or Wednesday to cook that Brisket. This way it has
a little time to age, and will give you better flavor and tenderness.
 
SmittyJonz said:
It'd be good a week later ......besides Smoke fixes bad meats......:grin:

There was just an article put out the other day on the a Yahoo or somewhere on how much Good Food Americans waste because of those dates.
Click to expand...


Here is an article I just read today regarding this. I agree beef is the most forgiving on aging time, I once left a brisket in the fridge for 6 weeks and it cooked up awesome.

http://shine.yahoo.com/healthy-living/expired-food-just-nose-190200241.html
 
I cooked lots of Wal Mart select briskets with fantastic results long before I knew about any other grade of brisket. I thought that a brisket was a brisket. The going price for Wal Mart briskets was $.99 lb for years on sale. I guess that dates me, but it wasn't too many years ago that you could still get one on sale for that price.

Blessings,
Omar
 
sliding_billy said:
You will be fine. Is there a packed date on it?
Click to expand...

No pack date listed and I didn't ask.

The next issue is that the brisket is just a little bit longer than my 18.5 WSM. Would you rather put something in the middle underneath it to allow it to bend or would you fold part of the flat underneath it to allow it all to fit?
 
Last edited:
castlepines said:
No pack date listed and I didn't ask.

The next issue is that the brisket is just a little bit longer than my 18.5 WSM. Would you rather put something in the middle underneath it to allow it to bend or would you fold part of the flat underneath it to allow it all to fit?
Click to expand...

wrap a beer can in foil and lay the briskey on it
 
Thanks, brethren. I'm nervous and excited to tackle my first brisket! Can't wait!
 
Keep us posted on how it goes. I'm trying my second one ever this weekend. Should go on in the wee hours of the morning on Saturday and cook until its done. I don't have any deadline to meet, so this one will be pure learning experience.
 
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