1st Brisket Advice and commentary desired....

[JohnD]

Did my first brisket on my Bradley today.  Not bad, but not spectacular either.  Below is the sequence of what I did, times, temps, etc.  Any advice on making it better?  It was still moist, but not fall-apart, or even pull-apart tender.  More like pot roast.

Brisket was labled a "first cut" about 4.5 pounds.  Nice fat cap on one side.

Set it out for about an hour before loading it into the smoker.  Rubbed it with a recipe I found online, black pepper, chili powders, garlic, onion, dry mustard, salt and a little sugar.  The rub is definitely a keeper!

Smoked it with mesquite for 4 hours with the Bradley set to 230 (preheated), fat cap was on top.  Internal temp at the end of the 4 hrs was 168.  Wrapped it in foil and put it back in the smoker.  In less that 2 hrs, it was at 196 and I pulled it, wrapped it in towels and put it in the cooler to rest. Unwrapped it about 3 hrs later, still very hot, and very juicy.

As I indicated, it wasn't bad, nice balance with the rub and the smoke, but I was hoping for something that didn't require a knife to cut.

Any advice for next time would be appreciated.  Thanks in advance.


JD
Bumpass, VA   

[devo]

From everything you have said that sucker should have been very tender. Maybe just a tough piece meat.
If you have a slow cooker throw the slices in there with some beef stock. That might make it more tender.

[beefmann]

next time try adding  some apple   juice when you  foil... 2 to 4 oz per  lb.. and take the  temp up to  200 instead of 196... a few degrees can make a  lot of difference. other then  that  sounds like your on the  right  track,,  just need  to  dial it in

[Saber 4]

The above advice is all good, from the time frame you listed I suspect that your probe was in a fat pocket and you didn't actually achieve 196 IT in the meat. I would have expected you to see a stall for a couple of hours minimum between 150-170 degrees. There are several excellent posts on the mechanic's and art of brisket's in the Bradley that you can look up and get a better explanation than I can give you on the different IT's to get different results. In short I think you had a good plan just an unfortunate probe placement, if you didn't this time, in the future move the probe around when you hit IT to ensure you have a good IT all over. Hope this gives you a direction to look.

[Habanero Smoker]

At 196°F, it should have been good sliceable brisket, but you need to slice against the grain of the meat to make it tender. If you want pulled brisket, you may have to take it to around 210°F. You can use the fork test to check doneness. If the fork can be inserted with little or no resistance, it is sliceable. If the fork can be inserted and easily twisted, the brisket can be pulled. If not continue cooking.

By foiling that will help you power through the stall. What concerns me is that it only two an additional 2 hours to get to 196°F. So as mentioned, your probe may have been in the wrong location, or you had a very thin flat.

[ssherman]

I am generally a pork only smoker, but with the Bradley I definitely want to add briskets to the mix.  I've read a lot of tutorials about cooking them and it seems there are about as many methods as there are cooks.

One question is about the fat, to trim or not to trim?  From a very reliable source, The BBQ Pit Boys on BBQ Web, they trim almost all the fat off of the thing.  Other methodologies leave it all on.  What is the consensus, if there is one?

[Habanero Smoker]

You will not find any consensus on how to prepare or cook a brisket. Most seasoned cooks who compete; especially on the KCBS competition circuit will trim almost all; it not all of the fat off, but they will inject to keep the meat moist. Most of the trimming is mainly for the Appearance category. When judging I rarely see any sliced brisket with any fat on it. As for myself I like a little fat left on the brisket, it adds flavor.

I would say follow Panchaga or WTS method and work from there. Their recipes can be found on this forum; or click on the link below to find their recipes on the recipe site.
Beef Recipes

[BAM1]

I pull my briskets at 185.  Also trim some of the fat but not all. 

[ssherman]

You will not find any consensus on how to prepare or cook a brisket. Most seasoned cooks who compete; especially on the KCBS competition circuit will trim almost all; it not all of the fat off, but they will inject to keep the meat moist. Most of the trimming is mainly for the Appearance category. When judging I rarely see any sliced brisket with any fat on it. As for myself I like a little fat left on the brisket, it adds flavor.

I would say follow Panchaga or WTS method and work from there. Their recipes can be found on this forum; or click on the link below to find their recipes on the recipe site.
Beef Recipes

Thanks for the input.  I think the answer may lie somewhere in between, to trim most of the thick fat that will not render and will not add anything to the process.  I'll just have to give it a shot and see how it turns out. 

[Habanero Smoker]

When I cook briskets it is mainly flats, and I trim them down to 1/8" of fat.

[JohnD]

Thank you all for the advice and suggestions.  I'm thinking that it was probably a combination of many of the above observations.  It was a very thin flat piece and I saw no stall whatsoever.  Other than the fat cap, it had little or no marbling, so I'm guessing that a fat pocket wasn't the issue, but lack of fat may have been a contributor to my issues.  There was also some odd connective tissue near the probe that may have effected it.  Regardless, it just means I need to try again...... Isn't that just a shame?   ;D

Thanks again for being here for us newbies as we educate ourselves.

JD
Bumpass, VA