Help Triage First Brisket on Kettle

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Bugman

Is lookin for wood to cook with.
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Mornin' All.

So yesterday was my first attempt at a brisket, ever. Probably not the best idea to do when hosting a party, but you gotta have motivation sometimes....

Anyway, I was intending to follow this post to get some tasty meat.

http://www.bbq-brethren.com/forum/showpost.php?p=2935486&postcount=11

First problem, I realized, was that I got a packer from Wal-Mart, and it was Select, not Choice. Not sure how big of a deal that is in the grand scheme, but I know it cant help.

Secondly, the kettle just didnt want to come up to temp with the snake. Was using a 2x2x1 with Kingsford Blue, some dry apple on top for smoke. Took a long time to even get to 150, and eventually started to cruise around 300-315. (All vents open). I think I put things on before they were hot enough.... Then by the end of the cook, the temps were dipping again, got down below 250. Really not sure why, other than it was windy here.

I temped it just to know when to start checking. Had the probe in the thick part of the flat, probed at 180, no go. Waited another 1/2 hour, temp was 190, and it probed out well. Wrapped in two layers of foil, then a towel, then into a cooler. Carved up an hour later.

Anyway, the result was that the tip of the flat was pretty much crispy, and lots of the flat was really pretty dry, kinda tough. Had great flavor, was just a little dry. So does that seem like an under-cook or an over-cook? I didnt foil, but I think that I should next time, since some of the flat was too crispy to enjoy.

I would really just like to know what I can do next time to try and get some more tender, juicy brisket. Also curious why my snake method didnt provide a nice consistent temp like I was hoping.

In the meantime, Ill be looking for some good brisket chili recipes today...

Thanks for reading the long post!
 
Undercooked!

When I use the snake in a kettle, I like to rotate the meat based on where the fire is at. I haven't done a brisket on a kettle, but I would put the point towards the fire and rotate as it burns.
 
If it was sliceable but dry, it was undercooked. Overcooked brisket falls apart.

If it was cooking at 300-ish for most of the cook it's unlikely that it was done at 190. The higher the cook temp the higher the finish temp in most cases.
 
Agreed under cooked! When you get to pokin with the probe only worry about the thickest area on the Flat, if it takes more that very light pressure with 1 finger to get the probe to slip smoothly in at a fast rate it need to cook longer. Get the Country crock out of the Fridge and probe that. This is what your looking for.
I cook mostly select and some choice, In a brisket Grading don't make all that much difference the goodness is in there you just need to cook it long enough to unlock it.

When purchasing pay particular attention to the thickness of the tail on the brisket if it is less than 1" expect to loose that part to charring; All Life has Rot. You can always trim that end of the flat and cook it separately.
Rotate the lid on the Weber 90 deg every few hrs so that the exhaust is opposite the fire( IMHO it is easier that moving the meat). When I use the Ring of Fire to hit 300 I go 2,2,1 and a chunk every 3" or so. I use about 1/4 chimney to touch it off & get to temp with the intake open 1/2 way mine settles in 280-310 in 15 min.

I don't like all that wrapin & cooler stuff I have seen way to may briskets get farked up from carry over cooking. At home a better way IMHO let it sit on the counter top wrapped it will slowly drop in temp at about 25 deg an hr once it gets into the 150's it is optimal time to *carve what you can eat *Big Pieces retain moisture better that slices! If for some reason you need to hold it beyond 2 hrs before service turn your oven to the lowest setting and hold it that way.
 
Ahhh, OK. Thats a good difference to know. Some of the back of the point was falling apart, but that was where the fat cap was trimmed a little low, and it was over the charcoal ring.

I wasnt sure how things would be impacted by the varying temps, since it was sort of a mix of the two different styles for cooking.

All good things to know...Thanks!
 
Whoops, posted the other message before Bludogs came in.

I was rotating the lid to keep the vent 180 degrees from the lit part of the snake, but was surprised that the temps still varied. We had some really high winds yesterday and I think that just sucked most of the heat out of the kettle.

I only used about 10 coals to get it going, like I would with a minion start. Probably why it took so long to get up to temp.

So another question I have...it was dry. Will cooking longer render the "toughness" and turn it into "juicyness" for lack of better terms?

