MMMM.. BRISKET..
The BBQ BRETHREN FORUMS.  



Our Homepage Donation to Forum Overhead Welocme Merchandise Associations Purchase Subscription Amazon Affiliate
Go Back   The BBQ BRETHREN FORUMS. > Discussion Area > Q-talk

Notices

Q-talk *ON TOPIC ONLY* QUALITY ON TOPIC discussion of Backyard BBQ, grilling, equipment and outdoor cookin' . ** Other cooking techniques are welcomed for when your cookin' in the kitchen. Post your hints, tips, tricks & techniques, success, failures, but stay on topic and watch for that hijacking.


Reply
 
Thread Tools
Old 04-04-2018, 09:17 PM   #1
sudsandswine
Quintessential Chatty Farker
 
Join Date: 06-23-12
Location: Kansas City
Default Just when I thought I was out...

...they pull me back in.

"They" being briskets, of course. Been about 5 days since I finished doing a 10 brisket cook, and if you'd asked me 3 days ago if I felt like que'n, I'd have told you no way. Yet here we are.

Anyway, we are renting a lake house for my brother's bachelor party and while they do have a gas grill, I thought it'd be nice to have a meal ready to go, to leave me time for fishin' and drinkin' and that sort of thing.

I plan to do this one on my Primo XL oval, won't have time to feed sticks between now and then and I can set it and forget it while I do other things, like paying the bills. I picked up a bottle of rub from my favorite barbecue joint in KC...Q39, and will use it this time instead of SPOG.

I figured I'd take some pics of what I do, maybe it'll help someone blankly staring at their first untrimmed packer wondering how they're going to attack it. While there are many ways to trim brisket, this is the way I like to do it when time permits. I feel it gives good rub and flavor penetration on all sides of the meat since I don't really have to trim anything unrendered off when it's done cooking. I've found little to no difference in the juiciness of the meat compared to a less aggressive trim, all else being equal. I'm certainly not an expert and I don't have the greatest knife skills, but I have trimmed a fair amount of brisket over the past few years and feel fairly proficient at it.

You could certainly leave more on the exterior of the point and remove less between the point and the flat. My main goal when trimming to be left with a uniformly flat piece of meat. I've found that it cooks more evenly, and in the stick burner with a lot of moving air, it seems like it'd be more aerodynamic based on my anecdotal and unscientific experience.

Here's the untrimmed brisket so we know what we're starting with. I found this nice looking 15.2 lb USDA prime packer at Costco, had a nice thick flat and not an absurd amount of fat.
Attached Images
File Type: jpg 1.jpg (64.1 KB, 682 views)
File Type: jpg 2.jpg (57.0 KB, 676 views)
File Type: jpg 3.jpg (48.9 KB, 674 views)
__________________
Shirley Fab 250g trailer | Primo XL kamado | Red Weber Limited Edition kettle + 26” kettle | Clonesaker PDS (pretty drum smoker)
sudsandswine is offline   Reply With Quote


Thanks from: --->


Old 04-04-2018, 09:21 PM   #2
sudsandswine
Quintessential Chatty Farker
 
Join Date: 06-23-12
Location: Kansas City
Default

I start trimming the brisket with the fat cap down. I trim the bits of fat that are easily removable on the flat, but I don't go too aggressive or try removing any of the "silver skin" so that I don't risk putting a crater or divot in the flat.

Then, I remove the big clump of fat nestled on the edge where the flat and point meet. I think this is often referred to as the "acorn". I call it "not edible" so it's gotta go.
Attached Images
File Type: jpg 4_LI.jpg (47.6 KB, 672 views)
__________________
Shirley Fab 250g trailer | Primo XL kamado | Red Weber Limited Edition kettle + 26” kettle | Clonesaker PDS (pretty drum smoker)

Last edited by sudsandswine; 04-04-2018 at 09:40 PM..
sudsandswine is offline   Reply With Quote


Thanks from: --->
Old 04-04-2018, 09:25 PM   #3
sudsandswine
Quintessential Chatty Farker
 
Join Date: 06-23-12
Location: Kansas City
Default

Next I flip the brisket over fat side up, and start carving out the area of thick fat between the flat and the point. This will be opposite and above that "acorn" area. I try to get it down to 1/4 to 1/2" in trim at this point, taking care to not accidentally remove any of the flat or the point. I find that the boning knife makes removing these two sections easiest, and I'll use the 8" chef knife for longer broader fat removal like the flat and horn of the point.
Attached Images
File Type: jpg 5_LI.jpg (43.4 KB, 666 views)
__________________
Shirley Fab 250g trailer | Primo XL kamado | Red Weber Limited Edition kettle + 26” kettle | Clonesaker PDS (pretty drum smoker)

Last edited by sudsandswine; 04-04-2018 at 09:41 PM..
sudsandswine is offline   Reply With Quote


Thanks from: --->
Old 04-04-2018, 09:32 PM   #4
sudsandswine
Quintessential Chatty Farker
 
