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$1.99/lb Brisket

fence0407
fence0407 Posts: 2,241
in EggHead Forum
Kroger has a good brisket sale going so I grabbed this 14 pound packer. Seasoned with S&P and a little bit of Lane's BBQ Brisket Rub. Used white oak and hickory for smoke and ran the egg around 250°. Just shy of 13 hours and it was done - no wrapping. Got it in FTC right now and plan on slicing for lunch! I'll try to get some sliced pics later but here she is:



Large - Mini - Blackstone 17", 28", 36"
Cumming, GA  

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Comments

  • kl8ton
    kl8ton Posts: 5,683
    Nice score!  Great looking bark.  I await slicing pics.
    Large, Medium, MiniMax, 36" Blackstone
    Grand Rapids MI
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  • fence0407
    fence0407 Posts: 2,241
    kl8ton said:
    Nice score!  Great looking bark.  I await slicing pics.
    Thanks!
    Large - Mini - Blackstone 17", 28", 36"
    Cumming, GA  

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  • SciAggie
    SciAggie Posts: 6,481
    Nice!
    Coleman, Texas
    Large BGE & Mini Max for the wok. A few old camp Dutch ovens and a wood fired oven. LSG 24” cabinet offset smoker. There are a few paella pans and a Patagonia cross in the barn. A curing chamber for bacterial transformation of meats...
    "Bourbon slushies. Sure you can cook on the BGE without them, but why would you?"
                                                                                                                          YukonRon
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  • kl8ton
    kl8ton Posts: 5,683
    Still awaiting slicing pics! 
    Large, Medium, MiniMax, 36" Blackstone
    Grand Rapids MI
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  • saluki2007
    saluki2007 Posts: 6,354
    Nice!  I picked one of those up from my K-Roger’s too. Haven’t thrown it on yet though. 
    Large and Small BGE
    Central, IL

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  • fence0407
    fence0407 Posts: 2,241
    kl8ton said:
    Still awaiting slicing pics! 
    Yeah...about that. The flat must have overcooked! Overall flavor was great but man was the flat crispy. Decided not to take pics bc it all ended up chopped. 
    Large - Mini - Blackstone 17", 28", 36"
    Cumming, GA  

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  • Foghorn
    Foghorn Posts: 10,046
    Was the flat mostly crispy on the bottom (toward the fire)?

    XXL BGE, Karebecue, Klose BYC, Chargiller Akorn Kamado, Weber Smokey Mountain, Grand Turbo gasser, Weber Smoky Joe, and the wheelbarrow that my grandfather used to cook steaks from his cattle

    San Antonio, TX

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  • fence0407
    fence0407 Posts: 2,241
    Foghorn said:
    Was the flat mostly crispy on the bottom (toward the fire)?
    Pretty much all the way through the flat. I had to chop most of it. Only got a few slices closer to the point. It all tasted great but way overcooked. 
    Large - Mini - Blackstone 17", 28", 36"
    Cumming, GA  

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  • DainW
    DainW Posts: 159
    fence0407 said:
    Foghorn said:
    Was the flat mostly crispy on the bottom (toward the fire)?
    Pretty much all the way through the flat. I had to chop most of it. Only got a few slices closer to the point. It all tasted great but way overcooked. 
    I used to have this same problem with my briskets on the egg. First thing I noticed is that it looks like you are using the standard plate setter? What I’ve noticed with the standard plate setter is that even if dome temp is 250, there is a lot of radiant heat coming off of the plate setter and over a 13 hour cook chars the underside of the brisket. I think some people use spacers between drip tray and plate setter to diffuse that heat, but it doesn’t solve the problem of shape. The plate setter’s abnormal shape means that some of the brisket is over hanging and not shielded by the plate setter. 

