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Attempting my first brisket in 13 years this Sunday

Yep, finally convinced my wife to let me cook another brisket. The last one was a disaster, my fault though. The fire went out during the wee hours on the morning so I re-fired the Egg and tried pushing it through at 300 rather than being patient at a lower temp.

This time I am armed with more knowledge and experience.

I just picked up a 6 1/2# flat from Whole Foods. It looks excellent. They did a great job removing the point muscle and left a fat cap along most of the flat. 

Thinking of seasoning it up and let rest for a couple hours after trimming and removing any silver skin. Then onto the Egg at smokey 225, fat cap down over a drip pan for about 3 hours. I'll flip and check internal and smoke for another 2 hours. 
Once the color turns dark, then I'll wrap in butchers paper and cook until 200 IT.  Let it rest in a cooler for at least 90 minutes. 

We shall see if this will work out better than the last time.


Comments

  • bikesAndBBQ
    bikesAndBBQ Posts: 284
    So you are just doing the flat?  I wouldn’t flip. Too much work for not a lot (if any) return. Maybe I am missing something. Don’t get set in to your time and temperatures.  It could be done in 4 hours at IT 190. 
    Pittsburgh, PA. LBGE
  • SonVolt
    SonVolt Posts: 3,314
    edited June 2018

    Once the color turns dark, then I'll wrap in butchers paper and cook until 200 IT. 



    I wouldn't time your wrap around bark color, I would foil when the internal temp hits ~160F. No reason to flip. 
    South of Nashville  -  BGE XL  -  Alfresco 42" ALXE  -  Alfresco Versa Burner  - Sunbeam Microwave 
  • TEXASBGE2018
    TEXASBGE2018 Posts: 3,831
    edited June 2018
    Have fun. Seems like a pretty solid plan. Be cautious with just a flat as stated above. 225 really isn't necessary but I wouldn't go above 275 either. Any temp between 225 and 275 is fine. Don't worry if its not exact. If you want a good smoke ring don't let it rest at room temp at all. Just take it out of the fridge, remove any excess fat or silver skin you don't like and season and get it on the egg.


    Rockwall, Tx    LBGE, Minimax, 22" Blackstone, Pizza Party Bollore. Cast Iron Hoarder.

  • SonVolt
    SonVolt Posts: 3,314
    edited June 2018
    I'd definitely cook it straight from the fridge, but personally I'd season it the night before so the salt has time to work its magic ala dry bine. 
    South of Nashville  -  BGE XL  -  Alfresco 42" ALXE  -  Alfresco Versa Burner  - Sunbeam Microwave 
  • lousubcap
    lousubcap Posts: 32,167
    Here's a link to a flat recipe that gets solid reviews: (FWIW)
    https://biggreenegg.com/recipes/brisket-flat/ 
    Go with the feel for the finish.  Always remember, the friggin cow drives the cook. 
    Louisville; Rolling smoke in the neighbourhood. # 38 for the win.  Life is too short for light/lite beer!  Seems I'm livin in a transitional period.
  • SonVolt
    SonVolt Posts: 3,314
    The most important rule of all... slice only what you can eat at a time. Don't be one of those weirdos that slices up a whole packer for 3 people. 
    South of Nashville  -  BGE XL  -  Alfresco 42" ALXE  -  Alfresco Versa Burner  - Sunbeam Microwave 
  • egghead2004
    egghead2004 Posts: 430
    Thanks everyone for the suggestions, the brisket was wonderful. The only thing that went wrong was that the meat shredded while cutting it. I seasoned it and scored the fat cap Saturday night, then wrapped in plastic and put it in the refrigerator. I started the Egg at midnight and set it to 250 and went to bed.  At 4 AM I dropped it on the egg fat cap down indirect over a drip pan. I used a few small pieces of red oak for smoke, not ideal, but I forgot to buy some good chunks of pecan Saturday. Dome temp was at 250. When I woke up at 8:30, the dome dropped to 225, so I bumped it up to 250, that took about an hour. At 11:00 am, the IT was 163, so I pulled it and wrapped it in butchers paper. I added about a 1/2 cup of coffee to the bottom of the paper and returned it to the Egg. The sun hit the egg around noon. The dome thermometer jumped to 285. I have no idea what the temp at grid level was, so I dropped the dome to 265 and let it ride. The IT gradually rose to 195 by 3 pm. it took another 2 hours to get to 201 IT when I pulled it and wrapped in a towel for another hour to rest while we opened up the vents and cooked a couple chickens. 

    There was still and excellent bark on the brisket even after wrapping and braising in coffee. The butchers paper did its job. I just need to figure out why the meat shredded, even with a super sharp knife.

    The next time I will have a better remote thermometer. One with IT probe and grid level sensor so I know exactly what temp the meat is cooking at.

    I also will order a packer from somewhere rather than paying $9.00/lb locally for a good cut. 

    Here is a pic just before wrapping.

    Thanks again everyone!


  • lousubcap
    lousubcap Posts: 32,167
    Great looking meteorite right there.  The shredding is likely due to it being slightly over-cooked.  If you went straight from the BGE to the FTC without giving it some time  to stop the carry-over cooking (around 20-30 minutes) that is the source of the over-cooking.  FWIW-
    Time to go again.  
    Louisville; Rolling smoke in the neighbourhood. # 38 for the win.  Life is too short for light/lite beer!  Seems I'm livin in a transitional period.
  • The Cen-Tex Smoker
    The Cen-Tex Smoker Posts: 22,951
    edited June 2018
    I agree with cap. It was likely a touch over. Guessing the cooler rest was likely the culprit and possibly not having a lot of recent experience with slicing them. They can be finicky if you don't have a lot of practice with them. I will say, that brisket looks excellent. I would take that result any day- especially after a 13 year hiatus. Nice Job.
    Keepin' It Weird in The ATX FBTX