Join Date: 06-23-12
Location: Kansas City
Default

At this point, the remaining seam of fat separating the flat and the point is pretty visible and it's pretty easy to run a knife down the middle to pull the flat away from the point. I'll flip the brisket back to fat side down, then I usually cut down following the seam a little bit, clean up the fat I exposed, the cut a little more. I'll usually stop when I've exposed about 1/4 to 1/3 of the point end of the flat. Once you can flip the flat back over on itself some, it makes it easy to clean up the hard fat from the top of the flat and bottom of the point.
Attached Images
File Type: jpg 6_LI.jpg (37.1 KB, 661 views)
File Type: jpg 7_LI.jpg (44.7 KB, 658 views)
File Type: jpg 8_LI.jpg (55.1 KB, 663 views)
File Type: jpg 9_LI.jpg (58.7 KB, 662 views)
__________________
Shirley Fab 250g trailer | Primo XL kamado | Red Weber Limited Edition kettle + 26” kettle | Clonesaker PDS (pretty drum smoker)
sudsandswine is offline   Reply With Quote


Thanks from: --->
Old 04-04-2018, 09:38 PM   #5
sudsandswine
Quintessential Chatty Farker
 
Join Date: 06-23-12
Location: Kansas City
Default

Once I've cleaned up the meat between the point and the flat, I'll finish removing much of the fat from the flat-facing side of the point. Then I flip it fat side up and try to get a 1/4" trim on the flat, and remove any thick hard fat from the horn of the point. Any hangy bits or brown/rough meat on the edges gets trimmed off the edges.

Usually I'll wind up with something like this. I trimmed 4lb 6oz off this brisket, leaving me with just under 11lb of meat for the smoker. However, since I've already trimmed off a lot of the fat weight that'd be "lost" during cooking, I've found my yields are usually at least 70% of trimmed weight.
Attached Images
File Type: jpg 10.jpg (56.4 KB, 665 views)
File Type: jpg 12.jpg (56.5 KB, 662 views)
File Type: jpg 13.jpg (61.6 KB, 659 views)
File Type: jpg 14.jpg (49.4 KB, 654 views)
__________________
Shirley Fab 250g trailer | Primo XL kamado | Red Weber Limited Edition kettle + 26” kettle | Clonesaker PDS (pretty drum smoker)
sudsandswine is offline   Reply With Quote


1 members found this post helpful.
Old 04-04-2018, 09:44 PM   #6
Bacchus2b
is One Chatty Farker
 
Join Date: 11-01-14
Location: North Texas
Default

In the last year I've started trimming that aggressively and I really like the results. More surface area for rub = more bark.

Post pic's when you are done!
__________________
KCBS Certified BBQ Judge
SCA Certified Judge
Lone Star Grillz Large IVS
Cookshack FEC-100
Weber Summit 420 Gasser
Pit Barrel Cooker
Weber 26" Kettle
PK Classic Grill
Bacchus2b is offline   Reply With Quote


Thanks from:--->
Old 04-04-2018, 09:47 PM   #7
electron_si
is one Smokin' Farker
 
electron_si's Avatar
 
Join Date: 12-08-15
Location: Midwest
Name/Nickname : N/A
Default

Nice tutorial
__________________
Yoder YS 640 Orange Comp / Sold: Traeger Lil Tex Elite
electron_si is offline   Reply With Quote


1 members found this post helpful.
Old 04-04-2018, 09:49 PM   #8
tom b
somebody shut me the fark up.
 
Join Date: 10-12-15
Location: Temecula, CA
Default

following along...
__________________
LSG 24x48 offset, MAK 2 Star General, Built in Santa Maria Pit, Weber Performer Deluxe 22 w/CB Rotisserie, Blackstone Pizza Oven, WGA, A PBC A 26'er AND A Jumbo Joe
tom b is offline   Reply With Quote


Old 04-04-2018, 10:01 PM   #9
wihint
is One Chatty Farker
 
Join Date: 07-14-13
Location: Phoenix AZ
Default

Thank you for the tutorial. I appreciate it.
__________________
Please call me Bill, William is only when I am in trouble

Weber 22, Weber 22 OTG, Weber 16 and Kamado
wihint is offline   Reply With Quote


Old 04-04-2018, 10:10 PM   #10
BBQchef33
Grand Poobah and Site Admin
 
BBQchef33's Avatar
 
Join Date: 08-11-03
Location: Long Island, NY
Name/Nickname : Phil
Default

nice demo... added link in the roadmap.. thanks.. :)
__________________
Site Administrator and
Grand PooBah

CBJ with a Fuzzy Blue Hat, 18 Foot Competition Trailer, Customized Klose BYC, Custom Built Shirley built to feed our Veterans(A.K.A "Abrams"), 1 Double Barreled Lang 84, 1 Heavily Modified Bionic Bandera, 1 Custom Super Medium Stickburning Spicewine w/stoker, 2 XL BGE, 1 Mini BGE, 2 Pit Barrel Cookers, 3 WSMs, 3 Weber Kettles, an NB Hondo, A Modified Brinkman Horizontal, DCS 48" Grill, a Broilmaster P3, a Blackstone 36 and 17, a covered, pellet pooping FEC100, and our duck died. :(

News Flash:
"A mans worth is judged by the weight of his integrity "

You know your getting older when you choose your cereal for the fiber, not the toy


Smoke on KC.
WWW.BBQ-BRETHREN.COM
BBQchef33 is offline   Reply With Quote


Old 04-04-2018, 10:30 PM   #11
pjtexas1
somebody shut me the fark up.
 
