Is Brisket Really That Good or Are We Chasing the Challenge?

JohnInCarolina

I've had some really good brisket, most all of it cooked by others.  I've nailed a few of my own as well.  I think it's a bit of both for me.

One thing I'll say for sure: I've never had any complaints from guests for briskets I've smoked on the Egg.  Most people rave about it.  We are our own worst critics with these things.

GoooDawgs

I think it's a size thing.   It gets our ego putting a 15 pound cow on the egg. If a brisket was 5 pounds,  it probably wouldn't be that big of deal.    

GrillSgt

There are two main groups on here and both love their eggs. #1 loves the challenge of the perfect product. #2 simply love making great food. Nothing wrong with being in either group. 

Hibby

For me the desire is in the flavor. I've had so-so brisket and then I've had really great brisket. I think really great brisket is hard to beat. I've still never cooked one yet but plan to soon. Grabbing a KCBS membership so I can shop at restaurant depot to get packers. 

YukonRon

Brisket is worth it. I have many people that eat what I cook telling me it is awesome. The world is full of liars, however, I doubt that they all come to our dinner parties, when brisket is served.
Just sayin'.

lousubcap

I have converted my M-I-L to the brisket camp.  "I enjoy brisket better than prime rib."  BTW- she resides in Marin County, CA - hot bed of brisket and prime rib opportunities    When you nail one it will hook you for the next one.  

fairchase

Beef It's What's For Dinner !

SciAggie

I'll also add that I will only cook a high quality piece of beef and only on an offset smoker. I love my egg but if I'm going to invest 12-15 hours of my life in a piece of meat I won't cut any corners. An offset smoker does a better job in my opinion. 

Theophan

I was born in Michigan a long time ago, and "barbecue" either meant burgers and hot dogs on a grill, or maybe sloppy joes.  Then sometime in the '70s I took a trip to Texas, tasted Texas-style smoky, smoky smoky BBQ, and thought I'd died and gone to heaven!  I had no idea there WAS anything that good!  And heavily smoked beef brisket was the main event for me.  I love good pulled pork, but not as much as a good brisket.  I cook more pork, though, because all I've seen in my area is brisket flats, and I liked the ones I cooked, but pork butt sure is more forgiving.

I keep reading folks on this forum talking about beef short ribs as "brisket on a stick," though, and I've never tried them.  I might give them a go, one of these days...

Monty77

I enjoy the brisket cook journey as much as the final product.  One of my favourite things to cook and always a hit with family and friends.  

westernbbq

Like the Cape Buffalo, Brisket is one of the big game bbq items... Ribs, Shoulder, Brisket and chicken.   Whole hog goes in there somewhere too but it isn't a mainstream item everyone can do..

But brisket is part of the  holy grail of bbq and many are afraid to attempt, few have mastered it.  All i can say is that whenever i made it since i learned how to on bge the folks i served it to went crazy over it.  

six_egg

for me Brisket is just ok. I am a Ribeye steak guy. Now burnt ends are really awesome I do love them. I also love a good brisket chilli. 

Foghorn

For me, great brisket = great prime rib = great beef tenderloin = great pork chops = great ribs (beef or pork) = a great burger, etc.  It all depends on what I'm in the mood for.  

It's like living near a mountain range with a bunch of peaks that all have great views, but no one peak is necessarily better than the other.  Some days I feel like making the hardest climb and seeing how the view is from that peak that day.  Other days I prefer an easier climb or a different view.  But a great brisket is every bit as good as any of the other cuts.  It's not JUST about the challenge.

I still think that Franklin's chopped brisket sandwich is the best food I've ever eaten.  He gets the brisket perfect before he chops it AND he gets the spice/sauce/vinegar just right the way @The Cen-Tex Smoker describes about pulled pork.

kwdickert

It sounds as though there are a few key takeaways here.

#1 - I should go try some holy grail brisket before I give up so I know what the goal is. Maybe i've just never had the right stuff. Both cooked in a restaurant and when i've cooked brisket, it was beefy and tasted like peppered roast beef. That's all I got out of it. I think i'll give beef ribs a go next time i want bbq beef.

#2 - It is indeed just as intriguing because cooking it is difficult. 

