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Primer for a fantastic Chunk-O-Chest!
Dr. Chicken
Posts: 620
Last night and yesterday afternoon I fielded a bunch of questions on my "Best ever" brisket. The questions were mostly from newer members of the forum but some "Old Hands" too. With a little bit of hesitancy and trepidation I figured the way to answer everything was to post the way I did things. By no means am I trying to step on toes or claim to have a lock on "how to do a brisket"! I'm still learnin'!!! In just the few short months I've participated in the forum, I've seen there are 1000 ways "to skin a cat!" (Now cookin' it is a different story! :^)...)( I think I'll leave that to KOC, he likes that exotic stuff!)[p]My old way of doing a brisket is ok, but if this method works for a follow up (and NB says it will!) I will "park" the old method for use in an emergency![p]I had a 9.62 lbs full cut brisket still in the cry-o-vac bag! Paid $ .98/lb for it if your curious.
I took it out of the bag, rinsed it off and looked at the fat cap. Really not overly fatty, so I left it almost in its entirety. I rubbed the thing down with a Cajun Rub I get from Burton Distributing out of Ft Worth, TX. plus some crushed garlic and Worstershire sauce. Covered it with plastic wrap and put it in the fridge. I regret that I only had time to let it sit for about 6 hrs. I think a longer period would help even more.[p]Cleaned out Mr. Big (noticed that my firebox is cracked too!) and built the basis for my burn the way Elder Ward described in the Pulled Pork primer. Large lump on the bottom, medium sized lump after that and filled in with small and fine lump until the firebox was heaping full.[p]Started the burn with 1/2 of a fire starter stick smack dab in the middle of the lump. Let it get going for 10 minutes at most and closed the dome. I had the bottom vent wide open and no daisy wheel on top. I've had the fire get roaring, so I was very attentive in that regard. When it got close to 200 degrees, I adjusted everything to almost closed, including putting the daisy wheel in place & slightly opened!
In the mean time, I had some hickory chunks soaking in water since the day before. I want the chunks good and soaked, so they smolder and give off good smoke, not burn up in the first 20 minutes or less.[p]By this time the fire was going good enough that I put the chunks of hickory on top of the lump (6 pieces) and placed an old grill between the firebox and the firering.(the bottom grate/grill from an old 22" dia kettle type cooker! (see, no names!)[p]I then set my pizza stone directly on top of that old grill. I wanted an indirect burn and Spin & KOC said this would work! (It did too!)[p]I then placed the BGE grill in its normal position on top of the firering. [p]I put a rectangular pan on the grill and filled it 2/3 with warm water.[p]I then set a roasting rack in the pan of water and the brisket direct on it. I was not touching the water in the drip pan at all with the brisket. I placed the brisket in the rack with the "fat cap" on top, so as the brisket cooked and the fat melted it would run over the brisket and finally into the drip pan.[p]I closed the dome and watched as my temperature climbed to 200 to 230 degrees. My goal was between 220 and 250 degrees. never higher than 250.[p]With the pizza stone in place, it was surprisingly easy to get the temp. I wanted and with in 20 to 30 minutes, it had stabilized at 220. Perfecto! Leave it there![p]Two hours later, I felt like the smoke was diminishing, so I open the dome, took the brisket & drip pan out, moved the pizza stone and added 6 more big chunks of soaked hickory. Put everything back as it was and closed the dome. I never changed a thing in regards to my bottom setting or my daisy wheel setting.[p]I started the cook at 3:30 in the afternoon Tuesday. By 9pm, I was confident it was gona hold the temp. through out the nite & I went to bed. My wife checked it at midnight and everything was ok and she went to bed. I got up at 4:10am and checked it about 4:30am. ( I inserted the polder at this time and had the lead wrapped loosely in foil and set it outside the dome on my work table!) The dome temp was 190 degrees. The brisket internal was 165 degrees. Fine, I opened the bottom vent about 1 1/2 inches and waited for the fire to come alive. Twenty minutes later it was at 240 degrees so I closed the bottom vent back to where I had it over night.[p]At 8:00 am the dome temp was still 240 degrees and the internal was at 190 degrees. I opened the dome and checked the brisket 2 or 3 different places and I had 190 degrees on everything except the thickest of the thick area. It showed 185 degrees. Good! I pulled the brisket, wrapped it in foil and put it back on the rack and closed the dome. I went to work![p]My wife pulled the brisket at 9:15 am, about an hour after I wrapped it in foil. She let it cool on the counter for 2 hrs and then put it (wrapped in foil still) in the fridge.[p]I came home at 2:30 - 2:45 pm and my curiosity was killin' me! I pulled the "chunk" out of the fridge and sliced it.(about room temp by now or a little below) It was out of this world and tender beyond belief![p]I CAN'T BELIEVE IT! No more hassleing with double cooks or tuff, stringy brisket!!! It never ceases to amaze me what these things will do! All these years of trying to make do, when a BGE was sitting out there with my name on it! I could hear them calling, ever so faintly....Dr Chicken!....Dr Chicken!...Over here, over here! I jest never paid attention![p]Well, you all get the gist of the whole thing! I hope this clarifys any questions that are still left unasked. Or if it opens more questions, feel free to ask away or e-mail me.[p]Sorry about this being so long, but I felt it should be gone over point by point![p]Have a good one, all of ya! [p]Dr. Chicken
I took it out of the bag, rinsed it off and looked at the fat cap. Really not overly fatty, so I left it almost in its entirety. I rubbed the thing down with a Cajun Rub I get from Burton Distributing out of Ft Worth, TX. plus some crushed garlic and Worstershire sauce. Covered it with plastic wrap and put it in the fridge. I regret that I only had time to let it sit for about 6 hrs. I think a longer period would help even more.[p]Cleaned out Mr. Big (noticed that my firebox is cracked too!) and built the basis for my burn the way Elder Ward described in the Pulled Pork primer. Large lump on the bottom, medium sized lump after that and filled in with small and fine lump until the firebox was heaping full.[p]Started the burn with 1/2 of a fire starter stick smack dab in the middle of the lump. Let it get going for 10 minutes at most and closed the dome. I had the bottom vent wide open and no daisy wheel on top. I've had the fire get roaring, so I was very attentive in that regard. When it got close to 200 degrees, I adjusted everything to almost closed, including putting the daisy wheel in place & slightly opened!
