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View Full Version : Where's the bark?!?!? Help a brisket rookie


Jasong165
03-04-2018, 07:56 AM
So I attempted my second brisket cook overnight and I'm a bit disappointed thus far in my lack of bark. This is only the second brisket I've done and both only achieved a brown coloring with no real bark to speak of. I did both cooks virtually the same which leads me to believe that I am doing something wrong. Can someone guide my dumb ass in the right direction ??

Cook details:

Brisket was a 12lb packer from a popular, over-priced online meat market since full packers are hard to get where I am.

I trimmed off the thick parts of the fat cap and cleaned up the other side. I then salted both sides with liberal amounts of koser salt and set in the fridge for 12 hours.

Once I was ready to start the cook, I took the brisket out of the fridge and injected parts of the flat with about 1/2 cup of low sodium beef broth. Next I reapplied another layer of koser salt, followed by copious amounts of coarse ground pepper and garlic powder, a few shakes of Montreal Steak seasoning, and a light dusting of Killer Hogs BBQ rub on all sides. Unfortunately I don't have a picture of the rubbed brisket but there was enough rub on there I'm almost certain as I could barely see much of the meat color through all of the pepper.

I fired up my Akorn Kamado with Royal oak lump and about 5 larger chunks of pecan wood. The Akorn settled around 240 with continuous light smoke. I threw the brisket on with the fat side down and checked 4 hours later once the meat hit 150 in the thick flat. Sadly the results looked like my first brisket -- dark brown color with no bark.

Picture of the brisket in aluminum foil is from my first brisket last year. The other is from today.

It looks to me like there's too much moisture on the top of the meat that may be preventing bark from forming. I didn't use a water pan. Could it be the injection? Should I have cooked it fat side up?

Insanity is doing the same thing over and over and excepting different results... I guess I had this coming.

gtsum
03-04-2018, 08:45 PM
Double check your Akron thermo for accuracy. I wonder if it is reading higher than actual cook temps?


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Stlsportster
03-04-2018, 09:34 PM
So I am confused. Did you pull the brisket off at 150 in the flat after 4 hours? At 240 I would expect a 10-12lb brisket to take over 10 hours to hit 200 in the thick of the flat.

Even when I cook hot and fast I'm cooking at 300 and wrap at 160ish that takes 6 hours unwrapped and another 2 wrapped.

Perhaps you're not cooking it long enough to get the bark?

pjtexas1
03-04-2018, 09:42 PM
Needs more time. I'm never happy with my bark until 165-170. Then it's time to wrap.

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Westx
03-04-2018, 09:42 PM
Wrap by color you want and not by temp. I think your wrapping to soon. If I am cooking at that low a temp I don't wrap at all and just let her run until it's done.

Dweverett
03-04-2018, 10:01 PM
Agree with the others. Let it go longer before you wrap. Would suggest at least 6 hours. Could let it go the whole time without wrapping and see if you like it. At higher temps things get too crispy for me but at lower temps it’s not bad

Rockinar
03-04-2018, 10:01 PM
Try this...

Watch how much salt/pepper Louie Mueller puts on their brisket. Also try not wrapping at all, try wrapping in butcher paper instead of foil.....

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LsVf99pkTdM

http://i66.tinypic.com/11rch7s.png

Czarbecue
03-04-2018, 10:04 PM
I agree with the others. This is a shot of my brisket just prior to wrapping. My notes shows this was at 7 hours of what eventually became a 13 hour cook. Internal temp was 167F. I don’t bother to probe the meat until I see the color I want.

https://uploads.tapatalk-cdn.com/20180305/f7b74ef805d425aec721a7695bfa0721.jpg

After another 6 hours at 275F it has the same look, but feels like jello:

https://uploads.tapatalk-cdn.com/20180305/fb7c0b6112c06a27bf81900a0cfb3f34.jpg

OklaDustDevil
03-04-2018, 11:49 PM
Given you're just starting out, IMHO you should try smoking the brisket the simple, old-fashioned, Texas style. By that I mean don't inject and don't wrap at all, just use rub -- the rub you mentioned sounds fine. Then smoke low, at 225 or 250, until it hits the temp you want -- I isually go for 203-205. Smoking at low temp will give you much more margin for error when starting out. Not wrapping will give you the best bark. And you can read plenty on this site about probing and feel, so start checking that as the temp approaches the desired range so you can learn to feel the differences.

Once you've done a couple briskets successfully using this simple method, then start adding complications. Try injecting if you wish (but I never inject brisket). Try cooking hotter and faster (although I always keep it below 250). Try wrapping with foil or butcher paper, which will speed up the cook, alter the flavour and texture a bit, and soften the bark (I never wrap). Etc., etc.

As you can see from my comments, 25 years later I still cook my briskets the simple, old-fashioned, Texas way, but if you wish to experiment and try different methods, there are many, many ways to smoke a great brisket. I just suggest you begin adding complications after you master the simple, easy, wider-margin-of-error methods.

Just my pov . . . .

CptKaos
03-05-2018, 06:17 AM
It's difficult to get good bark with a ceramic cooker, you just cant expect wood fired offset results with your cooker.

