Buffalo Brisket, how to???

BigAL · July 2005

Planning on cooking a buffalo brisket in the am and need advise. Have a lge BGE with plate setter. Planning on TS legs up with drip pan. Should I slo cook at 250 or so and to what temp. I have a Pyex meat thermometer. Any and all suggestions are appreciated. I ordered some dizzy pig rub but it hasn't arrived yet...do I need to marinate and should I rub it with something too.

Citizen Q · July 2005

BigAl,
Well, since it looks like no one else has done one of these either, I'll try to come up with some BS that don't sound like BS for ya. First off, have you ever done a beef brisket? Brisket is the toughest cut, and buffalo brisket is probably gonna be a little tougher with less fat than beef, so you're gonna want to be a little extra careful, but it should follow the same rules.[p]I don't use marinade on my briskets, I did once and didn't care for it, but you definitely want to use a rub. If you've got a favorite BBQ rub that suits you, go ahead and give it a generous coat. If you need to mix one up, a good brisket rub starts with salt and black pepper. Now I know it's late and if you don't have everything I list off here, don't sweat it, just improvise with what you've got on hand. You don't say how many lbs it is or whether it's a whole brisket or flat, but this should still give you plenty of rub with some leftover to dust the finished product.[p]I'd start with 2/3 cup sea salt and 1/2 cup black peppercorns, grind each up to a semi-fine powder and combine in a fair sized bowl. Add about 1/3 cup granulated or powdered garlic and 1/3 cup powdered onion. If you've got dried minced garlic and onion on hand, grind those up and grind up 1/4 cup of celery seed while you're at it. The more stuff you grind yourself, the better the rub. Keep in mind that these measurement are only estimates, I don't measure anything, I just put in what looks good and go from there, but that's the basic proportions. [p]Now you can add whatever you like or leave out, 1 to 2 TBS paprika, chili powder, cumin, seasoned salt, celery salt, ground mustard seed, ground coriander, and/or cayenne pepper. [p]Same thing goes if you want to add or not, 1 teaspoon each (all ground) cloves, allspice, cardamom, cinnamon, juniper berries, ginger, coffee and/or fennel seed. Whatever you think might taste good. Plus I usually throw in some secret ingredients too.[p]You can rub an hour or 24 hours before tossing on the Egg. The secret to tender brisket isn't what you do to it, it's how you cook it, and your Egg has you covered. Go with your inverted paltesetter setup and place the brisket on the cooking grid fat side DOWN. Make sure you've loaded the firebox with lump well up into the firering & established the fire, and use plenty of mesquite and/or hickory chunks for smoke.[p]You want to keep that dome temp low, between 200 and 210 degrees. The higher you go, the more moisture you steam off the meat, toughening it and the quicker you render off and lose the fat which you need to self baste the meat. You may have seen some discussion about dome vs grid temps, ignore it, you are now in the dome so that's the only temp you need to worry about. Somewhere in the neighborhood of 160-165 internal temp (or 155 or 170, you never know with brisket, it's quirky like that), you will hit a plateau where the temp will drop slightly and hold steady for hours. This is a good thing, wait it out, that's the collagen breaking down and tenderizing the meat. After you clear the plateau, the temp will rise slowly but steadily, unless of course you hit another plateau, but again, don't worry, just wait it out, it'll be a short one. The brisket is basically done anytime after it reaches 185 internal, but you can leave it on all the way up to 200 if you want. [p]As for cooking times, again I don't know the size, but if it's whole (point on) expect anywhere from 22 to 26 hours and if it's a flat, anywhere from 14 to 18 hours depending on the wieght. [p]I'll try to check in and see how it's going tomorrow, so fill us in on how you're doing.[p]Cheers,
C~Q

thirdeye · July 2005

BigAl,[p]Good Morning, [p]I too have limited experience with bison briskets. They are much leaner than beef and the fat is a little different since most are only grass fed and not finished on grain. I like a simple rub on brisket, a minimum of sea salt, garlic powder & black pepper. I use a coating of yellow mustard to hold the rub & provide more moisture. Brisket takes smoke easily and I use lighter woods and smaller amounts. I use a grate temp of 215° maximum. Many cooks foil at 165° and return to the cooker to avoid oversmoking & to help tenderize but I leave 'em unwrapped until my target temp, then rest in foil.[p]Let us know how it turns out.[p]~thirdeye~

Marvin · July 2005

BigAl,
Here's a bit of advice that I received a year or so ago from Charwoody for a different cook. Get some beef suet and put a 1/4 inch or so layer over the top of the the bison brisket at the start (afer the rub). That should add back the missing fat basting that occurs in standard brisket. Let us know how it turns out.

BigAL · July 2005

Citizen Q,
I appreciate your help. The brisket it about 5 lbs so I imagine the cook time would be shorter, is that a correct assumption? Also, should I rub it with mustard first before I put on the rub you have given me the ingredients for? It is 8:45 am so I would like to "get 'er going" pretty soon....if I want to dine on it this evening. Once again, thanks for you help, I will let you know how it comes out...maybe even a pic.

Citizen Q · July 2005

BigAL,
At 200 dome you'd be looking at 12-14 hours. The mustard is basically a glue for the rub, I use it for pork but not on beef. For a small flat like that though, it'll help add moisture, so go ahead and slather. It's getting a little late to have this thing for tonight if you haven't already started. You might try to bump it up to 225 dome when you hit the plateau and maybe up to 235 after you come through it to speed things up if needed, but that would have to be your choice (I wouldn't).[p]Cheers,
Sean

Buffalo Brisket, how to???

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