Brisket internal temp confusion.

Fairalbion

Usually when cooking beef, the ideal temps are in the 140° range. Yet most recipies I see for cooking briskets on the egg recommend getting the internal temp to around 200°. Why does it need to go so high and what happens to the texture of the meat at this temp?[p]Regards to all.

KennyG

fairalbion,[p]Expect lot's of replies on this one. Brisket is a very tasty and tough cut of meat from the well exercised chest of the cow.[p]If cooked only to 140* internal, it would be like chewing on a boot. Low and slow cooking at 225* or so for +/- 2 hours per pound will render most of the fat and break down the colagen (usually happens when the meat passes through the 160-170* plateau) resulting in a most tender and delicious treat with a wonderful outside crust.[p]K~G

Unknown

KennyG,
I dont' think that there will be that many replies. You hit the nail on the head![p]Beers
Matt.

Painter

fairalbion,
It's on the same page of doing a pork butt. Cook that butt just to a safe 150° internal and you'll be chewing on leather from the other boot KG speaks of. A long slow cook is in order and is not quite as forgiving as a pork butt. If you get it down right it is a food taste that you will never forget and will be excited to do again. I'm doing my second brisket cook this weekend and hope it will be as great as my first.
Bob

Unknown

KennyG,
Your answer is on the mark but let me take it a step further, the plateau is 160 to 170º but to complete the job you need to get the internal temp to at least 185 to 200º to complete the break down of collagen.
Jim[p]

KennyG

Jim Minion,[p]Well stated Jim and I forgot to mention that. I've had to take a couple to even higher, maybe 205* or so. I just wasn't satisfied about the way a fork was "slipping" in and out of the meat. Has this also been your experience?[p]K~G

Unknown

fairalbion, KennyG has it right, but I like to talk so I hope you dont mind. I keep my brisket going for about 13 hours at 250-275. Some could say it doesnt take that long but I like to sit by and enjoy the experience. Plus, it works for me. Why change something that works. To answer your question, no. The meat has never dried out on me. I get the internal temp of the brisket to 190.

Fairalbion

Jim,
What do you mean by the 'plateau' at 160°- 170°? Does it stick there for a long time during cooking?

Spring Chicken

cward,
I cooked mine like you did yours, only I kept the temperature to about 225 for the first hour. I started by doing a heavy dry rub the evening before and letting it work overnight in the frig. Then, about 30 minutes before I put it on the Egg at 210 degrees I placed the brisket in the freezer. From the freezer it went indirect on the Egg with some wet and dry pecan smoking chunks and a few apple chunks because I had some extra. I let the thing perk for six hours and when I checked on it, it read 275 degrees dome and 187 degrees internal. By the time I got back with my platter the buzzer was going off at 190 degrees. My wife took one look at it and said it's overcooked. I took it directly inside to the cutting board and sliced off a few pieces, and a few more pieces, and a few more pieces. We couldn't stop eating it was so good. She finally stopped eating long enough to tell me it was the best brisket yet. (Thanks to my Egg)[p]Life if good and get'n gooder.[p]Spring Chicken'
Spring Texas USA

Unknown

fairalbion,
As Kenny said there is a plateau, what is happening is at aprox 155 to 170º internal there are large number of cells bursting releasing moisture which holds the internal temp in the range for quite some time.
As the internal temp reach 170º+ the number of cells breaking is smaller so the internal temps can move upward
much quicker.
This process can last a few hours based on the size of the piece you are cooking.
Jim[p][p]

KennyG

<p />fairalbion,[p]The link below shows what you can expect from a typical "flat".[p]K~G

[ul][li]Brisket cooking graph[/ul]

Unknown

KennyG,
What I find is the grade of brisket plays a large roll in the total cooking time and the finished temp.
A select brisket needs more time and a higher finishing temp (a 13 pound select brisket can take 16 to 18 hours and internal temp of 200º) to achieve the tenderness I'm looking for.
A prime brisket, if you can find one, of the same size may only take 12 hours and a finished temp of 185º.
The art is to get them done before the fat is exhausted and they dry out.
The biggest problem with a brisket is no two are the same,
so one internal temp or this many hours per pound won't work on all of them.
Use internal temp as a guide (much better than time) and start checking for the desired tenderness once you hit an internal of 185º.
Jim

Unknown

Spring Chicken, You must have read my mind. Didnt do the freezer part though. Thanks for the tip.

Chubby

Spring Chicken,[p]Greetings neighbor...[p]Hopefully... you and the Mrs. are high and dry!! Looks like the monsoon's not over quite yet.[p]Hey, on that "freezer tip" on the brisket primer you offered...is the chillin' to help the meat take smoke the first hour or so? Seems like it would work, but I can't say I'vd done it before!! [p]Inqiuiring minds want to know![p]Chubby

Spring Chicken

Chubby,
I read about it somewhere (probably on the Forum)and tried it the last two times I cooked brisket. It is supposed to slow the early cooking long enough for the smoke to get good penetration and produce a good smoke ring. It does. My smoke ring was very clear both times. The ones before were hard to see. The last of the brisket went on some buns as chopped up brisket mixed in with some BBQ Sauce to make Sloppy Joes. Really good. I had two. Too much rain predicted for this weekend to do another one. You can bet I will do it again pretty soon.[p]Hope you are on high ground. Supposed to be up to 10 inches of rain tomorrow on top of all we've had so far. I'm on high ground over here in Spring. Any idea where there may be a good Ark builder if we need one? [p]Spring Chicken[p][p]