First brisket!

[jjmoney]

Thanks largely to Pachanga's inspiring posts on brisket, I went for it. I got a 12 lb. packer cut and did the rub and slather method. I had to cut off part of the flat due to length, but the entire huge mass fit on one tray.

Put in smoker at 8 PM, set PID for 255 (by the way, these are easy to set and a fantastic tool), loaded up on apple with a few hickory and mesquite thrown in the middle. Left overnight. Smelled really good already in the morning. Oven never made it to 255, it topped out at about 245. Put another couple hours of smoke on and started temperature testing and spritzing with apple juice. Turned down to 230 and monitored. Took it out at 5 PM today once IT was reading 190 and did a type of FTC until serving time.

Remembered to take a picture after serving was done and I was slicing up the remaining portion.



Good bark development, very moist through the deckle and thicker part of the flat, although the thin parts of the flat and the cutoff portion of the flat got a little dry.

Served with a great purple cabbage coleslaw, corn bread, rice, barbecue beans, and yellow sauce and balsamic bbq sauce. All in all it was very good and I was very pleased with my first effort. Next time I have to figure out how to stop the flat from drying out as much as it did. I think my low ambient temperatures can't have helped much.

Anyway, thanks to all here and especially Pachanga for the inspiring and helpful information. Happy smoking.

[Ka Honu]

Glad that worked out for you.  Following Pachanga's advice was an excellent move.  You probably could have "humped" the packer in the middle to fit it on the shelf without cutting off the end.  As it cooks, the meat shrinks enough to flatten it out.  Next time.

[mikecorn.1]

Looks great!


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[beefmann]

looks great

[OU812]

Good lookin hunk of brisket

Neat cuttin board too  ;D

[iceman]

Great job! Super good looking bark on it.

[jjmoney]

Thanks everyone! The bark is really interesting, all that caramelization really makes for an interesting piece of meat. The picture doesn't do it justice, there's only about 1/3 of the slab left and I was already cutting into the point.

I can't wait to do the next one. I'm hooked! Thanks again to Pachanga for the best single pieces of information I found on the internet on brisket.

The cutting board is bamboo, it's really good, it's held up better than any other one I've ever owned. Maybe saturating it in mineral oil at the start helped preserve it? Maybe the thousands of onions that have given up their flesh on it? I got them as a gift, but they sell for about 20 bucks for two at Costco. I'll mail some to anyone who mails me some Soy Vay in return!

[Pachanga]

Righteous looking smoke with a nice looking bark.

I am glad it worked out for you.  Thank you for taking the time to read some of my posts and thank you for the comments.  As my friend Ka Honu says, a 12 pounder can usually be contorted (humped) to fit in the Bradley.  See below.

So your brisket doesn't fit - solution here
http://www.susanminor.org/forums/showthread.php?770-Brisket-Too-Large&p=1170#post1170

Yes, depending on the length and thickness of the tongue or tip of the flat, it can dry out.  However, if you pull the brisket and FTC when the tip of the flat is fork tender, the rest of the brisket will catch up during the FTC due to the larger bulk of the point.  In the meantime, the flat will slow down due to its size and shape. 

The note at the end to the above link states,

For long thin briskets with thin flats another method works well. The following is an excerpt from Brisket Pachanga:

"Sometimes the brisket is still too long to fit, even after bending it. One reason I find that a brisket is too long is usually the brisket is very thin toward the end of the flat. Measure the brisket against your Bradley rack. Cut the thinnest part off and lay it fat side down under the thinnest part of the main brisket which is fat side up. If you match the taper of both pieces of meat by matching thick to thin, you will end up with a uniform thickness that smokes evenly and retains moisture well. No one will know the difference when serving."

I use the above method if the tip of the flat is overly thin but not too often.  I try to solve that problem at the store during the purchasing process.

Also remember that moisture is actually more of a "mouth feel" when fat or oil is present in a bite of meat and not really a function of water.  Pour a little melted butter or oily drippings from the point over the dry part of the flat after slicing.  It will bring back that "moisture" you are missing.

Think about pulling the next one as soon as the tip is fork tender which could very will be at 185 IT in the first 1/3 of the flat.  Let the brisket tell you when it is ready.  Here is something I wrote sometime back concerning Brisket Interrogation.

