Taking on my first brisket

Papzi

I am going to try my first brisket this Saturday probably in the 8 lb range for a dinner with friends where they will be arriving at 8:30 PM. Here is the catch.............I will be at their houses from 6:00 to 8:30. I was planning on starting the cook about 5 AM to make sure it will be finished by 5 PM. I was going to then wrap it and put it in a cooler until we returned to cut and serve. Does this seem like a reasonable plan? Any other suggestions?

Foghorn

That seems "reasonable" - as long as the brisket behaves reasonably.  On that timeline, I would cook toward the higher end of the brisket temperature spectrum (shoot for 275 and be happy +/- 15 degrees), and I would be prepared to wrap it in foil around 2:00 if it stalls out for too long. 

During the cook, there will likely be several folks around to help you if issues arise.

Good luck, take pics, and let us know how it goes.  And welcome aboard.

Papzi

If I put it in the cooler at 5, is that too long?  Will it cool off too much? My better half, a nurse, is worried bout "food-borne illness". I don't want to have a dozen people go home sick.

Foghorn

No.  You will pull it at 200 degrees or so.  All bacteria are dead at that temperature.  If wrapped properly (foil, then a towel for added insulation), in a decent cooler (not a Yeti or something ultra high end) some folks have checked meat temps on their brisket after 6 hours in a cooler and they are still in the 160 - 170 range.  Above 140 everything stays dead.  When it gets below 140 the clock starts ticking, but it is still safe for at least 6 more hours after it goes below 140.  If you have any leftovers, get them in a refrigerator prior to that 6 hour window and you are still good to eat it. 

The most common food-borne illness one can get from a grill comes from not cooking poultry to at least 160 degrees (I actually take white meat off at 155 and let it rest up to 160, but I confirm that temp before I serve it) - or maybe cooking hamburgers to less than 140 or so as was seen this summer at Yankee Stadium.

http://espn.go.com/new-york/mlb/story/_/id/10927829/ryne-sandberg-lucas-duda-blame-shake-shack-food-poisoning

The low and slow cooks of briskets and pork butts where one goes to about 200 degrees are the safest of all cooks. 

lousubcap

Regarding the FTC (foil, towel and cooler) hold time-you can do some advance work and get easily 5-7 hours in the cooler with the meat temp still around 150*F.  Pre warm the cooler with hot water for awhile, heat up the towels (garage quality:)) in the dryer, then use HDAF to wrap the brisket, followed by the towels, into the cooler-shut the lid and forget about it til ready to unwrap, rest then slice and eat.

 

Hopefully your hunk of beef is a packer brisket as that is more forgiving with regard to getting it right.  Regardless, someone will help if needed during the cook.

BTW-welcome aboard and enjoy the journey.

theyolksonyou

Welcome to the forum, this is the best place to learn and ask questions. Sounds like you are off to a good start, but should you need more assistance, you can find it here literally 24/7. Great folks. Have fun!

tulocay

welcome

Papzi

Thanks for all the advice.  I'm looking forward to the cook.

Papzi

I was only able to find a 7 lb flat and I was afraid that I would dry it out, so I went with the Travis Method.  Turned out great.

theyolksonyou

Looks like a success!