First brisket-advice needed

R

Rowdycue

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I know there have been lots of threads about cooking brisket, but I have never been that interested since where I grew up brisket meant corned beef.I will try my first packer tomorrow. It weighs about 9 pounds and I don't want to take the time to cook it at a low temp.My smoking experience has been with smoke and chicken but not beef. I plan to inject it tonight with beef broth and something but haven't decided what. I will cook it on a Brinkman Smoke'n Pro with Brethren suggested mods using Kingsford and a mix of pecan, apple, and pear. I think I will separate the point from the flat so it will all be ready at about the same time.I may try some burnt ends which I have never seen or tasted. Will rub with Bovine Bold. I don't use a thermometer but am used to long cooks without one. I know it won't be ready until it's ready and will test with a probe. Do you brisket cooks have any suggestions or additions such as to injection ingredients or cutting off the point first? Any thoughts would be appreciated.
 
Remove the point after the cook and then make burnt ends......everything else seems good to go....
 
Thanks, Monty and Mark. I haven't decided what to mix with the beef broth for the injection. Would white wine work? I know the alcohol will help tenderize. I also wondered if I should put some rub in the injection mix.
 
Thanks, Chef Jim but my d-a computer can't follow that link.
 
Rowdycue said:
Thanks, Monty and Mark. I haven't decided what to mix with the beef broth for the injection. Would white wine work? I know the alcohol will help tenderize. I also wondered if I should put some rub in the injection mix.
Click to expand...

Well, here's where I come off sounding like a know it all - but I think trying to tenderize brisket is a huge mistake. The only way to get a tender brisket IMO is to cook it correctly. Nothing else will make a difference more than getting that part right. The internal temp needs to be 200 or maybe a little higher. If you over-ride your brain you will cook it for as long as it actually needs (the little voice in your head will tell you to take it off before it's done - trust me!). I used to pull them around 185 thinking that I was overcooking them - that was my mistake and it caused me some embarrassment.

If you think white wine will enhance the FLAVOR - then by all means. I typically use an overdose of beef bouillon - two cubes per one cup of water. Then I may add some beef au jus paste, or whatever.

A good mop:
1 beer
1/2 cup cider vinegar
half an onion diced
2-4 cloves of garlic minced
1 T. rub of your choice
1/2 cup water
 
I got it, Jim. Thanks. Also thanks to bigabyte for the tutorial. I read it when posted but had no plans to cook a brisket at that time. I don't even think I'd seen one. Monty, I don't have to inject and it would surely be easier not to. I'm just scrambling around in the dark. :confused:
 
I'm going with Mr. Monty-know-it-all :thumb: on this. Keep the point and flat together if you have space, brine or marinade if you want, but don't inject.

The way I do it (How many BBQers does it take to change a light bulb? 100. 1 to change it and 99 to say, "That's not how I learned to do it.")is I use a mustard slather then coat with rub. I take the coated brikset and put it in a ziplock bag, burp out the air, seal it up and stick it in the fridge for as long as I can (preferably 12 -18 hours).

This makes a great crust and the vinegar in the mustard acts as a marinade and pulls the flavor of the rub into the meat (a little anyway).
 
Just to be clear - I didn't say "don't inject." I'm simply saying that your injection won't do much to tenderize the meat. I always inject my briskets. I never marinade because I don't think the marinade penetrates the muscles and fibers very well
 
Does wine really tenderize meat? I don't think that assumption is correct. Looks to me like you have gotten great advice, so I won't confuse things any further.
 
monty3777 said:
Just to be clear - I didn't say "don't inject." I'm simply saying that your injection won't do much to tenderize the meat. I always inject my briskets. I never marinade because I don't think the marinade penetrates the muscles and fibers very well
Click to expand...
Sorry. Didn't mean to misquote. Mea Culpa. :yo:
 
For what it's worth.... I usually inject the night before with a mix of honey, whiskey & rub, rub down the outside and wrap loose enough as to not squeeze out the injection, put in the fridge overnight.
When I do a #10 or larger I like to separate the point from the flat because the flat always seems to finish before the point and their easier to separate cold. When I do separate I try to make sure I keep the temps down in the 220* range because two smaller pieces can cook faster than one large and the meat needs time to break down.
Just my 2 cents.
Good luck!!
 
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