Brisket Suggestions????

Unknown

Merry Christmas Everyone,[p]I am going to cook my first brisket. I bought an 8lb trimmed brisket vs. an untrimmed. Was that a mistake? It just seemed that the untrimmed did not have much "meat". [p]I am open to suggestions on how, when, what, how long, etc. Please bombard me with suggestions on cooking times, setup, marinades, etc.[p]Thanks ladies and gentlemen.[p]Cajundude

egghead2004

cajundude,
Good question, I'm going to the butcher today or tomorrow. I want to cook my first brisket also. Any info would help the both of us.

The Naked Whiz

cajundude,
If "trimmed" means that the butcher trimmed off all or most of the fat cap, then it was probably a minor mistake. I'm no brisket expert, but the best brisket I did was a whole brisket with plenty of fat on it. I think you will find that it may be hard to produce a moist brisket without the fat. You can do a couple of things. I think I've seen people put bacon on top of the brisket to help keep it moist. Also, I've seen people put a pork butt on a grid over the brisket so all the pork fat drips down on the brisket. But, hey, give it a go. If it turns out too dry, you can always chop it up, add sauce and make burnt ends. Good luck and let us know how you do. (Below is a link to my brisket page, which is basically a distillation of what I've seen here, especially from drbbq. HTH)[p]TNW
[ul][li]Brisket Hints and Tips[/ul]

Unknown

cajundude, cook it indirect at 225 to 250 to an internal of about 190. Wrap tightly with foil, then a towel and place in a styrofoam cooler for 2 hrs. Can't go wrong. Of course you gotta season it first so i like to rub with olive oil, dp cowlick and some cafe sole`. The cafe sole` should be easy found in some grocery stores the DP Cowlick should be where you got your BGE or order online from the dizzypigbbq.com. You can just use some corse grd pepper and kosher salt and some italian seasoning.

egghead2004

The Naked Whiz,
From what I see on your site, the flat is the better part of the brisket, but by cooking the whole brisket is better than just the flat?
You also cook with the fat cap down, not up? I thought it was the other way or maybe for a pork butt the fat cap should be up and I am confusing the two?

tn slagamater

cajundude,brisket has a reputation for being tough to cook.But, of course, we have Eggs, so we have a big advantage. I cook with fat cap up(cut the cap like a diamond pattern, to let your rubs penetrate to the meat) but if you cover it with bacon in place of the fat cap, that should work. I then add rubs, garlic powder, pepper, worshire sauce, onions, and cover it with white sugar.(The sugar disappears)Let it marinate in this at least 4 hours. Some folks add beer, beef bouillion, maybe some melted butter. You can also inject it with garlic sauce. Anyway, cook it indirect with platesetter and drip pan at 275 degrees til the meat hits 190 internal.When a fork turns easily in the meat it is ready. Wrap it in foil and rest 30 minutes. HTH. If there was only one reason to own an Egg, it is brisket !! YUMMY

sprinter

cajundude,[p]You'll be just fine wiht the trimmed flat vs. the packer. I've cooked a lot of both and have not ever added any bacon or anything to the top of the flat and its been fine when its done, not dried out at all. Just my experience but thats what you asked for.[p]Plan on about 10-12 hours for the 8 pounder, maybe a bit less. I cook them about 225-250 dome temp. You can use just about any rub you want, your favorite pork rub would work fine but I find that a more salty rub on a brisket gives a better end product. Dizzy pig makes great stuff but if you dont have any and you are cooking tonight you may have to make your own. salt and pepper works fine, add some garlic powder and onion powder to it.[p]I cook mine fat side up for about 2/3 of the cook, down for about 2 hours, then up again to finish it off. Maybe just retentive on this but its worked for me. I dont foil them at all during the cook. I WOULD recommend that you plan to get it done about 2 hours early, foil it and put it in a cooler wrapped in towels, just to let the juices redistribute. This will make a HUGE difference, it needs time to rest after the cook.[p]One note, before you even put rub on the brisket, mark the end of the brisket where you want to cut. You want to slice it across the grain when its done. I usually make a small cut, WITH the grain, to mark the spot I want to start cutting and I cut the slices PERPENDICULAR to this initial small cut. When the brisket is cooked you may THINK that the grain pattern on the meat will be easy to spot, its NOT. This just saves a lot of wondering when the meat is done.[p]Hope this helps.[p]Troy