Marinade a brisket

[akoda]

I am working on a way to cook brisket better ultimately for a competition but this is more of a general question. How short of a time would be too short for a brisket to benefit from a marinade? I am thinking of the Dr. Pepper marinade but would want it on maybe only about 10 to 12 hours, I wonder would that even be worth doing. I plan to try anyway but wanted to hear from the experienced ...

Thanks

[Bludawg]

You can but why would ya .... It's supposed to taste like Roast beef to win to at a Comp. Go to a crappy BBQ restaurant that cooks on Southern Pride Pits and order the Brisket that is what the judges want. Smoke it for 2-3 hrs foil it to finish.

[The_Kapn]

Originally Posted by Bludawg

You can but why would ya .... It's supposed to taste like Roast beef to win to at a Comp. Go to a crappy BBQ restaurant that cooks on Southern Pride Pits and order the Brisket that is what the judges want. Smoke it for 2-3 hrs foil it to finish.

Have you cooked or judged comps??

Just curious.

TIM

[Ron_L]

Originally Posted by Bludawg

You can but why would ya .... It's supposed to taste like Roast beef to win to at a Comp. Go to a crappy BBQ restaurant that cooks on Southern Pride Pits and order the Brisket that is what the judges want. Smoke it for 2-3 hrs foil it to finish.

Really?

Akoda, I doubt that you would get much penetration in only 10 - 12 hours. There is some good information online about marinades and most show penetration of only a 1/4 inch or so even after longer times.

But, you can always try it and see how well it works!

[sliding_billy]

I think you would be better off finding the flavor profile you are looking for with an injection than a marinade. I would not personally marinade a brisket and will only inject with beef flavor, but I don't think it (marinade) is going to hurt much either (might just add a tiny amount of flavor to the outer edge of the slices).

[akoda]

I think one of my mistakes on the last one I did was not putting enough goodness in when I foiled. I had forgotten my beef broth, even though it was on my list. I now plan to add broth, some wousy and butter when I foil, hoping to improve moistness. I am doing a lot of reading and was intrigued by the Dr. Pepper marinade mention on this site but whatever I do right now at home is intended to improve my comp brisket. The soda is meant as a tenderizer more than a flavorizer from what I read, due to the phosphoric acid.

I do test for tenderness with a probe and am not just cooking to a preset IT.

Thanks for reading and the discussion.

[jasonjax]

I want to try marinating one at some point myself. I think I will jaccard it though to try and increase the liquid penetration. I currently inject as most others do I believe, at least those competing. I'm definitely wanting to try a few things outside of the box, but maintain that beefy flavor.

[DownHomeQue]

if you inject and marinade in that amount of time.. may do more good.. you will have to hit it hard with injection though.. I don't do this at the house.. but i do at comps.. lol Inject the fire out of here.. i use some coke in my injection along with oil, beef broth, and rub... I love the results we are getting with it..

[landarc]

A straigh up marinade will offer little benefit for the overall brisket. It jsut won't penetrate enough to flavor the entire brisket. Injecting will achieve that end, although, it is then about the time and composition of the marinade. I can see this working for home cooking. I am not sure there is enough time at a comp for marinading to work.

BTW...I have cooked and eaten my fair share of competition brisket, and some of it is darned fine. The pot roast thing is a myth.