trimming a packer brisket

Before the experts chime in, you might let them know what smoker you plan on using to smoke it.

In addition to Cal's question, would the end result be dinner table dining or a comp turn-in?

it would be a stick burner at 325f hot and fast and for family..... not comp. My question was in general what do you guys do but i can see that the parameters could dictate the approach ... thanks

Stick Burner + Hot & Fast dictate leaving some fat on to keep it from drying out. IMHO.
In the FEC (& I presume the CS electrics) you don't need the fat (moister environment). I trim it off & end up with more bark & less clean up.

Also ,are you cooking three cases of packers,or just two?Either way,most cooks will just cook them and when you pull them to serve,you can remove much of the fat with the backside of the knife.Also,folks in TX might feel insulted if you didn't leave some fat on the meat for flavor.

Just my $0.02

just 1 USDAprime brisket 16-17 lbs .... in Buffalo so not worried about Texans today

Tundarum, Cal, one of the members on this site, gave me the site to get it from ( http://store.creekstonefarms.c...oduct-p/csf-bri3.htm ). I wanted to try a better cut this time, I usually get my briskets at Restaurant Depot near the Galeria and they are 'ok' but wanted to see if it's the cut or the cook. The one I'll be cooking is a USDA Prime and it looks good. btw ... I'm actually in O.P. ... fyi Dashes Market said that they could order one but this place had good reviews.

what I meant to say is I didn't get this locally, I ordered online after Cal gave me the info. Prime Brisket is very very very hard to get in the Buffalo area, although I have heard that Dashes can order. The price might or might not be competitive with the link I shared. I do not have that information.

quote:

Originally posted by dba1954:
what I meant to say is I didn't get this locally, I ordered online after Cal gave me the info. Prime Brisket is very very very hard to get in the Buffalo area, although I have heard that Dashes can order. The price might or might not be competitive with the link I shared. I do not have that information.

All in, how much was it? Please let us know how it turns out. Be careful not to burn it up. I've heard you need to adjust temp/time with Prime/Waugu.

Cut the hard piece of fat off the top where the point and flat goes together. Touch up the top of the flat so your rub is setting on the meat. Like Tom, the brisket expert said, all the other fat comes off easy after cooking.

I've always heard the higher temps you cook at, the higher the finish temps will be when the flat comes tender.

Typically when smoking a packer I remove the kernel and trim the top to just over 1/4".

If I were going hot & fast in a stick burner, I'd remove the kernel and leave the top fat as is.

Let us know how it goes. I'm planning a Creekstone Prime for this year's Superbowl bash. Not sure if I'll go 2 stage or hot & fast yet.

quote:

Originally posted by MaxQ:
Typically when smoking a packer I remove the kernel and trim the top to just over 1/4".

If I were going hot & fast in a stick burner, I'd remove the kernel and leave the top fat as is.

Let us know how it goes. I'm planning a Creekstone Prime for this year's Superbowl bash. Not sure if I'll go 2 stage or hot & fast yet.

We're saying the same thing, I just call it the top, cause that's how I put it on the smoker....

MaxQ, I'm doing a creeekstone prime brisket as well but for the College bowl games new years day. What is a 2 stage? Also, found out that the local store sells quarts of Au Jus, I suspect from cooking the deli roast beef. Wonder how that would work as a marinaide and/or injection for the brisket?

2 stage refers to pellet cookers, which produce more smoke at lower temps (180-190) The meat spends x number of hours at the lower temp and then heat is increased to normal temps. The FEC line up can be programmed to do all this while you sleep

The FEC line looks pretty awesome.

Mine sure is.

They've been kicking butt on the competition circuit.

Got it trimming and injected with Au Ju for an overover night sit in the fridge. Looks like I might be able to get this guy into my CS-025 so with 40 mph winds and possibly 1-2" per hour of snow tomorrow the stick burner is out of the question. I'll cook at 300 til 165 then pan/foil it and bring into the house to finish. It was around 16 lbs to start with, trimmed almost 5 lbs of hard fat off of the beast. So far looks nice.

http://s1156.photobucket.com/u...42960576796514963723

http://s1156.photobucket.com/u...54208283764940890201

http://s1156.photobucket.com/u...89019469989494629974

http://s1156.photobucket.com/u...52044071737521843496

Well, decided to cook it a bit lower. Started it just before 6am at 275 but by 7:30 it was at 130 already so I lowered to 250. At 9:45 it hit 180 (which I thought was very fast) and went into the stall. It's at 182 now (11am) and holding steady. I plan to foil once it's above 190 and out of the stall. The point has so much marbling that I think that I should separate from the flat at that point and foil the two separately (assuming they will require different cook durations)? Smelling good ....

quote:

Originally posted by dba1954:
............ (assuming they will require different cook durations)? Smelling good ....

I always wrap and cook together, haven't had any problem with both being done at the same time....the Creekstone primes and Wagyus do tend to cook faster.

I pulled it at 12:30 @194 and seperately wrapped only because I don't know if the point and flat will cook the same. It's back in the smoker at 250. The brisket really shrunk more then other briskets I've cooked before but seems moist at this point. I also trimmed excessive fat before foiling (removed fat cap and applied some more rub). This is cooking quiet quickly.

Being Prime, the shrinkage may be due to all the marbling melting into the meat. Not sure, but that is my guess.

I finally pulled it at 204, it was spot on tender The point I put in an additional 1 hr, cut into cubes with sauce/rub, cooked another hr and they were the best burnt ends I ever had. The shrinkage was significant however and the drip pan was filled with fat which should have been expected given the marbling. I would buy another one for sure, just not everytime

Just say this. Why would you inject a prime brisket?

Me? I'm just a fan of injection, especially in high end meats like prime or Wagyu, but I don't want to hijack the thread.