Medium Egg & Brisket Question

Corv

I've got a medium BGE and have never cooked a brisket. What sort of size can I do on that Egg?

I figure I'll do a search for how-to and after reading for a while, maybe try to find a brisket that'll fit.

Thanks!

Foghorn

"Fit" is a fluid thing.  You probably don't want a 20 pounder, but you can drape a brisket over a rib rack - or a brick wrapped in aluminum foil - to keep it from sticking off the edge of your grate.  So, if you take a measuring tape to the store, know that you can get one that is more than 15" long.  As it cooks it will shrink and you can remove the brick.  You will probably need to use some extra foil to put under the parts of the brisket that do not fit in the silhouette of the platesetter so as to block the heat rising directly onto the meat.

Disclaimer: I do not own a Medium BGE.

slick_rick

Hey @Corv I'm a medium guy as well and have been thinking the same thing. I'm guessing a 10 pounder would hopefully work. You give it a shot? 

lousubcap

@Foghorn addressed the "how to make it work technique." Regarding the weight, briskets, while generally oblong can also be more rectangular in cut so that makes a fit a bit easier.  I'm guessing you could cook a 12-13 lb (pre-trim) one but use the guidance above for test fitting before the buy.
I do recall a thread here a while ago where I believe someone cooked a packer on a SBGE.  Give the search function a look as it may show up.

Mattman3969

Quick search for @anton He did a 17lber on his med. 

https://eggheadforum.com/profile/discussions/anton

Corv

Thanks, friends! As it turned out, the local farm I went to was out that day and I haven't gotten one yet. But I did walk away with a couple of tri-tips and a pork tenderloin, so I'm stocked for just a bit.

Corv

Time to revive this. I cooked my first brisket today, a small 3-4 pound one I'd gotten as a trial and learning brisket. Overall, it went reasonably okay but certainly not perfectly.

I tried a turbo brisket cook at 300 and found that I could easily get it to that temperature and hold it there. I trimmed a bit of fat off to get the fat down to about 1/4" and smeared the fat side with mustard and the other side with catsup. Then I seasoned it with Dizzy Pig's Raising the Steaks plus Savory Spice's Tandoori seasoning. In it went, fat side up, and when it got to 160, I wrapped it in foil with a bit of stock for moisture. At about 180 I decided that if I continued this, there would be no bark on the non-fat side, so I removed the foil and flipped it over. At 200 it probed pretty soft except of a thick area that didn't have a temperature sensor and was around 193-194. I relocated the temp probe and took it to 201, pulling it then.

I wrapped it in foil with a bit of stock and then wrapped in a towel and stuck it, in lieu of a cooler, in a dormant microwave for about 1:25. This is the non-fat side.

 The small brisket took less than 3 hours in the MBGE. It wasn't as tender as I'd hoped - I think it was overcooked - but the flavor was decent enough. I ate a bunch of it.

Okay, now - how can I improve the next one?

Thanks, everyone!

lousubcap

Sounds like you really worked this cook and for that you are to be commended and committed as every brisket cook has the challenges. 

The key to any brisket cook is the feel (temperature is only a guide) so when it probes smooth in the thickest part of the flat you are there.

Overcooked indicator- falling apart/crumbly when sliced.

Undercooked is holding together with too much resistance.

Another key step is to stop the carryover cooking when you remove it from the BGE.  Give it at least a 15-20 minute stop sitting on a cooling rack before the FTC. That's all I've got. 

Langner91

If I were cooking a small flat like that, I would inject with low sodium beef broth and wrap.  It won't have the same bark, but it would be moist!

Since you wrapped with broth, it may have been undercooked.  Three hours is very quick.