#3 - I suspect i've only ever had the flat which could be the reason I feel the way I do. 

xfire_ATX

When I go to get BBQ somewhere local I could care less about the brisket- never been a big fan.  I have cooked it a few times and run about 60/40 really good and "brisket".  

When do I make one myself....when walking through the local grocery and I see prime at a good price I buy one put it in the freezer and some time in the future I will cook it.

lkapigian

It's allright here

http://eggheadforum.com/discussion/1138233/brisket-how-i-do-it/p1

GrillSgt

westernbbq said:

Like the Cape Buffalo, Brisket is one of the big game bbq items... Ribs, Shoulder, Brisket and chicken.   Whole hog goes in there somewhere too but it isn't a mainstream item everyone can do..

But brisket is part of the  holy grail of bbq and many are afraid to attempt, few have mastered it.  All i can say is that whenever i made it since i learned how to on bge the folks i served it to went crazy over it.  

This exemplifies the two types on here. I never look at anything I cook on the egg as a challenge, either it's good, damn good or *&$^&^ good. Nothing wrong with being in either camp.

Focker

I'm in the brisket sucks camp, your assessment of it overall is spot on, you are not alone my friend.  Nov 2013 was my last point cook.  Towards the end, I got points only from my butcher, then was fortunate enough to quit brisket altogether.  4 years brisket free!!!

I mean come on, take a long hard look at this "best" brisket boot leather....it speaks for itself.

westernbbq

GrillSgt said:

westernbbq said:

Like the Cape Buffalo, Brisket is one of the big game bbq items... Ribs, Shoulder, Brisket and chicken.   Whole hog goes in there somewhere too but it isn't a mainstream item everyone can do..

But brisket is part of the  holy grail of bbq and many are afraid to attempt, few have mastered it.  All i can say is that whenever i made it since i learned how to on bge the folks i served it to went crazy over it.  

This exemplifies the two types on here. I never look at anything I cook on the egg as a challenge, either it's good, damn good or *&$^&^ good. Nothing wrong with being in either camp.

heck ya, i will admit that the original reason i got  abge was to make pizza and after the first few tries which were epic failures, i almost gave up.  i was to the point of frustration.  then i had a flashback to when i attempted brisket on the pitts n spitts smoker that was a blackened hunk of jerky and i was ready to give up.  well i ended up making pretty good brisky on the pitts n spitts and when i got the bge, well it took it to a new level.  pitts n spitts makes great bbq pitts but maybe it was being up all nite and having to stoke the fire every couple of hours that made the finished product taste too smoly and unenjoyable.  sort of like a cigar you taste the next day..
but the brisky off the bge, once i embraced the low n slow concept not only became easy to produce results but the results were incredible.  a prime packer at costco is relatively low cost and family members prefer a brisky to prime rib on Christmas and Easter so the cost is about 60-70% loess for these holiday traditions
the challenge has been met. conquered and not yet quite perfected but practicing is fun.  i also got piza on bge figuured out so these two things have caused me to reap enjoyment in accomplishment and consumption beyond anything i imagined.

Theophan

kwdickert said:

... I should go try some holy grail brisket before I give up so I know what the goal is. Maybe i've just never had the right stuff. ...

I think that's very possible.  I really don't care for brisket I've had in ANY BBQ place outside of Texas.  It's just not very good where I live.  I stick with pork in BBQ restaurants.  But really good brisket is wonderful!

Brisket_Fanatic

It's really that good once you get it! Are we still talking about brisket?????????? I love the challenge of it yes but I also love the flavor of a great brisket. The biggest problem I have is in the experience of being a KCBS judge for the last 5 years. I've eaten some really good stuff and some really NOT so good stuff. When I starting judging BBQ....... brisket was the category I was most looking forward too. Now I find myself liking chicken way more that ever before and also the pork entry. Some of those pork entries are so good and it's like others have said above it's the relative target your shooting at. If you don't know what your missing out on then you just don't know any better. I still look forward to the brisket category but most of the time they are good but never blow your socks off good. 

GATraveller

I have had "holy grail" brisket and was fortunate/lucky enough to cook one for a tailgate crowd ONCE 2 years ago.  It's still talked about to this day.  I've yet to replicate those results.
I'd say those who don't get it have never really had it.

Eggcelsior

GATraveller said:

I have had "holy grail" brisket and was fortunate/lucky enough to cook one for a tailgate crowd ONCE 2 years ago.  It's still talked about to this day.  I've yet to replicate those results.
I'd say those who don't get it have never really had it.

