Thanks all for all the information it is very helpful.
Tom,
You say you start out low and then after a few hours you will raise the temp to 225-240*. What temp do you start with, how long do you keep it at the lower temp and what determines if you increase the temp to 225, 235 or 240*?
I am also wondering if BBQ restaurants that make a good sliced brisket foil and add liquid or are they able to produce brisket that good right from the smoker? Also, how do BBQ restaurants warm up their brisket that they serve? I would think that they have previously cooked the brisket and are warming it up as it is ordered. I have read the posts about boiling the vacuumed sealed bags, reheating in the oven and the microwave, but I am curious as to what restaurants do.
Thanks.
Well now,I use temp as a timing mechanism on big hunks of meat.
180º-200º won't overcook much a nothin',so it can hang there as long as you want.
If we were going out for the evening,and I didn't want to mess with a bunch of meat at midnight,I might load at 7 PM at 180º.
If I am wanting to smoke more,I may also cook there for several hours.
Depending on my schedule the next day,I might kick it up at midnight,or I might wait until when I awaken in the morning.
Folks that have tried to make me a cook,like to let briskets/butts stay in the plateau as long as possible.[160º-170º typically]
This is where we are really rendering the fat and breaking down collagen,without drying out the meat.
225º is generally felt to be a good temp for this.
Now, cooks I respect have taught me that cookers have a temp they like to run and do well at,and not to fight it-because I read something in a magazine.
I like to know the actual ave temp at the meat level,but the setting doesn't really concern me.
I like to cook many things at 220º-240º.
If I'm behind in the cook,250º will help push through the plateau.
If I'm through the plateau and need to finish for dinner ,275º can work.
If I'm really behind,that is where foil and temp can speed up the cook-Not improve it.
At home,weekend type cooks,I like to get briskets/butts out and into the cooler about noon.
They'll hold fine until dinner time.
Then I cook my ribs.
Should leave me time to finish them,and still do some chicken-if that's on the schedule.
I usually toss in some assorted sausages,near the end of the ribs,for snacks-if I run behind.
Well now,my teammates are more into catering and would have better answers about holding and reheating.
Yes, precooked from a commissary,vacpac,and boil in the bag are used well by some restaurants.
Yes,there are some restaurants,with good cooks,cookers,experience,and attention to detail that can pull good meat straight from the pits to serve without foil.
Yes, a lot is cooked,chilled,and reheated as needed to serve.
Reheating can be done with commercial microwaves.
Half foil pans,usually hunks of meat,a little broth/coffee,covered with plastic and then foil.
Heated at less than 250º,to over 140º,pull and serve as needed.
Once you move away from the brisket belt,and even there,chuck rolls,or clods may be used for sliced-or especially chopped/pulled beef.
They cook easier and hold much better.
This brisket stuff is all just one man's opinion,and one brisket at a time.
Your notes and practice will be better guides.
Now,I'll get outa here before someone accuses me of makin' a Smokin'Okie post.
180º-200º won't overcook much a nothin',so it can hang there as long as you want.
If we were going out for the evening,and I didn't want to mess with a bunch of meat at midnight,I might load at 7 PM at 180º.
If I am wanting to smoke more,I may also cook there for several hours.
Depending on my schedule the next day,I might kick it up at midnight,or I might wait until when I awaken in the morning.
Folks that have tried to make me a cook,like to let briskets/butts stay in the plateau as long as possible.[160º-170º typically]
This is where we are really rendering the fat and breaking down collagen,without drying out the meat.
225º is generally felt to be a good temp for this.
Now, cooks I respect have taught me that cookers have a temp they like to run and do well at,and not to fight it-because I read something in a magazine.
I like to know the actual ave temp at the meat level,but the setting doesn't really concern me.
I like to cook many things at 220º-240º.
If I'm behind in the cook,250º will help push through the plateau.
If I'm through the plateau and need to finish for dinner ,275º can work.
If I'm really behind,that is where foil and temp can speed up the cook-Not improve it.
At home,weekend type cooks,I like to get briskets/butts out and into the cooler about noon.
They'll hold fine until dinner time.
Then I cook my ribs.
Should leave me time to finish them,and still do some chicken-if that's on the schedule.
I usually toss in some assorted sausages,near the end of the ribs,for snacks-if I run behind.
Well now,my teammates are more into catering and would have better answers about holding and reheating.
Yes, precooked from a commissary,vacpac,and boil in the bag are used well by some restaurants.
Yes,there are some restaurants,with good cooks,cookers,experience,and attention to detail that can pull good meat straight from the pits to serve without foil.