In the mean time, I had some hickory chunks soaking in water since the day before. I want the chunks good and soaked, so they smolder and give off good smoke, not burn up in the first 20 minutes or less.[p]By this time the fire was going good enough that I put the chunks of hickory on top of the lump (6 pieces) and placed an old grill between the firebox and the firering.(the bottom grate/grill from an old 22" dia kettle type cooker! (see, no names!)[p]I then set my pizza stone directly on top of that old grill. I wanted an indirect burn and Spin & KOC said this would work! (It did too!)[p]I then placed the BGE grill in its normal position on top of the firering. [p]I put a rectangular pan on the grill and filled it 2/3 with warm water.[p]I then set a roasting rack in the pan of water and the brisket direct on it. I was not touching the water in the drip pan at all with the brisket. I placed the brisket in the rack with the "fat cap" on top, so as the brisket cooked and the fat melted it would run over the brisket and finally into the drip pan.[p]I closed the dome and watched as my temperature climbed to 200 to 230 degrees. My goal was between 220 and 250 degrees. never higher than 250.[p]With the pizza stone in place, it was surprisingly easy to get the temp. I wanted and with in 20 to 30 minutes, it had stabilized at 220. Perfecto! Leave it there![p]Two hours later, I felt like the smoke was diminishing, so I open the dome, took the brisket & drip pan out, moved the pizza stone and added 6 more big chunks of soaked hickory. Put everything back as it was and closed the dome. I never changed a thing in regards to my bottom setting or my daisy wheel setting.[p]I started the cook at 3:30 in the afternoon Tuesday. By 9pm, I was confident it was gona hold the temp. through out the nite & I went to bed. My wife checked it at midnight and everything was ok and she went to bed. I got up at 4:10am and checked it about 4:30am. ( I inserted the polder at this time and had the lead wrapped loosely in foil and set it outside the dome on my work table!) The dome temp was 190 degrees. The brisket internal was 165 degrees. Fine, I opened the bottom vent about 1 1/2 inches and waited for the fire to come alive. Twenty minutes later it was at 240 degrees so I closed the bottom vent back to where I had it over night.[p]At 8:00 am the dome temp was still 240 degrees and the internal was at 190 degrees. I opened the dome and checked the brisket 2 or 3 different places and I had 190 degrees on everything except the thickest of the thick area. It showed 185 degrees. Good! I pulled the brisket, wrapped it in foil and put it back on the rack and closed the dome. I went to work![p]My wife pulled the brisket at 9:15 am, about an hour after I wrapped it in foil. She let it cool on the counter for 2 hrs and then put it (wrapped in foil still) in the fridge.[p]I came home at 2:30 - 2:45 pm and my curiosity was killin' me! I pulled the "chunk" out of the fridge and sliced it.(about room temp by now or a little below) It was out of this world and tender beyond belief![p]I CAN'T BELIEVE IT! No more hassleing with double cooks or tuff, stringy brisket!!! It never ceases to amaze me what these things will do! All these years of trying to make do, when a BGE was sitting out there with my name on it! I could hear them calling, ever so faintly....Dr Chicken!....Dr Chicken!...Over here, over here! I jest never paid attention![p]Well, you all get the gist of the whole thing! I hope this clarifys any questions that are still left unasked. Or if it opens more questions, feel free to ask away or e-mail me.[p]Sorry about this being so long, but I felt it should be gone over point by point![p]Have a good one, all of ya! [p]Dr. Chicken
Comments
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Dr. Chicken,[p]Great post Doc, sounds great.[p]This is a very interesting indirect setup. Do you ever use firebricks placed directly on the grill for indirect? If so, any comparison of this method vs. the firebrick method?[p]Waiting patiently by the mailbox,[p]Troy
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sprinter,
I've had a heck of a time finding firebricks in KS. I think they almost all went with Toto & Dorthy! Anyway I found them in Wichita and my FIL has picked them up but I haven't went down to Wichita to pick them up from him! Whew! Does all that make sense??? Anyway, I haven't had a chance to try the "elusive" firebricks yet. I will follow up with a post after I get a chance to do so![p]Clear as mud, ain't it?[p]Dr. Chicken[p]p.s.: I told the mailman and the UPS driver to be looking fer somethin' fer me that "smells fishy"! Wow! did I ever get some raised eyebrows and funny (strange) looks! (I think ya need ta do dat ever once-in-a-while to keeps dem on der toes!)