"A brisket is ready when it is ready. 

So, what language does a brisket speak to tell you it is ready?  Does it speak through a thermometer reading?  No, but a thermometer will give you some clues as to what it is thinking and can be relied upon to get close to optimum temperature.  How about color?  Again, color is a clue but not an answer.  Should time be your guide?   There are many variables to time.  Size and shape of the meat, internal temperature (IT) of the meat when started, temperature of the Bradley, total meat load if more than one piece of meat, water source, initial temperature of Bradley along with components such as water, bricks or other meat, vent opening, rack location, number of door openings and duration, temperature of water refills, ambient temperature, and of course oven temperature setting and adjustments during the smoke. These are just a few variables off the top of my feeble brain; there are many more.  Time can vary greatly and is most unreliable.

While the brisket will give you clues as to its condition, it remains silent.  A brisket is ready when the collagen and connective tissues dissolve, liquefy and loosen their grip, allowing the individual strands of meat fiber to be lubricated and easily separated.  This starts to take place as low as 140 degrees F, really gets active around 160 to 170 (this is when a stall is likely to occur), and finally gives up the ghost between 185 and 200 IT in the middle of the flat.  The IT is a great clue but it is not definitive.  There can be as much as a 15 degree window between briskets.

Again, a brisket is ready when it is ready.  But how do we know when that is?  The answer is through interrogation and torture.  This is the only way to discern the perfect temperature to break down each brisket's unique connective tissue and collagen makeup and content.

We must be diligent and proactive to get the information we need from the brisket.  We must interrogate the brisket.  At 185 IT in the middle of the flat, it is time to torture the brisket into talking.  Slide a meat fork with two tines into the skinny end of the flat parallel to the meat fibers.  Twist the fork.  If the fork twists easily and the meat breaks away with the fibers easily separated, the brisket has confessed that it is ready.  If the fibers stay together and the fork doesn't easily twist, give the brisket 5 more degrees to think about it and try again at 190.  Continue every five degrees until the brisket spills it guts by breaking apart.  At this point you can be sure the brisket is giving accurate information by inserting a temperature probe into the flat (about 1/3 of the total brisket length form the skinny end) starting from the edge and poking it deep into the middle.  It should slide in like going into butter, with very little resistance.  You have gotten all the information you need.  The interrogation is over.  Pull the brisket and let it rest.

At this point, I generally cut a little burnt end off of the deckle; a diabolical smile on my lips, as I enjoy the first taste of my labors.  It is time to hoist a cold one, toast the worthy opponent and exclaim "It just don't get any better than this".  Yes, this is the way life ought-ta be.

Some final points to ponder:

You have tested the thin tip of the flat for fork tender.  Since it is the thinnest part of the brisket, this is the first part of the flat to reach that brisket's temperature where its unique combination and makeup of collagen and connective tissue has dissolved and released its grip.   During the rest period, hangover temperature will continue to rise and cook the thicker part of the flat, thus achieving the exact same fork tender meat in the middle that you tested in the thin tip.  The thick flat will finish without overcooking because you judged the rest time (using the thin end) just as the middle was beginning to enter its final optimum phase.  The probe slipped in easily but the final loosening of the fibers was not over.  This hangover heat rise will bring the thick part of the flat up to the perfect finishing temperature which was confessed by the brisket during interrogation and torture.  Even though not absolutely necessary, the Foil, Towel, Cooler (FTC) method will equalize this optimum temperature throughout the brisket and prolong this temperature for a more forgiving product.

Most briskets will confess and give it up between 190 and 195 in the middle 1/3 of the flat.   If your oven temperature is at 180 to 190, the brisket will never give up because optimum confession temperature is never reached.  The Bradley should be between 205 and 225 according to most experienced Bradley users on this board.

There is a caveat to the above.  The information is predicated on cooking low and slow, adequate moisture the entire cooking time which includes a full water pan and may include mop and slather.  It also includes protection from direct high heat.  Without a moist environment, the fibers can dry out, tighten and never release any information (even under the most intense interrogation) which will produce a dry tough brisket.  Indications that your brisket is ok and everything is going according to plan is a little plump spring (like pushing on a full belly) when pushed on with tongs or some bend and limberness when lifted in the middle or ends.  If the brisket starts to handle like a stiff board, be much afraid." 