Yes, a lot is cooked,chilled,and reheated as needed to serve.
Reheating can be done with commercial microwaves.
Half foil pans,usually hunks of meat,a little broth/coffee,covered with plastic and then foil.
Heated at less than 250º,to over 140º,pull and serve as needed.
Once you move away from the brisket belt,and even there,chuck rolls,or clods may be used for sliced-or especially chopped/pulled beef.
They cook easier and hold much better.
This brisket stuff is all just one man's opinion,and one brisket at a time.
Your notes and practice will be better guides.
Now,I'll get outa here before someone accuses me of makin' a Smokin'Okie post.
quote:Originally posted by Tom:
Thanks for the kind words.
Smokin' Okie usually caries the load,but he's has been buried in projects,lately.
No, you're brisket boy!
I let you take all the brisket threads
Tom covered everything in his posts, but I wanted to offer some encouragement. I bought two large(17.55 & 16.85) briskets at Wal-Mart Thursday night. Brisket is the only thing I'll buy there because it seems to be the only thing they sell that dosen't have water added and they've been real consistant in price at $1.69/lb for the past year or so, while Costco and BJ's are usually closer to $3.69/lb. I've never been able to cook the "solution added" stuff to my satisfaction. It always seems to come out dry and stringy, and shrunken. Just give me a good fat cap and I'm happy.
I don't trim any fat off until after cooking. I want to give the fat every opportunity to melt and flavor the meat. I season with nothing other than garlic salt and coarse black pepper. I'm using a Smokette so I actually have to fold these over on themselves, and can cook only one at a time because I don't want to use the bottom rack. I start at 200* for the night, then bump it up to 225* the next morning, looking for 195* internal. The 16.85# brisket went in Thursday night at 9:00pm, was bumped up to 225* at about 10am Friday, and hit 195* internal at about 3:00pm. I didn't open the smoker EVER during the cook, and rather than pulling the brisket out to put in a cooler, I just turned the smoker temp down to 160* and let it rest until about 7:30 when it was time to eat. I used about 8oz of hickory, but sometimes I mix hickory and oak. I don't really care for mesquite having been raised on hickory, but to each his own.
I've done maybe 100 briskets in the smokette this way and have never had a bad experience yet. The only change I ever make is starting out at 225* when I need to finish faster. With these large briskets I don't have to worry about them getting done before I want to get up in the morning. Usually 2 10# pork butts started at 9:00pm at 225* will wake me up between 6-7:00am at 190*, and I like my Saturdays to start a little later so I started using a lower initial temp for everything with a long cook time.
I just try to keep everything really simple and don't open the door unless I get a crazy temp reading from a bad probe placement. So far this method has worked out well. Hope this helps some.
I don't trim any fat off until after cooking. I want to give the fat every opportunity to melt and flavor the meat. I season with nothing other than garlic salt and coarse black pepper. I'm using a Smokette so I actually have to fold these over on themselves, and can cook only one at a time because I don't want to use the bottom rack. I start at 200* for the night, then bump it up to 225* the next morning, looking for 195* internal. The 16.85# brisket went in Thursday night at 9:00pm, was bumped up to 225* at about 10am Friday, and hit 195* internal at about 3:00pm. I didn't open the smoker EVER during the cook, and rather than pulling the brisket out to put in a cooler, I just turned the smoker temp down to 160* and let it rest until about 7:30 when it was time to eat. I used about 8oz of hickory, but sometimes I mix hickory and oak. I don't really care for mesquite having been raised on hickory, but to each his own.
I've done maybe 100 briskets in the smokette this way and have never had a bad experience yet. The only change I ever make is starting out at 225* when I need to finish faster. With these large briskets I don't have to worry about them getting done before I want to get up in the morning. Usually 2 10# pork butts started at 9:00pm at 225* will wake me up between 6-7:00am at 190*, and I like my Saturdays to start a little later so I started using a lower initial temp for everything with a long cook time.
I just try to keep everything really simple and don't open the door unless I get a crazy temp reading from a bad probe placement. So far this method has worked out well. Hope this helps some.
Yep,pretty much sounds like my old smokette.
My boys are still hauling it back and forth between their cattle operations and cooking the same way.
It was invented to cook briskets and does a great job.
My boys are still hauling it back and forth between their cattle operations and cooking the same way.
It was invented to cook briskets and does a great job.
When cooking briskets, don't cook higher than 225 degrees.I've read the opinions of several professionals that above 225 degrees, you will boil the fat out of the brisket leaving it dry. So plan ahead with plenty of time so you don't need to play catch up.Above all, don't expect every brisket to be perfect because no two are the same!!