Brisket Too expensive Help!

Yes, $4 a pound is expensive for brisket. Damned expensive.

You might try a cheap roast if they are availble and cheap, something like a chuck roast or bottom round. teh bigger the better.

If you are interested in just learning your Smokette, try Pork Butt. I much prefer it to brisket. The only reason I do brisket is that my wife loves it. Personally I think it is more trouble than it is worth. Pork Buttt is better.

One thing to do is keep an eye on sales, buy your smoking meat when it is on sale and freeze it. If you have a Costco in the area, they usually have brisket at reasonable prices. Buy two and freeze one.

As an aside, get ready for higher beef prices. The price of corn is high, largely due to the demand for corn to make ethanol for fuel. Steers essentially turn corn into beef, so if corn goes up, so does the price of beef. Same for eggs and hens, and chicken and chickens, except that chickens are much more efficient in turning corn into meat.

Forget the brisket, do pork butt. - Duffey

The Flats here in South dakota are about 3-5 bucks a pound, the whole briskets are still only like 1.69 pound,,,,,I have no idea why.

kinda like ,why are baby backs 4 bucks a pound and spares are at 1.38 right now here.

The good thing is,,,whole briskets and spares are not hard to take.

You have a couple of Sams Clubs within 50 miles, and should have a few Walmart Super Centers. Don't know what stores in different areas of the country might carry, but I have had my best luck there.

I just bought a case of whole briskets from Sams at $1.52 a pound.

I've had pretty good luck with the quality of Sams/Walmart meat.

Our superwally here has wonderful meat at great prices, and if you see it cheaper somewhere else, they will match the price so you don't hafta shop at more than 1 place. I know alot of meat is injected, but heck, isn't that just brining, and weren't you gonna inject it or marinate it anyway?

Our Costco...great pork by the way...sells meat in the butchers pack (there's a trade name for it that I can't remember) but it's a lot cheaper. It's the way the meat comes to the store and they open it up, trim the fat and repackage at a significant markup. I like to get it packed that way, do my own trimming and washing, etc. and save a lot. I can get most everything from whole beef loins (filet mignons), sirloin roasts, tri-tips (California, remember) etc. etc. I don't think that only this Costco does that. Certainly most others that have their own butchers do it, too...and all 4 stores near to me do it. Just a thought.

I went to my same town meat market for brisket last week and it was $1.69 a pound trimmed out by the butcher. I bought four at about 14-15 # each. I never asked for the price until I saw it at the checkout counter.

Oh, I did mention to Mike (the butcher) that I was going to do some smoking over the weekend and would like to bring him some samples of what I was doing...he really liked that.

I buy mine at Super Wal-Mart when they go on sale. I still have a half-dozen in the freezer that I bought for $0.69 per pound. Go often (or have your wife go) and look for the reduced meats--they're usually marked.

You can get pork butts, picnics, and ribs this way too. I still have a few racks of $0.99 per pound loin backs in the freezer too.

Just bought two whole briskets at a super Wally in upper MI for $1.68/lb. It's about the only place here that has briskets in the winter time and they seemed to have plenty of them. Ribs too.

Wallmart in my area dont sell meat.But Ill try costco.I think ill end up with the same deal as bjs wholesale.i smoke butt , spares also babybacks but Im dying too smoke my favorite BRISKET but not at a high price. Thanks for your replies. Ray

I picked one up a few weeks ago at Roxie's in Quincy,MA for $2.29/lb

Ray, I work in Westford MA., I take 93 N to 495 S. I hit 495 around 1PM. I could pick one up at Roxie's and meet you up north if that's any help.

Also, make sure you're buying full packer briskets, not trimmed flats. The higher cost is to pay for the trimming.

Check out brisket 101 for photos.

Just bought a full packer today at the Super Wally world. It was 1.69 per pound. It will be my first brisket in my Amerique.

