Corned Beef Brisket

grussem

Hey Everyone,

     I got a corned beef brisket the other day at Costco, a little over 6 pounds.  I threw it on the BGE a couple hours ago and am going to smoke it at 260 degrees.  I rubbed it with pepper, coriander and garlic powder.  I'm also documenting it via video which I'll upload later tonight or tomorrow.  Anyhow I'll update with photos as it finishes.

     I'm still not sure whether I'll pull it at about 165 (as I see some others do with corned beef brisket) or pull it at the same temp/tenderness I would a normal beef brisket flat.

Egghead_Daron

I have done them closer to 195-200. The first one I did was straight from package to Egg. Way too salty. I soaked the next one for 24 hours in cold water changing the water out every 8 hours or so. Much better. FWIW.

grussem

Egghead_Daron said:

I have done them closer to 195-200. The first one I did was straight from package to Egg. Way too salty. I soaked the next one for 24 hours in cold water changing the water out every 8 hours or so. Much better. FWIW.

Yeah, I was going to soak it longer but I got preoccupied with other stuff and did not realize until this morning that I should have done so overnight.  The reason I'm doing it at 260 is because a few weeks back I made an absolutely KILLER smoked brisket flat, came out perfect and I wanted to try and reproduce it as much as possible with the corned beef brisket.  Anyhow, thanks for the comment.  If this comes out crappy I'm going to try it at a lower temperature next time.  Have an awesome day!

grussem

Here is the completed Corned Beef Brisket.  As Egghead Daron stated earlier you REALLY need to soak the brisket for quite a while.  Mine came out salty because I did not soak it long enough, which is something I will do for sure next time.  Other than that it came out great, very tender and juicy.  We had it with some roasted cabbage and carrots seasoned with a little olive oil, salt, pepper, coriander and fresh rosemary from the back yard.  Hit me up if you have any questions.

Oh yeah, one more thing, I put about 7 slices into the food processor for about a minute and I'm going to fry it in the morning with a few eggs for breakfast.

Cookinbob

That looks really good, I think I will give it a try.  The corned Beef Briskets are really cheap closer to St Patties day.  Should make a great sandwich too!

robnybbq

I want to try this this weekend maybe.  I would get one today and let it soak overnight/or two to Un-Brine it little.

I have done full packer briskets with success but never a flat.  I have read that just the flat usually comes out dry/tough unless doing it like a Travis style (liquid in a pan).

If I get the corned beef which will be a flat only how should I cook it?  Will it dry out if I just smoke it?  Does it need to cook in a liquid tub like a Travis style?

How long apprioxamately (I know cook to temp/tenderness) but want to know if this is a 5hour or a overnighter for a 5 lb flat.

grussem

robnybbq said:

I want to try this this weekend maybe.  I would get one today and let it soak overnight/or two to Un-Brine it little.

I have done full packer briskets with success but never a flat.  I have read that just the flat usually comes out dry/tough unless doing it like a Travis style (liquid in a pan).

If I get the corned beef which will be a flat only how should I cook it?  Will it dry out if I just smoke it?  Does it need to cook in a liquid tub like a Travis style?

How long apprioxamately (I know cook to temp/tenderness) but want to know if this is a 5hour or a overnighter for a 5 lb flat.

Hey Rob,

Let me try to answer your questions to the best of my ability. DISCLAIMER: I AM NOT A PRO-BBQER! What I am going to tell you is through my own personal trial and error and what works best for me.  If anyone else has a better idea or suggestion please feel free to chime in!

I have read up on the Travis style brisket method and it looks good to me, especially if you have a flat in which much of the fat was already trimmed off by the butcher. I have not tried it personally but have read that many people have had great results with it.

I am fortunate in that there is a local supermarket (not a chain style) that is well known for having excellent selections of meat.  It is Star Market in Salinas California.  The brisket flat that I purchased from them on my video (not the corned beef but the brisket flat) was a certified angus. It was only the flat but most of the fat cap was left on there from where it met with the point.  As a matter of fact there was a very tiny bit of the point left on it but not much.  The butcher told me if I was going to smoke it not to trim it.  I took his advice and the brisket came out absolutely perfect.

From my personal experience if you go to a chain supermarket and buy a beef brisket the vast majority of the fat cap is trimmed off with the exception of about 1/8-1/4 of an inch.  Buying this is going to set you up for possible failure.  In my experience the fat cap is essential on a flat because it protects the meat from drying out.  I purchased a brisket flat from a big name supermarket before and it was tough and dry (not much fat cap left on it at all).  Not the case with the one from Star.

Another thing is this, the grade of the brisket you purchase (IMHO) has a lot to do with how it comes out as well.  Prior to the Angus Choice flat I purchased the full packers I got were from Walmart and they were only Select grade.  Those that were from Walmart of Select grade came out drier and tougher.  I read online (and personally found it to be true) that when you get your brisket, hold it in the middle and see how it flexes.  If it is flexible and bends while holding it, it should turn out good.  If it is stiff when you hold it in the middle it will probably be tougher and drier after being cooked.

Now for the corned beef brisket...I got it at CostCo and it was your typical pre-brined corned beef brisket.  Not much of a fat cap left on it.  It SHOULD not dry out if and when you smoke it.  I smoked my corned beef brisket the same as I did the BBQ beef brisket with one exception...the CORNED beef brisket I pulled with it reached between 183-185 internal temp.  The BBQ beef brisket I pulled when it was around 200 or so.  Due to the lack of a fat cap on most corned beef brisket flats it is my belief that if you leave it on much longer you run the risk of drying it out.

As far at time is concerned is SHOULD not be an overnighter but sometimes you never can tell.  My corned beef brisket took approximately 1.10 hours per pound at the end of the day.  With that being said a lot may depend on marbling/fat content.

I am quite positive that my reply was as clear as mud but I found out the hard way there is no clean, clear answer to cooking times.  Anyhow I hope that helped at least a little bit.  Let me know if you have anymore questions or tips for my cooks.

gdenby

There was a fellow with the handle thirdeye that used to post a lot to the old forum. He has a website called  http://playingwithfireandsmoke.blogspot.com Lots of very good recipes including a couple for brisket, and a fine one for turning corned beef brisket to pastrami.

FWIW, I soak my corned beef for at least 48 hours, w 4 water changes before Egging.

grussem

gdenby said:

There was a fellow with the handle thirdeye that used to post a lot to the old forum. He has a website called  http://playingwithfireandsmoke.blogspot.com Lots of very good recipes including a couple for brisket, and a fine one for turning corned beef brisket to pastrami.

FWIW, I soak my corned beef for at least 48 hours, w 4 water changes before Egging.

Thanks for the heads up on the Playing With Fire and Smoke site.  I learned the hard way that I should have soaked my corned beef for much longer! It was not TERRIBLY salty but nothing I would have felt comfortable feeding to a bunch of friends at a BBQ.  Thanks for the tips!

SmokeyPitt

It looks great.  I appreciate all the tips about soaking it.  I threw one on the egg once and like you said it was good, but I think I would enjoy it much more with less salt.