WTS brisket

[westexasmoker]

Its time to do another brisket! 

Packer trimmed 9.8 lb, I find that about the biggest the racks can handle is about 12 lbs. I don't like to seperate the point from flat unless I just have too.  Aged in the fridge for 3 weeks.



Nice looking fat cap!



And the other side



Fat cap trimmed up a bit



And our other side, this brisket had a pretty good size fat ribbon running between the flat (to the left) and the point (to the right) so cut out most of it.  You don't have to do this, but I always like to run my knife into it to see how thick it is and like this one remove quite a bit, notice you get a nifty little flap.  You can also see the different grain of the meat flat goes one direction and the point the other.  Keep this in mind when you go to slicing after cooked.



Our nifty little flap layed back over



Now for our rub, I like using from the SS book, wild willy's number one-derful rub.  Rub both sides and up under the flap we made when we cut out the fat ribbon!



Now into a large ziploc bag and into the fridge overnight.  Next day, out of the ziploc and onto the counter for about an hour while your smoker is heating up.



Into the smoker, fat cap on top @ 220 for 4-5 hours of mesquite smoke, if you want to use another wood I won't hold it against ya!  ;D



Looking pretty good so far!  Now into foil pan, fat cap on top still, wrapped tightly with foil and into the house oven @ 220 for 18-20 hours.  If you want to complete the cooking process in your BS, go for it, I've dont it before with excellent results.  But I usually have other things to get into the smoker!  Plus I don't like leaving the BS unattended for that amount of time.



Now we're getting somewhere,, steaming hot!  I don't shoot for any particuler IT, when its done its done, but probably somewhere in the 190-205 range I would guess.  IMO you really can't overcook a brisket!  Now for some serious FTC, till dinner time!  To quote Emeril wish we had smell-a-vision!  Save your juice from the pan to use as a base for sauce.



Slicing pics coming up this evening!

C

[FLBentRider]

Nice pics and brisket WTS. You got me hankerin' for another brisket!

[pensrock]

WTS, I do not know if its the mesquite or what but that looks really bad, you better send it to me for proper testing.  ;) ::)

But really, that looks great. After my surgery I'll have to pick up a brisket and try it out myself.  :)

[rcger]

Hey West, what time is dinner?  It sure looks "perty"!!!

[FLBentRider]

But really, that looks great. After my surgery I'll have to pick up a brisket and try it out myself.  :)

How you feelin' pensrock ?

I keep meaning to type out my gall bladder notes, but I haven't got around to it...

In a nutshell:

The laproscopic surgery is not all that bad, you feel not 100% for about 3 days, then movin' slower than ususal for the rest of the week.

One of my concerns was what I can/cannot eat without a gall bladder. Long story short, five years later I eat pretty much anything I want. I followed their guidelines for a while, then started experimenting and soon enough I was back to my old diet. I'm Definitely not a vegetarian.

[PAsmoker]

WTS, when you age the brisket, do you keep it in the cryovac or do you put it into another container?  Do you feel that helps the tenderness? 

I just did a packer brisket this past weekend as well.  Man, I love that cut of meat.  I hadn't done one in over a year, maybe two.  What was I thinking.  I used 6 hours of maple smoke & left it in the BS for about 18 hours (could've gone 20hrs but we were hungry) and ftc for 5 more hours.  Wonderful, wonderful, wonderful.  It must have smelled good, too.  When I put the mutt out at 4:30am I saw a skunk run away from the BS. lol

[Carter]

Hey WTS,

Do you wrap up the brisket tightly in foil before you put it into the foil boat or do you wrap the foil boat?

I just wanted to clarify.

Carter

[westexasmoker]

Yep leave it in the cry-o-vac, it may be my imagination, but I think it helps with the tenderness!

Just cover the foil pan not the brisket, also I don't add any extra liquid to the pan.  The fat cap and meat itself will make all the juice ya need!

Thanks for the kind words guys!

C

[La Quinta]

WTS...Holy Moly...I'm speechless...except for YUM...the perfect partner for mesquite!!!  :D

[westexasmoker]

Okie Dokie out of our FTC and resting for a moment...went 7 hours with FTC a little longer than I wanted, but the kids were running a bit late coming to town



About 20 minutes rest and time to slice....Dinner time!  Thanks guys and gals!



C

[Mr Walleye]

Looks mighty fine Westex!  ;)

Drool... Drool... Drool...

There goes another keyboard!  :D

Mike

[West Coast Kansan]

very nice post wts.  you started with 'select' and ended up 'perfect'  ;D

[deb415611]

WTS -- that's incredible looking!

I'm going to have to try brisket again some day.

Deb

[westexasmoker]

Thanks Deb and Mike! and everyone else!

Brisket can be a misunderstood beast...the key is low and slow, and its so very true, its a one full day of cooking/smoking to get it right.  I can say with the BS, think (well maybe)  I gotta fiqured out!  ;D  Not gonna get rid of the offset, damn used that thing for years, but the temp swings and babysiting (I happen to like to sleep) was more than I wanted to deal with, unless as I've learned in a contest you can't use the BS..so keepin both!  Good Q, simple low and slow and nice bit of mesquite smoke (ya knew I had to throw that in)!  Keep a smokin everyone!

C

[Gizmo]

Looks great WTS.  I still have a question about the wet aging.  How do you know how long the meat can sit in the cryovac to wet age before it actually goes bad? 

The reason I ask is from some past experiences I have had.  Most of the butts and briskets I purchase are cryovac.  Briskets being whole packer.  I had a cryovac butt in the fridge before that was there for maybe a week before I opened it to smoke it.  Had a bit of an off oder so I though it better to toss than to risk it. 

The last time I purchased a brisket I talked to the butcher about keeping it in the fridge.  I was looking at purchasing 2 of them to be done on 2 consecutive weekends.  The butcher said it should be alright as he had only had them for less than a week in his fridge.  I should have asked him about the wet aging and will have to next time I am there.

Here is the dilema:
I don't recall there being a packing date on the package so how do you know how long you can age before the meat goes bad?  If purchasing from a meat market, you probably can find out how long they have had the meat in their possession but not before then.  If buying from a regular chain store, they most likely don't have a clue.  So then, how long can you go before you go from wet aged to sour mash?