Brisket-Pellet-It's been a while

[flem0061]

My brother's 50's is coming up and he wants a brisket - Lemme back up a second... My sister-in-law is a local food writer and thinks I've got smashing bbq pit skills, which I do with some things... But, I haven't done a brisket in 15 years or more. If it turns out, it may be foodie article worthy, if it doesn't, well, I hope the title of that article isn't "Brisket, Not For The Weekend BBQ Commando".

I'd like to do it on my Pit Boss copperhead so it can be as set it and forget it as possible since our temp is single digits and dropping here (we will also be distracted by brewing a commemorative beer for the "old guy"). I'm wondering if the community can give me some pointers on type of pellets and method (I did a search and found a mixed bag of hot and fast, low and slow, hot and fast, low and slow). I see a lot of reference to mesquite for Texas style but we're really not fans of mesquite.

I've not been impressed with Pit Boss's recipe instructions but here is what one suggests:
Trim and rub up to 4 hours before cooking (is longer better?)
Smoke at 195 until 160 degrees using pecan pellets (Going to order some Bear Mtn asap, would pecan be too sweet or should I mix with something like hickory?)
wrap in butcher paper and cook at 250 until internal temp reaches 203 (I've used foil in the past but have butcher paper on the way from Amazon - butcher the better choice?).
Rest in cooler for 2 hours (is this long enough?)

Any pointers on water pan and rack position to use in the copperhead are appreciated as well.

Thank you in advance collective sensei!

[Whumpa]

Sounds to me like you have a pretty solid plan, except for one major thing. Don’t rely on the “cook until the internal temp reaches 203”. The finishing temp is most definitely not cast in stone. Probe for tenderness to determine if your brisket is done. And probe in various places on your brisket, both point and flat.

[RCAlan]

Originally Posted by flem0061

My brother's 50's is coming up and he wants a brisket - Lemme back up a second... My sister-in-law is a local food writer and thinks I've got smashing bbq pit skills, which I do with some things... But, I haven't done a brisket in 15 years or more. If it turns out, it may be foodie article worthy, if it doesn't, well, I hope the title of that article isn't "Brisket, Not For The Weekend BBQ Commando".

I'd like to do it on my Pit Boss copperhead so it can be as set it and forget it as possible since our temp is single digits and dropping here (we will also be distracted by brewing a commemorative beer for the "old guy"). I'm wondering if the community can give me some pointers on type of pellets and method (I did a search and found a mixed bag of hot and fast, low and slow, hot and fast, low and slow). I see a lot of reference to mesquite for Texas style but we're really not fans of mesquite.

I've not been impressed with Pit Boss's recipe instructions but here is what one suggests:
Trim and rub up to 4 hours before cooking (is longer better?)
Smoke at 195 until 160 degrees using pecan pellets (Going to order some Bear Mtn asap, would pecan be too sweet or should I mix with something like hickory?)
wrap in butcher paper and cook at 250 until internal temp reaches 203 (I've used foil in the past but have butcher paper on the way from Amazon - butcher the better choice?).
Rest in cooler for 2 hours (is this long enough?)

Any pointers on water pan and rack position to use in the copperhead are appreciated as well.

Thank you in advance collective sensei!

Pellet Smoke is light to begin with and for a cut of beef like a brisket, I would recommend using a Pellet Smoke Tube to add that extra touch of smoke flavor that you would be definitely missing if you relied on the smoke production of your PB Copperhead pellet grill alone. A good Pellet Smoke tube costs about $15.00-$20.00 and they can be a very valuable asset when bbqing on a pellet smoker/grill. You can use a mixture of half hickory pellets mixed with the wood chips of your choice. Also another tip that may help you with your brisket cook, is to inject it with the injection of your choice too add some extra moisture and flavor to the brisket. Start your brisket cook at about 180* degrees for the first 2-3 hours to help add smoke to your brisket and then bump the temp up to 250*-275* degrees to finish your cook. Temps above 250* degrees on most pellet smoker produce very little smoke, but the pellet smoke tube will help supplement the smoke production, while your pellet grill finishes the cook. Wrap with butcher paper and foil when ready and bbq until probe tender... That could be from 195* degrees on up to 205* degrees internal temp or even a tad bit higher. FYI... A brisket is done when it’s done, so no need to worry... Just sit back and relax and let your PB Copperhead and Pellet Smoke Tube do the work. Good luck

[Callahan-que]

I've gotten good smoke flavor cooking briskets on my Austin XL using hickory pellets. As Whumpa said cook till probe tender. There is no law that says you have to rest it in a cooler for xxx hours.

[sudsandswine]

Wrapping at 160* is way too early. I wouldn’t do that. Maybe 175*+ if you’re going to.

[jzadski]

If you are ordering from Bear Mt. I would get the bold mix. One of my best ever pellet briskets came from them. For a while now I have been putting brisket in a foil pan when it's time to wrap but, I cover it with butcher paper using binder clips. This for me at least keeps the au jus and the bark nice.