Good luck on the next one.

Pachanga

[jjmoney]

Great post Pachanga! I never saw that particular one. Thank you again.

I tried the hump trick of course, but she was a really big hump, so I reluctantly sliced and tucked as per the suggested method.

I do believe I made some novice errors in my doneness testing. I was looking primarily at IT in the thicker portions, and not doing the brisket-whispering with the fork and the twisting and all that. Rest assured that will be done next time.

I modified the suggested rub a bit and it was real tasty. I'll tweak it even a little more next time.

I also will see if I can do some brisket choosing at my local butcher emporiums. Briskets aren't as available here as they likely are there. They are probably more expensive too. Mine was about 55 bucks. How much does a brisket cost in Texas?

Can't wait to do it again.

[Pachanga]

It looked like you did well to me.

I like that you are tweaking the rub.  Rubs are usually just suggestions of a starting place.  Make it your own and let the board know if you run into that special blend.

Up until a year ago, briskets were on sale during holidays at 99 cents a pound.  Now you are looking at 2 to 3 bucks.  The drought has taken its toll in Texas.

Good luck and slow smoking,

Pachanga

[jjmoney]

3 bucks a pound is still better than my price! I paid $7.99/kg which works out to almost $4/lb. 99 cents is a dream. Rest assured I will be shopping around town for a good line on some decent price/quality brisket.

May all your tortillas be hand made.

[Pachanga]

May all your tortillas be hand made.

Rest assured, they are.  Flour from soft wheat and corn from blue dent corn made into nixtamal and ground at home.

Pachanga

[jjmoney]

Rest assured, they are.  Flour from soft wheat and corn from blue dent corn made into nixtamal and ground at home.

Pachanga

Nice. Where do you get the corn? Do they have a website? I'd sure like to get my hands on some. I'm finding it hard to find a source for blue dent corn on the internet. Is dent better than flint for the tortillas?

[Pachanga]

I used to order Blue Dent Corn from New Mexico in 10 and 20 lb bags but I now have a local source (Fiesta Mart) for the same price.  I searched for my old source and could not find it but I am sure it is still out there.  I will continue to look.

I have not used flint corn.  I have only used dent corn as it is the traditional type for tortillas.  I have read that some do use it but it is definitely different from dent.  Dent is prevalent for tortillas and I would suspect there is a reason.

I have learned that if you buy corn in quantity, store it in the freezer.  Otherwise, bugs will find it and ruin it. 

Another tip I have learned is to make more nixtamal than you are going to use.  Process it as if you are going to use it by removing the the outer coating after nixtamalization. Then divide up the unused portion into batches.  Vacuum bag the batches and freeze.  Take it out and grind as needed.  It actually grinds better when still partially frozen and the taste or texture is not affected.  This way, fresh ground masa is not an overnite process.  You will find that fresh tortillas become a frequent bread replacement and impromptu fajitas, tacos and enchiladas are easy.

Lastly, there is no comparison between the flavor profiles of fresh masa and the ground flours that are used for most commercial tortillas here in the states and used in most households.  There is also a difference between blue corn and yellow; and it is not just the color.  The blue packs in the flavor and is all I use now.

By the way, a benefit of the nixtamalization process is it releases the niacin in the corn.  After corn became a staple in other parts of the world and the nixtamalization process was eliminated in favor of grinding only, Pellagra due to lack of niacin became epidemic.

Good luck and slow smoking,

Pachanga

[jjmoney]

I think I found a source. A buddy from work may be able to mule. I'ma get my hands on some blue dent one way or another. Thanks for the info Pachanga. I can't wait to do it up. I make corn tortillas at home using the ubiquitous mass produced masa, I'm really looking forward to tearing into some of the real deal.

By the way, as of late, my favorite breakfast/brunch item has been cooking bacon cut in lardons til crisp, scrambling eggs, and then adding the bacon to the pan with some good cheese - I like grana padano. Anyway, make some tortillas, add the bacon and eggs, and then throw some homemade kimchi on top. You'll forget your name.