Hah! Same. I did a 20 lb CAB for a tailgate. I'm guessing it was the uniform thickness(flat was as thick as most points) that made it so, along with the extended rest since it finished at 9am and was served around 3ish. Even a Gold Grade SRF didn't approach its finished quality, and that's supposed to be the biggest "crutch" you can get due to the meat quality. I guess I'll see with the 2 black grade ones I have.

The Cen-Tex Smoker

Eggcelsior said:

The Cen-Tex Smoker said:

I'll also add that I had never had real pulled pork until I ate Rodney Scott's whole Hog at Southern Smoke in Houston last year. If you don't know what you are chasing, it's hard to know where to aim. that changed my world  on pig bbq. 

This is my exact thought with beef. Pork is still king for me, but that first Franklin brisket was "oh, that's what people mean". Even now, most brisket is "ehhh" for me.

Same on the most brisket is "meh". I'm so picky it's become a pain in the ass. My wife won't even eat bbq with me anymore because "all I do is b!tch about it"

like when you and I ate at LaBarbecue the day after you ate a Franklin. "Meh"

But then Valentina's was pretty special (still is).

I go eat bbq 3-4 times a year and only cook 4-5 briskets a year now. Mostly when people are coming over or something like that. Still my favorite bite of bbq when done right but there are only 2-3 places I know of that do it right. 

Legume

I can't imagine any other cut of meat generating a 'which-lump' level of debate here.  We've all had sausage, ribs, chicken, whatever that we haven't liked or have as a personal fail.  I'm not sure why brisket is so polarizing.  I've never seen a thread full of personal insults around failed rib cooks, or shrimp, or whatever like there have been around brisket.  It's not beef vs pork, or chicken vs fish.  Just brisket.  Is it just that it's easier to make a crappy one?

I like brisket.  I have cooked shiitty ones and I've cooked decent ones, never a great one.  I cook maybe 1-2 a year.  When the kids were away at school, I cooked them more often and packed up 80% of it in meal-sized vacuum-sealed pouches to fill their freezers.  I can eat it for one or two meals at home, then that's it.  Get it out of my sight.  There is something about the intense salty/peppery/smokey that I love...and I get fatigued on very quickly.  I prefer burnt ends and chopped brisket sandwich.  I do usually have sections of cooked brisket in the freezer for chili, burnt ends, nachos, etc.  I'll eat brisket at a bbq joint, but I don't hunt for it, it's not a grail for me.  Blessed by location, it's an easy run to Valentina's and the line is reasonable and it's the best that I have reasonably available to me.  Other places are more of a destination, like Salt Lick - frequently documented as mediocre BBQ, but as a location, it's always a great time and I like the food, maybe because I'm not hunting for the elusive best bite ever.  Maybe that makes me less of a purist, less of a perfectionist with regard to bbq.  And while not meant as a criticism for those that do chase it, maybe that makes me lucky.

The perfect taco is more of a goal for me - no real rules or standards where benchmarks are few and far between.  I hate shiitty tacos, there is just no excuse.

gbvinla

Maybe try one once I retire. With just two of us, that's a boat load of beef.

bigalsworth

I love it and I don't find it particularly difficult to cook.  I'm sure many would consider mine sub par, but it's tender and moist and imo tastes excellent.  Ribs are my tough cook.

Edit: I'm certain that I am easier to please than many as well and I don't strive for the perfect brisket, I just want it to taste good

JRWhitee

Received a text from my daughter yesterday that her and her BF are coming to town for the weekend, the BF requested that I cook brisket. I guess that sums up my answer....

buzzvol

I have very rarely had brisket, and I acknowledge that I probably have not had a good one.  It has always seemed like a smokey pot roast flavor.  I am assuming that if I could make it to Brisket Camp I could find out what I have been missing.

The Cen-Tex Smoker

buzzvol said:

I have very rarely had brisket, and I acknowledge that I probably have not had a good one.  It has always seemed like a smokey pot roast flavor.  I am assuming that if I could make it to Brisket Camp I could find out what I have been missing.

The pot roast ones are the worst. I know exactly what you mean. Been a while but I've made a few of those over the years. It looks like it should taste great...nope