BRISKET & THE SMOKE RING

Unknown

Hey Folks:
Does anyone have the answer to get a good pink SMOKE RING on a BRISKET? Also what is the Best temperature to take a Brisket so that it is almost fall apart but still moist?[p]Thanks for any insight.[p]METROFIRE

stike

METROFIRE,
smoke ring for any food is a function of smoke and temp.[p]the meat surface temp (and first cm or so) needs to be below 140, and in the presence of smoke.[p]paraphrasing scorchingly...[p]smoke doesn't 'absorb' into the meat, per se. it has various chemical components that land on meat, and wick into it. one of these is nitrite, which forms nitric acid on the meat and which then acts on myeglobin and turns it pink. this stops when the temp of the myeglobin (hence the meat) is 140 or so.[p]so depth comes with smoke and with cold meat temps. lower smoking temps and colder meat when put on the grid are the things that probably have the biggest effect.[p]there's no taste added/lost by the smoke ring itself. and smoke flavor will be present in the meat no matter when it is added to the cook. ...meaning, smoke doesn't stop flavoring the meat just because the smoke ring has stopped and themeat's at 140.[p]you'll get a smoke ring under chicken/turkey skin (skin is airtight, but the acids migrate through it), beef, pork, etc. anything red-blooded.[p]

Celtic Wolf

METROFIRE,[p] Brisket should be cooked at a grate temp of 220-230 F. It should take about 1-2 hours depending on the amount of fat and connective tissue present. Add a few hickory chunks to the cook. [p] Bring the internal temp of the brisket to 195-200 and let it rest for at least 30 minutes. Slice it against the grain and it should be just fine.[p] It is the slow cook that gets the processes described by stike going.

stike

Celtic Wolf,
i have a basic brisket question...
what's the minimum size worth bothering with?[p]i sometimes see thin little things at 3 or 4 pounds labelled 'brisket'. looks like a thing designed to dry out...[p]what minimum size should i shoot for, in order to do a decent brisket and have it have enough mass so that it behaves like it should in the old smoker? and is it ok to buy just the 'point' or 'flat' or whatever the small things are?[p]i dunno nuthin about brisket. done a pantload of pork shoulder... but i'm clueless where to start here[p]

Celtic Wolf

stike,[p] I don't know I always cook them for Catering gigs and they are never less then 10 pound packers. I have seen some ten pound flats in Costco.[p]I'd turn a 3 or 4 pound flat into Corned Beef and Pastrami to be honest. [p]Flats are usually trimmed of all their fat. But yes it's OK to just get points or flats. The point is where burnt ends come from [p]

stike

Celtic Wolf,
sounds good. no issue with 10 pounds.[p]thanks

The Naked Whiz

METROFIRE,
Here's a pointer to my FAQ entry on the subject:[p]TNW
[ul][li]Smoke Ring FAQ[/ul]

Chubby

METROFIRE,[p]Long time no see.... stranger!![p]Evans

thirdeye

<p />METROFIRE,[p]I'm just the opposite ... if you figure out how to get rid of that danged thing let me know will ya?[p]~thirdeye~

Celtic Wolf

thirdeye,[p] Oven!!![p]

The Naked Whiz

thirdeye,
Well, to reduce the smoke ring, you would start with the meat as warm as you can (i.e. not cold from the fridge), don't add any smoking wood until the meat is above 140 degrees, and get the meat above 140 degrees as fast as you can reasonably do so. Again, the factors that determine the amount of smoke ring are the presence of smoke while the meat is below 140. (I'm assuming you can't suck all the myoglobin out of the meat, lol!)[p]TNW

The Naked Whiz

Oh, and I guess you could wrap the brisket in foil until it gets to 140, also.[p]TNW

ronbeaux

METROFIRE,
It's simple. Cold meat and lots of wood chips or chunks. I put mine on with the internal temp just above freezing. Get the smoke cranking and the temp holding 225 grid then put it on. Mix other wood chips throughout the lump so it smokes most of the cook.

[p]

Unknown

METROFIRE,[p]I assume though there is a limit of how deep the red line can go. If the meat stays too cool (below 140) for too long than bacteria becomes an issue. I remember reading from Old Dave that he uses 275 dome at the beginning to get past the 140 then brings it back down to cook slower.[p]Howard

Unknown

Chubby,
Medium and Large Puffing away. My small loves the "GRATEST MATES".[p]HOPE you are well.[p]COOK ON!
METRO

Chubby

METROFIRE,[p]Good to see you around....don't be such a stranger![p]Glad they are working out for you!!![p]Evans