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First Time Brisket

RaleighGuy
RaleighGuy Posts: 207
edited November -1 in EggHead Forum
Woke up Saturday morning and decided I wanted to do a brisket for the first time. Knowing I was short on time, I just bought a flat. It still had a decent amount of fat.
utf-8BSU1HMDAxMjMtMjAxMTA3MTYtMTAzMy5qcGc.jpg

Got it on at 10:30am with mostly hickory and a little bit of mesquite. Egg was 275 dome. Had some honey-to-do's, so I just left it alone until 5:30. Much to my surprise, at 5:30 the thermometer read 205, so I immediately pulled it and wrapped it.
utf-8BSU1HMDAxMjQtMjAxMTA3MTYtMTczNC5qcGc.jpg

Made some ABT's afterwards.
utf-8BSU1HMDAxMjUtMjAxMTA3MTYtMTkwMS5qcGc.jpg

Brisket after cutting.
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All in all, I thought it was a pretty successful cook considering I have never cooked a brisket before in my life. Always been a little intimidated. It was a tad on the dry side, but it just makes me want to do another.The bark turned out great, and the meat had excellent flavor. Lessons learned: 1. I need to invest in some type of pit monitoring equipment (I'm a cheapscape,just ask my wife, but really want an ET-732 or the grand stoker) 2.Meat cooked less than perfect on the egg is still better than most restaurants.

Eddie

Raleigh, NC

Comments

  • Rezen73
    Rezen73 Posts: 356
    ABT's look awesome.

    Nice cook on your first brisket, too... way better than the first brisket I ever cooked! then again, I didn't have an egg when I was in high school lol.

    And too right on your #2 lesson.

    As for your #1 lesson, go for it. I am expecting my stoker this week, looking forward to doing my first butt or brisket once it arrives :D
  • Woodbutcher
    Woodbutcher Posts: 1,017
    Looks pretty darn good from here!
  • lousubcap
    lousubcap Posts: 32,162
    Wondering the flat pre-cook weight-as all my egg flats with calibrated 250*F dome take around 2.1 hours/lb to the 195-200 twisted fork tender mark. May have to move it to 275-
    Looks great-
    Louisville; Rolling smoke in the neighbourhood. # 38 for the win.  Life is too short for light/lite beer!  Seems I'm livin in a transitional period.
  • RaleighGuy
    RaleighGuy Posts: 207
    It was pretty small. I meant to check after I threw out the package. I think it was 3.5-4 pnds.

    Eddie

    Raleigh, NC

  • golfguy
    golfguy Posts: 105
    Brisket looks good. I would go for the maverick. I had the same dilemna (budget), and for MOST of the cooks you do, the Maverick et 732 will do the job. The gf promised she was buying me one for my upcoming bday!
  • snook76
    snook76 Posts: 4
    New to the BGE and trying to figure it all out. At least the basic stuff...Question about your pic: What is the drip pan sitting on?
  • golfguy
    golfguy Posts: 105
    It's sitting on the platesetter
  • RaleighGuy
    RaleighGuy Posts: 207
    No drip pan. Like I said, I'm a cheapscape. Just the plate setter wrapped in HDF.

    Eddie

    Raleigh, NC

  • Greenman72
    Greenman72 Posts: 20
    Briskets are what I cook the most of. And I've messed a few up, but I figure that's how you learn. Here's what I've learned.

    First, 275 sound a little high for me. I like to cook mine at 210-220. Takes longer, but tastes better. Also, if you want to eat at noon the next day, you can just "set it and forget it the night before.

    Second, I put the chunks in the Egg at the last possible second. I put them in, then put the Platesetter on, put the grate on, then put the brisket on. That way you get a lot of smoke on the meat.

    Third, I like to foil mine about 2-3 hours into it. I tried once to foil mine at 7 hours in, and it was really dry.

    I used to try and sear first, but I don't really do that anymore, since the egg is so good at moisture retention.

    This is my brisket routine. Don't be afraid to try different ways of doing it!
  • Rolling Egg
    Rolling Egg Posts: 1,995
    Nothing like leaving the egg all day and coming home to everything being done! The brisket looks good. Got a great bark.
  • WeberWho
    WeberWho Posts: 11,008
    I'm pretty cheap myself. I wen't with just the basic Auber Insturment pit controller and it works good for babysitting the egg. Watch for the end of the year closeouts on their website. Picked mine up for $99 before shipping. Nothing much to it but does the job.
    "The pig is an amazing animal. You feed a pig an apple and it makes bacon. Let's see Michael Phelps do that" - Jim Gaffigan

    Minnesota