The Grasshopper Learns from the Master

CPARKTX

I had the amazing experience of apprenticing under @The Cen-Tex Smoker to cook a brisket today, he was incredibly generous sharing his advice and time. 

We we cooked an 11 lbs brisket; cooked in about 6 hours at 275 grate, rested three hours, and was spectacular. Literally not a dry bit on it. There is just no comparison to my previous efforts at brisket. I learned a ton from an acknowledged master, very fun time. 

Sorry the the pics don't come close to doing justice to the great result. 

onedbguru

Good job!!! I want some... 

The Cen-Tex Smoker

Good day today. Chalk one up for the good guys. Glad it worked out. Had fun spending some time with you and your family today. Tell Spidey and his sidekick the brisket man says hello!

henapple

The master? Omg...

DMW

Looks great, and wow that cooked fast.

The Cen-Tex Smoker

DMW said:

Looks great, and wow that cooked fast.

It did. It was probably 8.5 lbs once we trimmed it up. Still fast though. it was CAB prime so it was heavily marbled. those usually roll a little faster.

lousubcap

Any pearls of wisdom that you acquired from the Master that were different from your prior process that you can share?

NPHuskerFL

That seems crazy fast 11# @ 6hrs. SRF, Prime or Choice?  @The Cen-Tex Smoker I normally go 235℉ on the Stoker. What will going 275℉ do for me VS 235℉?

CPARKTX

@NPHuskerFL this was a CAB Prime. That was a lot hotter than I normally do...it also turned out a lot better, so I'm sticking with what worked for me. 

@lousubcap I learned a ton, but some of the things were: cook a bit hotter (275 grate), use less wood (but oak not pecan), get way more aggressive trimming before cooking, use butcher paper vs foil, and do a much longer rest (this one had three hours and was just right temp to serve). 

blukat

Looks really good!

bgebrent

Well done!  I'd eat all of that.

lousubcap

@CPARTX- thanks for the info.  And that is definitely a home-run.  I'm sure you enjoyed the eats!

The Cen-Tex Smoker

I learned that lest we forget, kids are hilarious and the best teachers. Mark's son came running in with a full Spider-Man costume on (with sculpted foam muscles and mask) and asked 20 questions of the weirdo in his home at 7:30 am with a hunk of meat. He then went outside to "look for bugs". I have to say, I was jealous of his unadulterated joy in the little things. I think we could all take a lesson from that. Funny thing is I thought I was going to be the teacher today but a 4 year old kicked my ass at that too. 

Ozzie_Isaac

Did you FTC for 3hrs?  Was they based on serving time or how did you know 3hr rest was right?

Mickey

You did learn from the master. My wife says his brisket is the very best anywhere. I agree. 

CPARKTX

@Ozzie_Isaac we loosely wrapped in butcher paper, towels, put in cooler (so FTC with butcher paper instead of foil); Cen-Tex recommended at least an hour of rest, the exact length was driven by when we wanted to eat. At 3 hours it was plenty warm to eat and I could just handle by hand. 

Ozzie_Isaac

Thanks for the clarification.  Did you pull right when it probed like butter?  Did you let it rest before PTC or ďirectly in cooler after you pulled?

The Cen-Tex Smoker

Mickey said:

You did learn from the master. My wife says his brisket is the very best anywhere. I agree. 

Too kind. Thanks

CPARKTX

@Ozzie_Isaac - I lightly tented it with foil for about 20 minutes before PTC, but that was just so Cen-Tex had a chance to see and not really by design.  I'm not sure it mattered. 

The Cen-Tex Smoker

Ozzie_Isaac said:

Thanks for the clarification.  Did you pull right when it probed like butter?  Did you let it rest before PTC or ďirectly in cooler after you pulled?

I wasn't there when he pulled it but it was creeping up to 205 so I told him to pull it and rest loosly tented in foil on his egg table until I got there. It probably sat out for 30 min or so. We were cooking hot so it came out of the stall and to temp pretty fast. I don't like to wrap right away when they are cooked hot. They tend to rise another 20 degrees or so when wrapped right away. I like to catch them on the way down a little but still hot enough to hold for hours in the cooler. I think we hit this one pretty close. Being a prime I would guess that we went over by 5 degrees but mark said it was good so I'll take his word for it. I wasn't there for the unveiling. It was jiggly when we wrapped it though so I figure we were pretty close. 

fljoemon

Any particluar rub .. or was it just salt & pepper?

The Cen-Tex Smoker

fljoemon said:

Any particluar rub .. or was it just salt & pepper?

i use a little granulated garlic too but salt and pepper is all you need. I honestly like Bad Byrons the best of any commercial rub for Briskets but I do my own S&P based rubs now.

bluebird66

Incredible!

SGH

That's just awesome. To me, this is what makes the forum really special. People willing to not only offer advice on the forum, but literally come over and help in person. I have had the pleasure of meeting brother Tex, he is truly a great person. On a seperate note, the grub looks spectacular. 

caliking

Spectacular. That's money right there.

caliking

Mickey said:

You did learn from the master. My wife says his brisket is the very best anywhere. I agree. 

+1. Mine says the same thing. She was super pissed when she didn't get any of the fabled Salado 2013 brisky, and I kept telling her how **** awesome it was. Even caliprince tried some this year.

CPARKTX

SGH said:

That's just awesome. To me, this is what makes the forum really special. People willing to not only offer advice on the forum, but literally come over and help in person. I have had the pleasure of meeting brother Tex, he is truly a great person. On a seperate note, the grub looks spectacular. 

No doubt, great forum and great people. That's why the Eggfests are so fun, it's getting to meet the people and share experiences. 

Phatchris

Awesomeness all around

johnkitchens

That is exactly what I need. I really want to cook a brisket, but I have only had it a few times at a local BBQ joint. It was ok, but not stellar. I have nothing else to compare it to. I would love to cook one with a brisket veteran so I could finally experience brisket nirvana, and then I would have something to aim for every time. 

CPARKTX

@johnkitchens it was a great learning experience. You make it to any Eggfests?

johnkitchens

CPARKTX said:

@johnkitchens it was a great learning experience. You make it to any Eggfests?

I have never been to one. I would like to go to the North GA one in May, but I have a wedding I have to attend that day. I had rather go to the eggfest.