Grilling, Smoking, BBQ, etc. WAYCT (What Are You Cooking Today) Outdoor Edition

[goosehd]

@Jett129 Looking very good! How’s your temperature?

[goosehd]

@seawolf Thanks for the idea for this weekend! I just may follow your lead.

[Jett129]

@goosehd So far so good slowly creeping up to 182.5,I may not have to wrap it.

[Jett129]

@goosehd Spoke too soon as it just started going backwards. Stay tuned.

[Jett129]

@jordanscollected I'm thinking I'm about an hour away from resting,but probably only about 2 hours.

[seawolf]

@goosehd This might sound crazy, but a little dab of dijon mustard on every bite of steak is so good.

[goosehd]

@seawolf I also like a good blue cheese slightly melted on steak

[Jett129]

In the end my brisket wasn’t that good. Not sure what I could’ve done differently. It was kind of on the dry side,even though my guests were trying to assure me that it was good. I thought it was kind of mediocre,and I definitely can and have done better.

[seawolf]

@Jett129 Been there! What was the grade of the brisket?

[Jett129]

@seawolf I’m not sure if it was Choice or Prime,but it wasn’t supermarket meat,and it came from my local butcher who I’ve been using for close to 30 years. As you can see in the opening pictures it was well marbled with a nice layer of fat on the top.The only thing I can think of is that my start temp for about the first hour or so was about 325 which is about 50-75 degrees more than I would normally start at. I thought that would be OK,but the temp climbed to about 160 pretty quickly and once my temp stabilized at about 250 it went slowly the rest of the way to 190. I never wrapped it.

[goosehd]

@Jett129 Interesting…is it possible that the higher temp in the beginning pulled more of the moisture out? Did it seem like your drip pan had more fluid than normal in it? What temp did you pull the brisket off at?

My last one I pulled off at 203f and it was drier than I liked, but super tender and the flavour was fantastic. I think my next attempt will be to pull at 198/199 wrap and let it set in the cooler to finish to temp.

[Jett129]

@goosehd That’s the number one aspect of my cook that I’m looking at. I wasn’t cognizant of what was in the drip pan relative to previous times. I was anxious to get started,and that’ll be a lesson to me for next time. I pulled the brisket off at 190,wrapped and rested it in a cooler for about 2 hours.

[mclaincausey]

For me I think separating the point and pulling at 203 worked perfect last time (no wrap) but the flat was a bit dry so will pull earlier next time. May wrap too

[seawolf]

@Jett129 I've messed up so many briskets, and the time I tried a prime brisket, it yielded the best one I'd ever made, and I can't ever go back. Worth a shot, if you feel like trying it out. If you have a Costco membership, they're not super expensive and widely available. Also, a long wrap and rest can be very helpful. I know plenty of BBQ joints don't use prime, but as infrequently as I make brisket, I want it to come out perfectly, and for that reason, I only use prime now for BBQ.

[goosehd]

@seawolf What temp do you pull your brisket off?

Edit: Thanks for the Dijon tip!

[Jett129]

@seawolf I do have a Costco membership,thanks for the tip. The brisket from my butcher was over $100,so not so cheap.

[Jett129]

On previous cooks as soon as it hit about 175,I’d wrap it and put it into the oven at 250 until it got up to 195 and then let it rest for an hour in a cooler. Perfect every time. This time I thought it was going so well that I didn’t have to crutch it,and I was actually quite proud of myself. One bite and I was humbled,pretty quickly. As a musician whenever friends would come see you play they would never tell you that you sucked,the same when people come over to eat food that they know you worked hard to prepare for them. But we’re all pretty self critical,and we know when something isn’t right.

[seawolf]

@Jett129 I saw the price, and that's about right for a local butcher shop. They can't compete with a massive company like Costco. You won't pay much more for prime at Costco. I think the last one I bought was $130. That extra cash gives me peace of mind knowing that something I've been dreaming about, something I spent hours preparing, and over a dozen hours cooking and tending to, will come out the way I expect.

[Jett129]

@seawolf My cooking surface is 15x15 so when he separated the Flat from the Point it was about 17 inches long. I had him trim off the extra 2 inches and use it to make chop meat for me,the best burger I’ve ever had. One slight advantage to having a relationship with a butcher. Are you cooking the entire brisket,point and flat?

[seawolf]

@Jett129 Brisket scraps are awesome in a burger! When I had my Lang smoker, I definitely did whole briskets. The bottom cooking surface was 2" x 4", and the top rack was maybe 18" x 36", if I recall correctly. Damn, I miss that smoker! Now I live in a much smaller place and only have room for a big green egg, so I definitely can't fit a full-sized brisket in there lying flat. I bet I could roll it up and prop it up vertically like a crown roast. It's great to have a relationship with your butcher and support that local business!