6.5 Hours and done for a flat?

Left it in for another hour and it hit 198. Turned it down to 140 and went back to bed.

Pulled it out at 9:00 - Tender, but not too moist. Will wrapping at 170 make it better?

I cook a lot of flats. I like them because you can cook them quicker and they make great sandwiches. I stuck two in this morning around 6:45am, one on a lower rack and one on an upper rack (CS50). Checked temp before I left for church at 8:30am and temp was already at 132 on the lower rack, so I lowered my temp from 225 to 215 because I was afraid they would be overdone before we returned around 12:15pm. Got home and checked them and temp was at 165, so I turned it up to 250 (typically just leave temp on flats at 225 the entire time).

I took small flat off at 2:15pm, so 7.25 hours and the larger flat off at 3pm, 8 hours, that is at temp of 195.

Smaller flat we used for lunch and the larger I vacummed sealed and stuck in the freezer for later use.

I sometimes take my flats to 165 then double wrap in foil and pour on my favorite bbq sauce before sealing and taking them to 195...always juicy.

Often I just leave them as they are and take them to 187 to 195. The one today was excellent, very juicy and great taste. Used CS Brisket Rub, California Style Garlic Salt and Brown Sugar as my rub.

Keep experimenting, I prefer the flats to the whole brisket myself...I know others will differ in opinion, but find what works best for you.

I like to use some bbq sauce to re-heat brisket slices in the microwave. It seems to hide any damage. I never thought of adding sauce partway through the smoke - and double wrapping makes sense. I will try it next time.

I am a newbie and have only done one full brisket. The point seems pretty hard to screw up with all that fat, but I overcooked the flat. I can see how one could spend a lifetime perfecting the brisket.

Thanks Dan, Just as I decide to try my first brisket I find out it will take what time I have left to cook one perfect. Oh well, gonna do it anyway. Hope you're a young guy and have years to practice. Hee, hee.

He ain't kidding. I've been cooking briskets for years and just can't get 1 done just right. I will probably start doing them at 250* and foiling everytime. They seem to be best braised. Only difference is I will cut the point off from the get-go and do it seperately, without the foil, on the bottom shelf.

Disclaimer: I swear, briskets are the only thang I ever foil !!!

quote:

Originally posted by Dan-Q:
... I don't know how anyone can hope to plan dinner with the variability of this cut of meat....

You're still learning the smoker. Smoking is more art than science, just too many variables.

One lesson we forget to remind people:

Keep good notes

You need to keep notes of your methods, size/weight of what you cook, temps, results etc, what worked, what didn't. That way, when you need to post, you can give good info.

Lots of charts, spreadsheets, etc out there for keeping them, just use what works for you. A simple notebook on each type (ribs, poultry, beef, etc) works pretty well.

You'll find that way, you can repeat your successes and not repeat your failures

Smokin'

HogBusGuy:
I also do a fair amount of flats, set the AQ at 225*, put probe in and take the flat to 190*-195* and then do my poke test to make sure it goes in very easily. They come out pretty darn good!! The Cookshack makes me feel like a great cook without much effort.

I think maybe my expectations are too high. I do get the thumbs-up from the better half. Or possibly I can't get a decent quality of meat with enough marbling. I have purchased from two local butchers, so they haven't been cheap - no grocery stores around here carry uncooked briskets and I am not a member of a discount club.

quote:

Originally posted by HogBusGuy:

I sometimes take my flats to 165 then double wrap in foil and pour on my favorite bbq sauce before sealing and taking them to 195...always juicy.

Wouldn't the sauce get greasy with all of the rendered fat? Do you collect the sauce/fat/juice and pour off the fat so you can serve it?

Most, not all of the fat renders in the 160 to 170 range. Adding sauce is a way of adding liquid and adding flavor. Some do, some don't try to reuse that after cooking.

Back in the 60's when Momma was doing the briskets and I was too young to do the BBQ'in, that's when I first learned about foil. She'd double wrap a brisket, throw on sauce and cook it for 1 hour per pound. Loved that, until I was converted...to Smokin'

Without geting into a foil controversy,fat is considered flavor by many brisket cooks.

There isn't much fat in a flat.

You can pour it off and pour it through a gravy separator,or chill it and lift the fat off.

Hope this helps a little.

I love me some brisket fat! I wouldn't think of getting rid of it! I like it to render as much as it is gonna until the brisket is done, and I want to keep what is left!

Is it just me?