Let's Talk Brisket- Please

[jacob]

Here's the deal Brothers. The head man at my HVAC supplier approached me today. I was in there to get a quick disconnect for my gages. Which he gave me to say thanks for the chicken plates.
He is from Texas and loves brisket. Somewhere in Texas, he orders one and has it packed in dry ice and shipped to him. He really Loves Brisket.
They have three dinners a year. Order enough food for 250 people. He wants me to prepare a brisket for him to sample. I was going to cook one already the way Dave told me too. But now I want to here from you all. I am going to do three. I am interested in cooking technique. Also some kind of dipping sauce that is not tomato basted. If I impress with the brisket, the gigs are mine. If you have read my past threads, you should be aware. I don't get along to well with briskets. But I do love a challenge. Any advice is appreciated very much.

 

[leanza]

Good post Jacob. Best wishes on your future success. I'm excited to see what the Brothers have to say. I will watch what is posted and learn.

 

[jgh1204]

Jacob,

There are any number of ways to do brisket. The roadmap thread I believe has lots of ideas.

Personally, I like, 225 until it reaches 160 then wrap or put into a pan and cover with foil. Then you can kick the heat up to 275. Start checking for tenderness at 180. Foiling or putting into a pan will not allow bark which some people want. The key is keeping the temps consistent. 225 means 225 +- 10 degrees or so.

I like a good salt based rub with little or no sugar.

I also prefer CAB brisket which luckily I can get fairly cheap down here($1.49/lb).

I am a firm believer in the bend test. Which means you want a brisket that you can bend in half fairly easily. The theory being that cold fat wont bend easily.

 

[jgh1204]

BTW, here is one road map thread.

http://www.bbq-brethren.com/forum/showthread.php?t=8502&highlight=Turning

 

[jacob]

Could someone tell me what mustard does for a brisket. I've seen in some of your pics that it it used on different meats. But what does it do for the flavor of the meat.

 

[burnin butts]

It really depends on where the person is from on how to season the brisket. How you are planning on serving it, pulled, sliced or cubed.
All smokers vary, I cook at 200 degrees until the brisket is at 160, wrap and cook until it hits 180, then I unwrap and let it firm up for about 45 min. to an hour depending on size of brisket. This way is good for slicing.
If you want pulled, don't unwrap it till it hits 195 -200 and let it cool down wrapped (it will retain its moisture that way). If you're looking for a dipping sauce, use the the juices off the brisket, add beef stock with salt and pepper.

 

[DeanC]

Could someone tell me what mustard does for a brisket. I've seen in some of your pics that it it used on different meats. But what does it do for the flavor of the meat.

Others may disagree, but for me, mustard has done nothing for flavor. It helps glue the rub on and when I used it, I experienced more bark. My only suggestion is that when you take him his sample, take the whole brisket hot off the smoker (after resting of course) and slice it in front of him. Brisket tends to dry quick after its sliced. Good luck, hope you get the gig.

 

[G$]

Depending on your point of view, mustard either does:

A) nothing
B) Helps the rub adhere (a la a slather) and ultimately form a bark
C) actually imparts a flavor plus helps drive rub flavor in to the meat.

Personally, i think it is mostly B, a little A, and not at all C. But this, like many other aspects of the Barbecue art (fat cap, foil, rub over night, meat at room temp before cooking, etc etc) is open to interpretation.

I should add I never use mustard on beef, like Brisket, and rarely use it on pork anymore.

 

[jacob]

I thought I woud try to present it slice, pulled, tell me more about cubed.
Another potential problem. I have to cook on Sunday, then fridge. I can't deliever until Monday. Whats this going to do to the meat by reaheating when they get it.

 

[jgh1204]

If you are going to chill before serving, just be sure to wrap tightly in foil and reheat slowly, 200-225 degrees. Then slice.

As for mustard, I agree with the above, it is mostly a glue to hold the rub.

As a side note, I worked at a restaurant in college that served some of the best fried catfish. Their secret, they soaked the catfish in a mixture of water and mustard, about 1 to 1. Cheap salad mustard. The mustard flavor cooked away completely. It helped remove some of that muddy taste that even farm raised catfish can have.

 

[Keri C]

If you have a vaccuum sealer, you can easily reheat a full unsliced packer in about 30 -40 minutes. After the brisket is off the cooker and has rested, put it in a vacuum bag, seal it, and throw the whole thing into a big pot of ice water to complete the chill.

When you're ready to reheat, bring a big pot of water to a simmer. Drop your vacced briskets into the simmering water - DON'T let it boil, as that can, upon rare occasion, cause a seal to open on the side of the vac bag.

