Stampede First Brisket Concerns

[max348]

So after trimming all the fat I ended up with 11.5 lbs. Anticipating 11-13hr cook time with a 2-4hr rest, I woke up early & had the brisket on at 3:30 am @ 250 degrees. After 4.5 hrs (8am) It was at 160 internal. I placed it in a foil pan tightly covered with tinfoil & put it back on the smoker. Thinking I still had plenty of time I went out & ran a few errands (beer run). By the time I returned home (10:30am) the internal temp had risen to 205 - definitely not what I was expecting, to say the least. The probes seemed to slide in without out any resistance & the 205 temp was consistent throughout the brisket. I removed & wrapped it in foil/beach towel and placed it in a cooler; I guess to rest for the rest of the day. My question is, far as cook time, is this normal? I had planned to start checking & possibly pull at somewhere in the 195 range... I hope I didn’t ruin it.
BTW - smoking on a Stampede using Lumberjack Competition Blend pellets.

 

[Uncle Bob]

"normal" for a brisket is to taunt the chef by being as unpredictable as possible. 250 will shorten (in general) your total time relative to a 225 cook temp, but still, 7 ish hours is pretty quick. I can't quite tell, is that a whole packer (at that weight likely)? Did you trim out most of the deckle? Pressed to guess, for whatever cause/reason (select/choice/prime?) you have a low moisture piece of meat that "sweat" less so came out of stall quicker. Holding in the cooler for a few hours won't hurt it other than it might get very soft and will tend to "crumble" when you go to slice it. Still good eatin', just not pretty. Just make sure it stays above 140 degrees for food safety reasons.

 

[max348]

Yep, it was a whole packer & also prime. I got an awesome deal at WM as it had approached it “sell by date.” I’ve only done two cooks (chicken wings & beer-can chicken) since getting the grill last week, so I’m still going through the “bonding phase” with it. The temp control was set at 250 & the OEM probe/ temp showed the same throughout the cook. Is it possible with these grills that the temperature could be off giving me a lower reading than what it actually is? Also, is there a “hot-spot” location grate wise? For the cook I pretty much put the brisket right in the center. Thanks for responding!

 

[Uncle Bob]

"Possible?", yes, but not very often. If you've got the non oe equipment to verify/check it's certainly worth the effort. Those that have gone through the effort to check grate level temps say there are differences left to right/front to back. While that is likely true I'm not convinced it makes much difference on a longer cook product unless there's a malfunction and the differences are extreme. It might matter more for a short cook with a product that has to be more precisely cooked. In your case I'll stick with the moisture content idea unless someone can come up with a better idea. Briskets are an experience...……………….

 

[max348]

“Briskets are an experience..............”
Yes, sure seems that way - kinda like carb and suspension tuning, definitely a little “voodoo” involved! So with moisture content, or lack of, is safe to assume that injecting would help to resolve this?

 

[NU2SMOKE]

Please tell us how it came out once you cut it!! I screwed up the only brisket Ive ever done so watching this with interest!!

 

[Uncle Bob]

“Briskets are an experience..............”
Yes, sure seems that way - kinda like carb and suspension tuning, definitely a little “voodoo” involved! So with moisture content, or lack of, is safe to assume that injecting would help to resolve this?

Is carburetion or fuel injection better? Just depends on who you ask. Some swear by injecting marinade/moisture, others claim with equal authority that it's a waste of time. Since the stall is a function of cooling by evaporation then, in theory anyway, increasing the moisture content will prolong the stall. My tendencies are to work with the simplest approach until that's mastered then start in with all the "more exotic" experiments. To revisit your automobile analogy, if a guy does twenty different things at once to solve a poor running condition, is successful, and then is asked which thing did the job, his answer, if honest, should be "I don't know, one of the 20 I guess." Not much knowledge advancement there. I share Nu2's interest in the outcome you accomplished. That might be a better starting point for planning the next process.

 

[max348]

Lol, I should have included golf in my comparison too! I’ll definitely post an update & include some pictures of the finished product. As for now, just waiting on my beans to finish up.

 

[ifican]

So having played with quite a few things over the years (i have even taken a 15lb and cut it up into 3-5lb chunks to test with) 7hr is doable but it was not done at your stated temp. I suspect the temp crep up to the 350-375 range and stayed there for a bit, yes briskets can be cooked that high. Wrapping or covering will steam it to a sense and also speed it through the stall and overall time quite a bit. I prefer 100% unwrapped same for ribs, no foil, nada. But if i have a hankerin for a change i will use red butcher paper in either instance and 205 would be wonderful, my magic number is 203 but if i was going to error on either side it would be 205 vs 201. Your probe test told you it was perfect and i bet it was still fantastically juicy and just barely held up under its own weight. It would take quite a bit higher temp to even be concerned with drying it out. If it was truly a prime cut all that fat would have turned into some serious eats .

