Cooking Time Question

Unknown

Normally I wouldn't bother such an august body with a silly question about cooking time but my better half is out of town and I hope to suprise her with a perfectly cooked beef brisket (which would be a first for me - grin).[p]My recipe calls for cooking a 6-7lb brisket for 2 hours @ 240 degrees, then wrap in foil and cook for about another 3 hours (foil wraped) @ about 180-190. We'd be eating a 6lb brisket for weeks, so I want to go with about 3lbs of meat. Since the meat is 1/2 less is cooking time also 1/2 less? I know I need to get the internal temp up around 145, just want to know when to put the thing on.[p]Thanks for the assist![p]Kelly

Nature Boy

Kelly Royse-Keefe,
Are you planning on eating it tonight?? A brisket is tough by nature, but can be broken down with a long cook. The smaller the chunk, the longer per/pound time. If it were me, I would go with 250 indirect (over a drip pan or some barrier). A 3 pound chunk would probaly take a mimium of 8 hours...possibly 10. For best results, cook to a minimum internal temp of 180, then try a fork test. You should be able to twist the fork in the meat....or at a minimum, it should slide in and out effortlessly.[p]The internal temp will stall in the upper 150s or 160s. This is when the tenderizing breakdown of collagen is hapening. If you pull the brisket of at 145 internal, it will almost surely be tough. [p]Good luck, and keep us posted.
NB