Recipe: Hot & Fast Brisket

[PatioDaddio]

Someone has recently asked for advice in cooking a hot and fast brisket,
so I thought I'd post this blast from the 2009 past.

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Hot & Fast BBQ Beef Brisket

Here is the process I used to cook a "hot & fast" barbequed beef brisket.
Brisket is generally more than a little initimidating for those that have never
cooked one. I know that was the case for me back in the day.

For those uninitiated, the brisket is a very tough cut found on the chest of
the animal, between and behind the front legs (foreshank). Cattle walk a
lot, so the front legs get a good workout. After one look at a brisket you
will see that it looks like a cow's odometer. It's long and hard, like the third
grade.

Tough "lesser cuts" are generally what barbeque is all about. A tough cut
usually equates to a tough (long and slow) cook, but that need not be the
case. This brisket was my first attempt at cooking hot and fast. The
results have me scratching my head wondering why I've been torturing
myself with 16-hour cooks (low & slow means about 1 - 1 ½ hours per
pound).

When shopping for a brisket, you want a "whole packer". This is really two
cuts in one. The pointy thicker end is called the "point" (or "deckle") and
the long flat portion is called, you guessed it, the "flat".

Look for a packer in the 13-16 pound range with a flat that is fairly
consistent in thickness, and with a nice white fat cap. The white fat
indicates that the animal was finished on grain instead of grass. You should
also check to make sure that it's flexible. As a general rule, the more
flexible it is in the bag, the more tender it will be in the end. I drape mine
over my forearm and look for a nice bend.

For a little different twist, you can marinate the brisket in a double batch
of Patio Daddio Bovine Bath then drain and use the slather and seasoning
process in step 5 below.

Ingredients
1 whole Packer brisket (13-16 lbs)
1/4 cup Prepared mustard (I use French's)
2/3 cup of your favorite BBQ seasoning

Method



Remove the brisket from the cryovac bag, rinse well with cold water and
pat dry. Put it on the cutting board fat-side-up on a double layer of paper
towels. This brisket was 15 ½ pounds in the bag. I like to use a 6-inch
flexible boning knife for trimming. You'll see why as we progress through
the process.



The first order of business in trimming is to shave the fat layer down to a
reasonable thickness. Seasoning and smoke can't penetrate fat. However,
it will act as an insulation layer to protect the meat when we cook it. I try
to get it to about ¼-inch, but you can see it's an inexact science.



Flip the brisket over and you'll notice two pockets or "kernels" of hard fat.
These separate the flat and point muscles. Fat equals flavor and
tenderness, but we don't need it all. Cut about ¾ of the fat out of the
smaller kernel where you see the knife point.



Turn the brisket around and repeat the same trimming process for the large
kernel. I like to make a long horizontal cut through the fat then make two
long deep angular cuts from each outside edge toward the first cut. You
can see this where the knife is pointing. I was a little over-aggressive in
my trimming.



You can see from the pile of trimmings in the background of the picture
above that I removed about 1 ½ pounds. In my experience, that's pretty
typical. Now we need to smear a thin layer of mustard on all of the outer
surfaces (edges too) and inside each fat kernel pocket. This will help the
seasoning adhere.



Season the entire surface and fat kernel pockets liberally with your
seasoning. You don't need to rub it into the meat, but I pat it when I'm
done to make sure it all sticks. Put the brisket on parchment paper in a
large a sheet pan, cover with plastic wrap, and refrigerate overnight, or at
least several hours.



Start your fire at medium-high heat. I recommend a mixture of cherry and
hickory chunks or chips for smoke. Cook fat-side-down at 325-350º until
the thickest part of the flat reaches 190º. Mine (about 14 pounds trimmed)
took 5 hours at an average of 350º.



At 190º we're ready to apply the finishing glaze. I use a mixture of ½ cup
golden brown sugar, ½ cup beef broth, ¼ cup ketchup, 1 Tbsp
Worcestershire, and 1 tsp black pepper. Spoon and spread this (with the
back of the spoon) on all sides and dust with the BBQ seasoning. Cook 30
more minutes and repeat.