Once it's hot and the juices are moving around in the bag, you're set. Wrap up the vacced bags in a few towels, grab your cutting board and slicer, and you're set. We've been doing pulled pork and brisket like this for folks for a long time now, and it works great.

Keri C

 

[smoke in KY]

the mustard mostly just serves as a glue to adhere the rub, but also IMO the high vinegar content of mustard seems to have a tenderizing effect on the meat.

 

[Papa Hogg]

Jacob,
One of my neighbors is from Texas & they have bought several briskets from me this summer & have asked for more...The night before I smoke I inject the brisket with a mixture of beef broth, apple juice or beer, & worstershire. Then I rub with favorite rub or if you want to do Texas style salt & pepper only. Before putting on the smoker I season some more with Lawry's season salt.
Smoke with hickory or oak to start & then use apple or cherry, the last half of the cook is smoke free or just charcoal. I cook fat side up at 225*. I do not foil, I will spray the briskets with apple juice if needed during the cook & I remove from the smoker when I get it to 195*. I then wrap tightly in plastic wrap & then foil. Let it rest for at least 1 hour...Mine are always tender, always juicy & the beef flavor really shines thru :biggrin:

 

[Mo-Dave]

Others may disagree, but for me, mustard has done nothing for flavor. It helps glue the rub on and when I used it, I experienced more bark. My only suggestion is that when you take him his sample, take the whole brisket hot off the smoker (after resting of course) and slice it in front of him. Brisket tends to dry quick after its sliced. Good luck, hope you get the gig.

I agree that you should slice it in front of him, hot if you want to up your chances of getting the gig. At least you know it will be cut right and not allow taking the chance that who ever is cutting it does not know what they are doing and making it appear to be tuff.
Dave

 

[frognot]

Don't forget to cut against the grain (meat fibers) when slicing and realize that the grain can bend around on you. Not sure how to explain that better this early in the AM.

 

[jacob]

Excellent info here Brothers. Keep it coming. All replies are being read very carefully. Thanks for all your help with this. I do prefer to serve and deliver hot. I am considering waiting to start until Sunday night. Timing so when it's ready I can take off and prepare and deliver it hot. I have carrying containers that will keep it hot in route. This would take near perfect timing. Off to work now. Then to the meat market afterwards. There is less chance of getting called away during the night. I don't like it when I have to leave and trust my helper to follow my instructions while gone. I have 2 10 # butts I bought last week and froze. Those going on as well with some ribs. One of the briskets are sold to someone who was listening to my talk with the mgr. Bought it right on the spot.

 

[jgh1204]

Jacob the timing does not have to be perfect. You can wrap and hold a brisket for several hours. In fact, holding for several hours can help.

http://www.bbq-brethren.com/forum/showthread.php?t=10813

This thread was extremely helpful to me.

 

[Markbb]

Brisket

I do brisket all the time and I have to agree with all about the preperation, mustard slather and I use Head country rub with alittle bit of coffee thrown in the aroma is addictive and taste awsome,so for alittle change throw alittle Hazelnut coffee in the rub...oh score the fat cap before you rub to get a good penetration and I never trimm and fat cap up, spritz with applejuice and Jack!

 

[Puppyboy]

I cooked up a 7.8# the other day. Put a thick coat of rub on the top only. Tossed it on the cooker with fat cap down (That's a debate in itself). Did not spray it at all. When it got to 165*, I foiled it. When it got to 195*, I pulled it off and let it rest in a cool wrapped in beach towels. 4 hours later, it was still very very warm and sliced beautifully. It was very tender. Cooked it at 250* and the total cooking time was 8 hours.

 

[Ron_L]

I am probably not the best brisket cook in the bunch, but everyone loves it when I cook it, so here's what I do...

I start with a whole packer cut brisket and trim the hard fat and trim come of the fat between the flat and the point to make it easier to remove the point. Then I inject with a mixture created by heating beef broth, Montreal Steak Seasoning and chopped garlic just to the boiling point and then letting it cool. I strain the chunks out of the mixture so they don't clog the needle. Then I inject the brisket until it won't take any more. After injecting I coat it liberally with Montreal Steak Seasoning and cook it hot (typically 300 - 325). I watch it for color and then foil it when it reaches the color I want (usually a deep mahogany) and then cook until it feels right with a thermometer probe (typically about 190 - 195 degrees. Then i will typically separate the flat and the point and foil and cooler the flat for a nice rest (an hour at least) and re-season the point and put it back into the cooker for a couple of hours to make burnt ends.

Again, I may not the the best brisket guy here, but I have received great reviews and my coworkers request that I bring brisket with me when I travel to our US headquarters :-D