Larry

smoke ninja
03-05-2018, 06:38 AM
Wrapping can be less needed on kamodo cookers. If liquid pools up on too you can tip or even flip the meat to remove it. Also not sure but if you did cake on the rub it may have resulted in pasty bark

Shagdog
03-05-2018, 07:45 AM
Ceramic cookers are known for not giving great bark. They're so efficient that there is very little airflow across the brisket, so it is more of a challenge to get good bark. You wrapped way to soon. Wrap it when the brisket has the bark you want. It wouldn't hurt anything if you never wrap it. Let it ride till you see the back you want. No bark will form on a brisket wrapped in foil, if anything, you'll lose some bark once you do. Have you tried using butcher paper instead of foil?

Springram
03-05-2018, 08:18 AM
It's difficult to get good bark with a ceramic cooker, you just cant expect wood fired offset results with your cooker.

Larry

Not that it matters, it is also harder to achieve a smoke ring without a nice burning fire. I know, I know, the smoke ring does not add flavor but sure does make it "look" like it tastes better. :-D

I rarely obtained a smoke ring back in my BGE days with brisket.

mstewart39
03-05-2018, 08:44 AM
I'm hoping for an answer on a few of those questions. Did you pull the brisket at 150???
I had an Akorn. That's what made me love smoking meat. (And now I have an addition to buying smokers.) But I never wrapped in my Akorn. And I always got a beautiful bark.

Also, I'm just an hour or so west of you. Walmart has select brisket for cheap around here. It's not the best, but it's a brisket. Check out your local Walmart. Sam's Club tends to have brisket flats only lately, but BJ's has full packers if they have anything.

BeardedBassGuy
03-05-2018, 09:37 AM
As others have mentioned, it's going to be hard to get a good bark in the ceramic cooker. I'm also with the others in asking at what temp did you wrap ( not needed imo on the ceramic) and pull the brisket? 150 for either of those is much too soon.

I'm also questioning you prep process. Rubbed with salt and let sit for 12 hours before adding any other seasonings? Why? That may have hindered it as well. I suggest when learning to make briskets to be a simple as possible. No injections, no fancy multiple step rubs. Just simple S&P or a pre-made rub, added just before going on the cooker.If you start simple, you can chance one thing each time you cook one to find what works for you, and you know that one thing was either good or bad.

mstewart39
03-05-2018, 09:51 AM
https://uploads.tapatalk-cdn.com/20180305/5112b337a60fdb2689d6036323b9c551.jpg

The Akorn can get a very nice bark. I never wrapped in my Akorn. I’d take it somewhere in the 200 degree range.


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Czarbecue
03-05-2018, 10:51 AM
Damn, it is true. Mention brisket in a subject and all the people from Texas will chime in :heh:

pjtexas1
03-05-2018, 10:57 AM
Damn, it is true. Mention brisket in a subject and all the people from Texas will chime in :heh:

yep, we like our brisket. that's how we measure our cookers, by how many briskets it will hold.

CptKaos
03-05-2018, 01:17 PM
yep, we like our brisket. that's how we measure our cookers, by how many briskets it will hold.

And he means whole packers not bits and pieces :)

Larry

Beentown
03-05-2018, 02:17 PM
I usually wrap brisket at 6 hours. This is from the last larger cook. The first two to get wrapped to finish.

https://uploads.tapatalk-cdn.com/20180305/dcfa08adab260b664e66723d09ed9339.jpg

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gtsum
03-05-2018, 03:10 PM
Some brisket when I cooked on a ceramic kamado. Bark is certainly doable.

https://uploads.tapatalk-cdn.com/20180305/c902a251e53b10e79ae016c0215cbfa9.jpg




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Jasong165
03-05-2018, 08:35 PM
Thanks for all of the replies and apologies for the late response. Turns out the end product was quite good.. decent bark, juicy and a good smoke ring. I ended up pulling the brisket and wrapping around 160 degrees after 5 hours. Total cook time was only 7 hours start to finish. I ended up flipping the brisket fat side up for the last 2 hours and it seemed to help darken every thing up. Took it off once it hit 203 and probe tender. I let it rest 2 hours before slicing.

Looks like I will try your suggestions and go by look and feel opposed to times. Everything always seems to cook faster than I anticipate which I need to manage better. Also I read too many sites and tips and think they are gospel.. I should relax and let it cook til it's done.

Thanks!

Springram
03-05-2018, 10:25 PM
Some brisket when I cooked on a ceramic kamado. Bark is certainly doable.

https://uploads.tapatalk-cdn.com/20180305/c902a251e53b10e79ae016c0215cbfa9.jpg




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That is just plain beautiful!

R2Egg2Q
03-06-2018, 01:04 AM
Here's one of mine cooked on a kamado. Before wrapping in butcher paper (IT around 175):
https://i.imgur.com/5ORRmGz.jpg

Out of the wrap and ready to slice:
https://i.imgur.com/CZ9s5AG.jpg
https://i.imgur.com/zES6Rye.jpg

As others have stated, don't wrap too early and not based simply on time or a set temp if you want bark to have some definition before wrapping.