    The way I solved this problem was by getting an adjustable rig from the ceramic grill store with an oblong plate setter. This allowed me to raise the brisket up away from the fire and hot plate setter. The shape of the oblong plate setter is also better suited to the shape of foods we are likely to be smoking like brisket and ribs and means no meat is exposed to direct heat. 
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  • lousubcap
    lousubcap Posts: 33,793
    @fence0407 - I just sent you a PM that has some brisket info.  To do with as you wish.  
    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.
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  • Foghorn
    Foghorn Posts: 10,046
    DainW said:
    fence0407 said:
    Foghorn said:
    Was the flat mostly crispy on the bottom (toward the fire)?
    Pretty much all the way through the flat. I had to chop most of it. Only got a few slices closer to the point. It all tasted great but way overcooked. 
    I used to have this same problem with my briskets on the egg. First thing I noticed is that it looks like you are using the standard plate setter? What I’ve noticed with the standard plate setter is that even if dome temp is 250, there is a lot of radiant heat coming off of the plate setter and over a 13 hour cook chars the underside of the brisket. I think some people use spacers between drip tray and plate setter to diffuse that heat, but it doesn’t solve the problem of shape. The plate setter’s abnormal shape means that some of the brisket is over hanging and not shielded by the plate setter. 

    The way I solved this problem was by getting an adjustable rig from the ceramic grill store with an oblong plate setter. This allowed me to raise the brisket up away from the fire and hot plate setter. The shape of the oblong plate setter is also better suited to the shape of foods we are likely to be smoking like brisket and ribs and means no meat is exposed to direct heat. 
    Yeah, this is why I asked.  I accomplish this by just shaping some aluminum foil into my drip pan and make sure that the silhouette of the foil pan is significantly larger than the silhouette of the meat I'm cooking - so it doesn't get direct rising heat nor does it get radiant heat from the ceramic platesetter/ConvEGGtor.

    XXL BGE, Karebecue, Klose BYC, Chargiller Akorn Kamado, Weber Smokey Mountain, Grand Turbo gasser, Weber Smoky Joe, and the wheelbarrow that my grandfather used to cook steaks from his cattle

    San Antonio, TX

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  • DieselkW
    DieselkW Posts: 906
    I also scored that sale price at Kroger here in Indianapolis. It took way longer than expected, and got pretty burnt up at the narrowest of the flat end. 

    I get much better results at a $1/lb more when I get the prime cut from Costco. A lot more point to dice for hash, but the problem may not be the heat from the ceramic platesetter, it might just be cheap meat.

    Or a combination? Just my limited experience, the Costco brisket comes out better more often.


    Indianapolis, IN

    BBQ is a celebration of culture in America. It is the closest thing we have to the wines and cheeses of Europe. 

    Drive a few hundred miles in any direction, and the experience changes dramatically. 



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  • DainW
    DainW Posts: 159
    Well, prime brisket in theory should have more intramuscular fat in it and should be less susceptible to drying out, but if you have thin flat sections that’s going to burn up in the cooker no matter what. It’s always best to try and find the thickest flat brisket you can find and/or trimming the brisket to a more uniform thickness. I can’t speak to the quality of brisket at Kroger’s, but I’ve honestly had better luck with CAB choice briskets from my local supermarket than I have Costco primes. The Costco and Sam’s prime packers sometimes have too much hard fat on them and you have to trim a lot, which leads to a lot of waste, but I honestly believe it comes down to picking the right brisket out of the case no matter where you get it. 

    That being said, OP’s particular issue sounds more like radiant heat than quality of meat. A completely burnt bottom isn’t a function of meat quality so much as it is being over cooked which I think radiant heat. I’ve had 12 lb packers that have gone 17-18 hours and have not had an issue with burning or scorching. It sounds to me like a radiant heat issue but can never know for sure. Maybe the OP can elaborate more? 
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  • GabeD
    GabeD Posts: 21
    Hijacking the thread a little but I have run into the exact same thing.

    This cook was my first brisket. I ended up giving it a try because of this same sale at Kroger. I figured if I ended up ruining the meat it wouldn't have been a huge loss given that it was on sale.





    I followed Aaron Franklin's video on how to trim a brisket. I removed the deckel and silverskin. I followed the vein of fat between the flat and the point and got a good bit of it out.






    For seasoning, again, I followed Aaron Franklin's suggestion of salt and pepper only and seasoned the brisket.




    All told, I removed 3lbs of fat and silverskin.



    I got the egg fired up using Rockwood and chunks of Apple.



    After the brisket sat in the fridge for about 3 hours I got it out and put it on the egg at 11PM.



    Locked in at 225 degrees. It didn't budge the entire cook. Thank you Rockwood!


    Ready to go over night!


    The next morning this was the progress after 8.5hrs. Measuring 145 internal.




    Let her keep going. Progress at 12.5 hours. 183 internal.





    And again at 16hrs. At 203 internal. This is the first time I probed it for tenderness. I should have been checking it as time went on. This is a lesson I've learned now that I have done one. It probed tender and the bark was fantastic.