Join Date: 12-28-11
Location: Belton, Tx
Name/Nickname : Texas Pete
Default

Nice write up! I thought I was an aggressive trimmer... Apparently I am not. I also prefer bark to cutting off half an inch of fat as I eat.

Sent from my SM-G955U using Tapatalk
__________________
Paul (aka Texas Pete)
SF 24x36 Midnight Edition / Mak 1-Star /Abe's 48" Insulated Cabinet / 22.5 OTG / 28" BS / Jimmy with CB Roti and pizza kit / Red Box on custom cart / Char-Griller Kettle / Barrel House Cooker / Pit Boss Copperhead / Char-Griller Akorn Jr

Sign Up for The 2022 Texas BBQ Brethren Fall Bash Here! (Link)
pjtexas1 is offline   Reply With Quote


Old 04-04-2018, 10:35 PM   #12
sudsandswine
Quintessential Chatty Farker
 
Join Date: 06-23-12
Location: Kansas City
Default

Quote:
Originally Posted by pjtexas1 View Post
I thought I was an aggressive trimmer... Apparently I am not.
Lol...and I thought I was exercising restraint.


JK...this is about as aggressive as I'll go short of separating the point from the flat and doing a competition style trim.
__________________
Shirley Fab 250g trailer | Primo XL kamado | Red Weber Limited Edition kettle + 26” kettle | Clonesaker PDS (pretty drum smoker)
sudsandswine is offline   Reply With Quote


Thanks from:--->
Old 04-04-2018, 11:18 PM   #13
rwalters
Quintessential Chatty Farker

 
Join Date: 06-08-12
Location: Columbia, TN
Name/Nickname : Robb
Default

Fantastic trim job! Following this cook :)
__________________
MAK 3 Star — Camp Chef FTG 900 — 26.75 Weber kettle — Weber Q3200
Follower of Jesus, Husband of 1, Father of 9, Lover of people
"Ya don't win friends with salad!"
Come follow my adventures on Instagram: @rwaltersbbq
rwalters is offline   Reply With Quote


Old 04-04-2018, 11:29 PM   #14
sudsandswine
Quintessential Chatty Farker
 
Join Date: 06-23-12
Location: Kansas City
Default

Some before/after action. I like how much better the point lays now, as opposed to the edge of the point basically pointing straight up prior to removing some fat between the point and flat.
Attached Images
File Type: jpg Screenshot_20180404-232543.jpg (62.8 KB, 612 views)
File Type: jpg 20180404_232806.jpg (60.8 KB, 611 views)
__________________
Shirley Fab 250g trailer | Primo XL kamado | Red Weber Limited Edition kettle + 26” kettle | Clonesaker PDS (pretty drum smoker)
sudsandswine is offline   Reply With Quote


Thanks from:--->
Old 04-05-2018, 04:03 AM   #15
stangman327
Full Fledged Farker
 
Join Date: 08-20-10
Location: Columbia, Maryland
Default

Wow nice trim job! At this trim level would it be better to just separate to get more surface area for more bark?
__________________
Brett

M1
Hunsaker
Camp Chef Smoke Vault 24 propane smoker
Weber Genesis II LX S-340 Gas Grill w/iGrill probes
Lodge Cast iron sportsman's grill
Masterbuilt electric digital smoker
stangman327 is offline   Reply With Quote


Reply

Thread Tools

Posting Rules
You may not post new threads
You may not post replies
You may not post attachments
You may not edit your posts

BB code is On
Smilies are On
[IMG] code is On
HTML code is Off

Forum Jump


Forum Custom Search: Enter your Search text below. GOOGLE will search ONLY the BBQ Brethren Forum.
Custom search MAY not work(no display box) in some configurations of Internet Explorer. Please use compliant version of Firefox or Chrome.







All times are GMT -5. The time now is 01:43 AM.


Powered by vBulletin® Version 3.8.8
Copyright ©2000 - 2024, vBulletin Solutions, Inc.
2003 -2012 © BBQ-Brethren Inc. All rights reserved. All Content and Flaming Pig Logo are registered and protected under U.S and International Copyright and Trademarks. Content Within this Website Is Property of BBQ Brethren Inc. Reproduction or alteration is strictly prohibited.
no new posts