Great tips on what to look for when getting the brisket. I was just glad to find any left when I bought it, so I took what they had.
 
Bugman said:
Whoops, posted the other message before Bludogs came in.

I was rotating the lid to keep the vent 180 degrees from the lit part of the snake, but was surprised that the temps still varied. We had some really high winds yesterday and I think that just sucked most of the heat out of the kettle.

I only used about 10 coals to get it going, like I would with a minion start. Probably why it took so long to get up to temp.

So another question I have...it was dry. Will cooking longer render the "toughness" and turn it into "juicyness" for lack of better terms?

Great tips on what to look for when getting the brisket. I was just glad to find any left when I bought it, so I took what they had.
Click to expand...


As Ron said, dry but sliceable means undercooked. Dry and crumbly means it's overcooked. So, if it was dry but sliceable, yes, cooking longer will break down the connective tissue and the brisket will become nice and juicy. But, if it was dry and crumbly, you have to take other steps to try to introduce some moisture back into the brisket.
 
JeffR said:
Undercooked!

When I use the snake in a kettle, I like to rotate the meat based on where the fire is at. I haven't done a brisket on a kettle, but I would put the point towards the fire and rotate as it burns.
Click to expand...

^^^ Pretty much this...........and what Ron says about doneness.....


I don't do these often, so it's 'Go big, AT Home'.............

1st, look for pliable:

10-8-13PTampBrisket014-1.jpg


I start in the middle, fat down, to protect it from the heat......
I just make sure it's burning solid at the start & don't worry at all about catch up......

10-8-13PTampBrisket020.jpg


Lump chips on top of briquettes (Stubb's & Wicked chip), for 'burn insurance', helps keep the temp from sagging & any gapping that might occur...........

10-8-13PTampBrisket018.jpg


12 K coals to start.........

10-8-13PTampBrisket017.jpg


After the chain is part way around (like when the bean pan goes in),
flip over & move a bit to the side away from the burn area.........
This one went about 260~275 most of the time................

10-8-13PTampBrisket022.jpg


This one was big enough, I added to the chain......takes very few minutes, like 2~3....I just have stuff ready & pull the grate, slap stuff in, replace & cap it.............

10-8-13PTampBrisket024.jpg


10-8-13PTampBrisket025.jpg


(Please Note: Clockwise for Beef, Counter-clockwise for Pork....)

Pretty close to finish, resting on another kettle with minimal coals to wind down.......

10-8-13PTampBrisket026.jpg


Came out fine, this was a Choice, but I've done Select a bunch & they happen just peachy......You can shoot 'em up with broth or lite oil, on Select, to add in some moisture...............

10-8-13PTampBrisket036.jpg



There he is......showed up whilst I'm typin'.....




.
 
Dry brisket cure

There are no bad cooks. Simply pull the brisket apart or chop it up. Render it down slowly in a pan with a little water add some sauce in the pan and you got chopped beef Sammy.

I ate a lot of chopped beef sammies prior to getting a good brisket. In fact the wife prefers it chopped likely cause I broke her in on chopped. Don't worry you learn from mistakes, you'll get there soon
 
I smoked on a kettle for 5 years before getting a WSM. I've never used the snake, but one thing I learned to do is to run the temp up high (300+/-) and then start to guide it down using the dampers, and remember that even a room temp hunk of meat is going to sap several more degrees. So if I'm shooting for 250 I'll go to 300, start closing dampers, and throw the meat on when it hits 275 (ish). I also used a glass bread loaf pan as a water pan. Doesn't take up much space on the grate and helps moderate the temp.
 
Wow, you guys are amazing. You will make me a BBQ hero (to my family at least) in no time. Threads like this are really so supremely helpful to a beginner like me. Thank you all for taking the time to post the tips, photos, advice, and even how to still eat my less than perfect results!

I did at least get the fat cap down, and I do have a cast iron pan that I use for doing ribs on the kettle (indirect ala Landarc's method), so maybe Ill put that in the middle for the next cook. I like the idea of sprinkling the lump on the snake to help with any gaps that might show up. (In general, I seem to have an issue with charcoal longevity, I never get the burn times that others seem to get...)

One other question, when probing, do you go with or against the grain? Or doesnt it matter, it should probe the same either way?
 
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