Continue cooking until the thickest part of the flat reaches 200º. Remove
from the cooker, wrap in a double layer of heavy-duty foil and let rest 30
minutes (or longer wrapped in towels). Unwrap, separate the flat and point
(it's easy), slice across the grain about ¼" thick, serve and enjoy.

Notes:
The entire cook took exactly 6 hours in my UDS, but your mileage may
(and almost certainly will) vary.

I used Kingsford Competition briquets for this cook.

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John

[begolf25]

Looks great, I was planning on doing a brisket this weekend and think I will try this method. I have never done a brisket hot and fast before. Thanks for the post.

Bryan

[Chris_R]

Definitely going to give this a run sometime soon!

[gooose53]

John, would you do a hot and fast for competition?

[PatioDaddio]

Originally Posted by gooose53

John, would you do a hot and fast for competition?

Yep! I did all of my briskets and butts hot & fast in a UDS at all of my 2009
and 2010 comps. Here's where they placed:

Brisket: 9th, 19th, 4th (RGC), 9th (RGC), 4th, 6th

Butts: 5th, 19th, 3rd (RGC), 3rd (RGC), 7th, 11th

Not great, but respectable.

John

[HeSmellsLikeSmoke]

I have always avoided sugar in rubs/seasoning for fear of burning when I do hot and fast. It seems like you don't think it is a problem or you have found a way to solve it.

[inv3ctiv3]

Awesome tutorial, I've never tried hot and fast but I've considered it when I just don't have time for a 14 hour smoke.

[helljack6]

Originally Posted by inv3ctiv3

Awesome tutorial, I've never tried hot and fast but I've considered it when I just don't have time for a 14 hour smoke.

Hot and fast is a great way to get some great quality brisket on the plate in a very short amount of time. I've been using this technique for brisket now a couple years and it works out well. Not to take away from the original post, but my personal hot and fast method in my drum is as follows:

325-350 until temp hits 165-170 (note: this is the ONLY point in the cook that is cooked to temp)
Foil and cook at 400 until a blunted meat probe enters the brisket like a hot knife cutting warm butter (temp is not even gauged)
Pull, wrap and rest

I've yet to have a brisket go over 4 hours and 10 minutes and the largest I've cooked is a 15lb packer from Sam's.

[jimmyinsd]

thanks John, do you use a water pan or any other type of diffuser in your UDS?

[Dr_KY]

How would you feel about separating the point fro the flat and coking them separately? I'm not talking competition cooking respectfully.

Hot and fast on the flat one weekend and the point another.

*tight budget cook mod*

[Will work for bbq]

Sweet, thanks for sharing your technique this will be my next brisket cook for sure.

[PatioDaddio]

Originally Posted by jimmyinsd

thanks John, do you use a water pan or any other type of diffuser in your UDS?

Yes, I added a large water pan soon after starting to use my UDS. I didn't
like the uber-char and overwhelming burned fat taste that my UDS
imparted when cooking butts and brisket direct (I love it for short cooks),
and the judges didn't like it either (note the two 19th places).

I installed a third grate about 20" above the drum bottom and use 15-quart
enameled steel dish pan. I cut the lip off with an angle grinder. It works
wonders.



I call it a USM -- Ugly Smokey Mountain.

John

[Chucktown]

I have used this technique everytime since I've bought my Jambo smoker a couple of months ago. Don't think I'll ever go back to waiting 10-12 for a brisket to get done.

[PatioDaddio]

Originally Posted by Dr_KY

How would you feel about separating the point fro the flat and coking them separately? I'm not talking competition cooking respectfully.

Hot and fast on the flat one weekend and the point another.

*tight budget cook mod*

Sure, that would work.

John

[Boshizzle]

I gave up on the low and slow brisket thing a long time ago. This one was cooked hot and fast last weekend. It's a great cooking technique.