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Dr. Chicken,[p]Got it, clear as mud. Good luck on the firebricks. It took me FOREVER (so it seemed) to fine some around here too. NOW I find out that the wife wants to take down the fireplace that we have built into an outdoor gazebo we have in the back yard. Its a grill on the outside of the gazebo and a fireplace on the inside of the gazebo, all vented up through one chimney on the wall. Anyway, there must be 100 firebricks lining this thing inside and out, where was this idea 6 months ago when I could have used the brick? Tell you one thing, that demolition would have taken a LOT less time THEN than it will now. Back then there was a reason to do it, now its just WORK.[p]Troy
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Dr. Chicken,
Super job there on the chunkochest! Can't go wrong when you give that baby lots of time. Sounds like you are enjoying your rewards.[p]I was thinking that with 6 chunks of wood, that should be enough for your whole cook. If you space them around, that should be plenty. Brisket absorbs smoke readily, and IMO you didn't really need to add any more. Just a thought I had floating around in my head.[p]Great success story! Congrats on your accomplishment. Enjoy them sandmiches![p]NB
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sprinter,
I follow that logic and I agree! (Did you give her that cold stare she gives you, when you stick your foot in your mouth at a party!)
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Nature Boy,
My wife is always giving me the dickens for not having enough smoke flavor in things. I wasn't takin' no chances! You were right, there was still chunks of wood spaced around the lump, but since I was in thar I wuz addin' more to da fire!!!
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Dr. Chicken,
Kool, I fired up the printer and made a copy of this for future reference. I haven't tried a brisket yet, but sure will. Thank you for sharing this info with the rest of us.
Nu-Guy
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Nu-Guy,
No problemo! I had enough questions that I figured it would help out![p]Good luck and good eating![p]Dr. C
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Dr. Chicken,[p]Really thorough post, nice job. I do briskets indirect with a dome temp of about 275 over a drip pan with firebricks. I go higher because of the extra ceramic. Don't feel too bad about having a hard time finding firebricks. Would you rather have my problem? I can get firebricks for less than $1, but can't find whole briskets, only flats with insufficient fat caps and cheapest I've seen is $2.49/lbs. I have seen $4.99/lbs![p]Only 22 days until E2k weekend is here![p]Regards,
Jobu
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Jobu,
Yeah, that would gross me out! The cost alone is a rip off! Why no full briskets? Are you in the same area as Spin? He said last night that he's yet to do a brisket, because they are not easy to find in his area. [p]I used to do them until they reached 180 or so, cool 'em, slice 'em, put it in a big casserole dish and pour Coke, Pepsi or Jolt over the entire brisket and re-cook it. It was tender & tasty, but it was a double cook! My brother says he's never had a better brisket than one I fixed that way. Wait til this summer and he has a taste of one of these![p]He will be speechless![p]Dr. C
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Dr. Chicken,
I'm in NY, approx. 1.5 hrs from Spin. It's difficult to get whole briskets, just flats everywhere you look. Allegedly people here won't buy the point end because it is too fatty, which is why they also trim some of the fat cap off the flats. They use the points for ground meat. Occasionally, if there's a 5lb flat on sale, I'll scoop it up. Slather with mustard, rub all over with cajun rub and smoke indirect with cherry wood for smoke flavor. That's some good eating.[p]Your brother will indeed flip once he's tasted a slow smoked brisket from the Egg.[p]-Jobu
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Jobu,
Yep! He will flip over an Egged Chunk-O-Chest. He's a butcher in SW Missiouri. I'll let him know the trouble you're having getting briskets. He about croaked when he heard the price I gave for this one & its twin bother. He says they sell them all the time at $ .79/lb and if its a drawing card, all the way down to $ .58/lb. Don't that make ya want to spit nails???[p]Dr. Chicken
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Dr. Chicken, Did you have to be so descriptive? Now I'm going to have to cook a brisket this weekend. Actually, everythings still frozen hard up here, so I'll not be missing any fishing by spending the time on a brisket bender. The tried and true approach still seems best. A few years back, when I had first got the egg, I saw a post on the forum of a Texas brisket recipe which called for marinating for a day in coca cola. This was the low water mark of my brisket career. Turned out a wet, grayish lump which might have appealed to the British, but not to any son of Sam Houston (sorry T.Tim).
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