    Pulled it off at this point and started the FTC. I didn't touch it for an hour and a half. It was in my el cheapo styrofoam cooler.




    Whipped up a batch of Franklin's sauce - it's pretty damn good!



    And the slicing!




    The flat was pretty dry. I realized that I had over cooked it immediately when cutting into it. The dark band was facing the heat.


    The fat was fully rendered and sticky and quite tasty.

    The point was less dry. I suppose that's because of the fat content.



    Overall, the flavor was fantastic. The seasoning was perfect and the smoke flavor was wonderful. But, it was very dry. I was able to re animate it using some chicken broth and heating in a crock pot. The bark was crispy and strong. It was edible but not what a brisket should be.

    So my questions are:

    Should I have wrapped the brisket? I was considering doing butcher paper but read that others prefer not to wrap, especially when cooking on an egg.

    Did I cook it too long/too high of a temp? I went by temp with a target of 205. Using the temp method I haven't had any trouble with pork shoulders. Those have come out wonderfully each time I have done them.

    Is the cheap Kroger brisket contributing to the dryness? Or is this a method/technique issue? Granted, this was my first ever brisket.

    Should I have flipped the brisket over at any point? It was fat side down the entire time.

    Reading about the diffusion of the heat using a larger platesetter or foil to expand the drip tray makes sense. The brisket seemed pretty evenly dried out though.

    Thanks for your thoughts!

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  • fence0407
    fence0407 Posts: 2,241
    GabeD said:
    Hijacking the thread a little but I have run into the exact same thing.

    No lie - this is exactly what happened to me the last 2 brisket cooks. One was the Kroger deal and the other was a prime brisket from Costco about the same size. Flat was way overcooked. General feedback is we need to shield the flat from direct heat. Might see if I can snag another one while the sale is still on. 

    Thanks to @lousubcap for the DM!
    Large - Mini - Blackstone 17", 28", 36"
    Cumming, GA  

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  • GabeD
    GabeD Posts: 21
    fence0407 said:
    Might see if I can snag another one while the sale is still on.
    Got 2 of them at the same time because of the sale. #2 is waiting in the fridge for its turn but I want to get some feedback before attempting it. I still have much to learn about brisket!

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  • DainW
    DainW Posts: 159
    edited March 2021
    Man I know it’s an investment in another accessory but once I got an adjustable rig that problem stopped. The plate setter sitting basically right on the coals conducts a lot of heat and basically scorches the bottom of the brisket. 


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  • fence0407
    fence0407 Posts: 2,241
    DainW said:
    Man I know it’s an investment in another accessory but once I got an adjustable rig that problem stopped. The plate setter sitting basically right on the coals conducts a lot of heat and basically scorches the bottom of the brisket. 


    Maybe Santa 🎅 will bring me one this year! For real, I sure would like to get one. 
    Large - Mini - Blackstone 17", 28", 36"
    Cumming, GA  

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  • saluki2007
    saluki2007 Posts: 6,354
    I will admit that the adjustable rig did help with the problems you guys described of burning the bottom. A couple things I did that helped when I was using the standard plate-setter was having my drip pan over hang the PS.  I would also wrap the under side of the grate that over hung the PS. Last I would sometimes loosely wrap the part of the flat that would be over hanging the PS. These all add another level of protection. Hope these help you next time. 
    Large and Small BGE
    Central, IL

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  • fence0407
    fence0407 Posts: 2,241
    saluki2007 said:
    I will admit that the adjustable rig did help with the problems you guys described of burning the bottom. A couple things I did that helped when I was using the standard plate-setter was having my drip pan over hang the PS.  I would also wrap the under side of the grate that over hung the PS. Last I would sometimes loosely wrap the part of the flat that would be over hanging the PS. These all add another level of protection. Hope these help you next time. 
    Thanks! Gonna try this next time!
    Large - Mini - Blackstone 17", 28", 36"
    Cumming, GA  

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  • Mattman3969
    Mattman3969 Posts: 10,458
    Agree with @saluki2007 - I got the 16” drip pan from CGS and only use it for low n slow cooks like this.  The 14” gets used for any other indirect cook. 

    -----------------------------------------

    analyze adapt overcome

    2008 -Large BGE. 2013- Small BGE and 2015 - Mini. Henderson, Ky.
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