 

[max348]

Gentleman, I think it actually turned out pretty darn good. Some of the slices (primarily towards the ends) were slightly dry, but nothing to overly complain about. The pieces I sliced near the middle were tender and succulent. Same with the burnt-ends; a few were slightly dry, but most were nice & tender (definitely were the hit with the family). Flavor was great (salt, pepper, and Montreal Steak Seasoning. The bark was perhaps a little moist, probably from sitting most the afternoon in a cooler.

 

[max348]

As for the grill temps, I ran two seperate tests at the middle grate. In both instances, both the OEM & Tenergy probe showed 10 degrees warmer than what the display indicated (fixed probe). That being said, my actual cook temp must have been more like 235 degrees.

 

[Uncle Bob]

There ya go Max, ya done good based on what I can see in the pics. If you're happy with it, and your guests/family too, then it's a winner. Keep at it.

 

[NU2SMOKE]

I AM SO FREAKING JEALOUS...Look at how great that looks!! @Uncle Bob BOOOOOOBBBBB I need help with Brisket!!!!........ Please

 

[Uncle Bob]

After seeing what Max was able to do with his first one he's likely more help than me. My first wasn't anywhere near that good looking.

 

[NU2SMOKE]

After seeing what Max was able to do with his first one he's likely more help than me. My first wasn't anywhere near that good looking.

Yeah well...your was probably still edible....I threw mine in the trash!! I keep going over in my head what could have gone wrong but I just dont know. Now the I have the Bull I want to give it another try but I'm still licking the wounds from the first one!

 

[Uncle Bob]

Ya just gotta get back on the horse that threw ya......……….although tossing a $40ish hunk o' meat gotta be painful.

I'm intrigued by the pan method Max used. The "normal" crutch method is a tight wrap in foil or butcher paper, so sitting in a pan gives more space for the steam to circulate around the meat. Is that part of the "secret"? No idea. Max didn't respond to my question about removal or not of the deckle, so not sure there either. The one thing not apparent in the pics of the finished product is the flow of internal juices. But, Max didn't say it was overly dry so not sure what to make of that either.

 

[max348]

Thanks for the kind word fellas, but I think I just got WAYYYY lucky (especially with that weird cook-time). All I did was prep the night before with a 50/50 ratio of salt & pepper (apply medium coat both sides) and a light coat of Montreal Steak Seasoning (meat side only). I cooked it fat side down, center of the chamber at what I now think was more like 235 degrees. When it hit 160, I placed in a foil pan (fat side down), covered with more foil, and put it back on the heat. Pellets were Lumberjack Competition blend.
I think next time, as ifican suggested, I’ll try wrapping with red butcher paper instead of the foil pan. I think I will also try injecting some liquid (moisture) into it as well.

 

[max348]

Ya just gotta get back on the horse that threw ya......……….although tossing a $40ish hunk o' meat gotta be painful.

Max didn't respond to my question about removal or not of the deckle, so not sure there either. The one thing not apparent in the pics of the finished product is the flow of internal juices. But, Max didn't say it was overly dry so not sure what to make of that either.

Lol, sorry about that... im embarrassed to admit that I don’t know if I removed the deckle or not ?. I did trim all the fat from around the point (both sides). On the flat I cleaned the top really good (fat and grey meat) and left about a 1/4 of fat on the bottom. When I placed it in the pan I liberally misted (more like saturated) it with a 50/50 apple cider vinegar & water. My plan upon returning home after the beer run, errr I mean running errands, was to add a can of beef broth to the pan. Unfortunately I didn’t get the chance to do that as my temp alarm was sounding off at 205. I wrapped it tightly in foil, followed by again wrapping in a heavy beach towel. I then placed it in a cooler for close to 5hrs before serving.
As far as internal juices go, I think there is definitely room for improvement. Towards the edges I didn’t get much. However, the middle did retain and present some juice as I was slicing. Prior to serving, I dipped each piece in the au jus that remained in the cooking pan.

 

[NU2SMOKE]

Ya just gotta get back on the horse that threw ya......……….although tossing a $40ish hunk o' meat gotta be painful.

It was a prime full packer...63.00 to be exact and no not painful... excruciating !!!!!

I too am interested in this pan method and if I remember correctly of an episode of pit-masters ...I saw Myron Mixon put a brisket in a pan cover in foil for his "WRAP" If that's good enough for him who am I to argue. Makes wrapping a whole lot easier.

The following came right from Myron Mixons website....

Heat your smoker to 300 degrees.

Place the brisket in a clean aluminum baking pan, place the pan in the smoker, and cook for 2 ½ hours.

Remove the pan from the smoker and cover it with aluminum foil. Put it back into the smoker and cook for another 1 ½ hours or until the temperature in the point end of the meat reaches 205 degrees.

Remove the pan from the smoker and wrap the pan, still covered with aluminum foil, in a thick blanket. Let it rest at room temperature for 3-4 hours.

Slice against the grain and serve.


Sounds hot and fast but im sure you could go low and slow using the same technique. You alo then get to keep all of the juices to make a kick ass Au Jus...Just my thoughts.

 

[max348]

Great video of Myron prepping a brisket & explaining some of his theories regarding the cook process.