Brisket temp?

lastmonkey · May 2010

There seems to be a lot of opinions on when to pull a brisket. I was going to smoke around 200 untill it was 175 and then open it up untill it reached 190. Thoughts?

P.S. I have no idea what I'm doing.

FearlessGrill · May 2010

Rather than playing with the temp, I would just start and leave it at 250 dome. I personally don't think there is anything to be gained by starting at a lower temp on a long cook like that.

Here's a write up I did of a brisket cook for some details on the technique I use. http://www.fearlesskitchen.com/2009/07/recipe-a-better-brisket-guest-post-from-fearless-grill-.html There are plenty of other guides out there as well.

Good luck,

-John

thirdeye · May 2010

By "open it up" I guess you mean ramp up the pit temp?

200* is pretty low, and if you are using your dome thermometer to measure that, you are really cooking around 175*. In theory if you are cooking at 175, and waiting to get to 175 internal, it's going to take a long time.

I start all my briskets off at low temps (180-200) for about 2 hours, then I ramp the pit up to a higher cooking temp for the rest of the cook. The low temp start is one of the factors for smoke ring formation, and I like the flavors I get too. I've never really measured the internal at the end of those 2 hours, but I bet it can't be over 130*

Daddyo · May 2010

Pulling at 190 is fine. You can go to 195 also. I like to wrap the brisket in foil and then a beach towel for about 1/2 an hour after it comes off to let the internal temps even out.

I've had briskets get cooked too early and I've been able to keep them hot, not warm but hot, for several hours in a towel stuffed in a cooler. Beginners usually wind up eating about 2 hours later than they planned. Hence, plan for 2 hours early and have faith that it will stay hot for a few hours if you need it to.

Brisket temp?

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