I live in Franklin TN and went to a butcher's shop last night to pick up a full paker but at $3.94/lb I said no. Went to Sam's and all they had were flat's. I'm going to try Wally World today but $48 for a 12lb brisket is to rich for my blood as well.
Smokin'n Harry

Smokin Harry, I use brisket flats if unable to buy full brisket. They work just fine in my opinion. If you have never tried one go ahead and give one a try. I dont think you will be dissapointed. Heck I even use flats in competitions, as well as a lot of other folks that I know.
I did 3 flats last weekend. They were done ahead of time so I double foiled and coolered.
4 hours later the were just fine. Most folks had never tasted brisket. The meat was extreemly moist and most folks liked it better than the ribs which also turned out great.
Good Eats.

Mike

I don't have a Super Wally in my area, because there is a Sam's close by. The last time I was at a Super Wally however, I noticed that at least all the meat I looked at was injected. None of the meat at the local Sam's is, at least at this time. I don't remember checking briskets at Super Wally however. So if you think you are getting a great deal on the best price at Super Wally, you might want to check the fine print. I normally find the best price and variety at the local wholesale grocery that caters to small restaurants. The regional one here is now called Cash & Carry, but they all operate in that general context.

The packers are the only meat that isn't pumped at wallyworld.

They occasionally get choice,rather than select and it is the same price.

They are typically Xcel brand.

bbqbull
Thanks for the advise. I will try a flat next time. I have not had the greatest success yet with brisket but that was before I started reading all the info on this forum. I went to Wally World and found a Choice Packer for $1.69/lb. I'm going to put it on around midnight tonight. I hope all the info I have gained on the forum will yield a good result. I moved to TN from TX and the only reason I bought my smoker was to learn to smoke a good brisket.

Cookshacks were built as brisket cookers.

If you keep it simple and don't follow too many goofy recipes,you'll be just fine.

Just my $0.02

I don't get all the aversion to pre-brined meats, wherever you get them. I cannot tell the difference in the ones not pre-brined or injected or pumped. It is all good. Some I have found even include herbs and spices in with the saltwater. The injection is to make the meat safer in the long run. Safe is good. People die sometimes from bad stuff that can grow on and in meat. Someone please explain the aversion to these injected meat products. Thanks.

Hey jim from weymouth im in fla on va ca. Will Talk when I get back.Not alot of people that smoke in my area. Ray

the only problem i have with pumped meat is that you are paying for the extra water in the meat and i dont like to pay 1.69 or watever the price for water just my thought

OK, that's 1 good reason, I agree.

Anyone else?

Smokin Harry, Let us know how your brisket turned out.

Mike

Well, my take on injected/tumbled ribs/meat:

quote:

Originally posted by GLH:
The injection is to make the meat safer in the long run.

Nope, the companies aren't doing it for food safety. It's "their" theory that the public wants more tender and for the meat to cook faster so they've added the flavors to it.

Me, I can taste the difference 100% of the time, because they're not using "salt" as much as chemicals in their solution. And I can taste that chemical effect.

And like it was said, if they inject it 18%, then 18% of your cost is for that solution.

Do a side by side test. If you can't taste the difference, no worries.

Most common comment is "these ribs taste like ham"...that's the solution that caused that.

Ray, That sounds good. Enjoy the warm weather. Jim

Smokin has got it right on. If you want to buy a pre marinated pork loin that is one thing. You have some idea of what they are going to do, especially if you don't have the smarts to marinate it yourself and control everything including the salt.

I'm just too cheap to pay for water with some unknown junk it in, when basically for free I can get all the water I want or need.

So what that means if you by something for $1.50 per pound that is injected with 18% water, salt and MSG for instance, you can pay $1.83 for the non injected meat and still come out the same. Provided you have no problem with some corporation giving you chemicals and drugs without your permission.

I buy most of my meat in cryovacs at Cash and Carry when it is on sale. Normally I get more variety, for less cost than at either Sam's or Costco and none of their meat is injected other than turkeys which are impossible to get any other way, but that is another issue.

What chemicals specifically are they using? All I ever see is salt and sometimes herbs and spices. Yes, I am plenty smart enough to brine or marinate my own meat. I am not for or against it, I am just trying to analyze it. The biggest difference I can see is that I do not feel the need to marinate meat that has been in saltwater for a few days, just rub and cook.

Some meat I really like "pre-pumped" others I dont.

Boneless/skinless chicken breasts at Sams Club are pumped, and I think its a good deal. At 15 bucks for 10 pounds, if it is 10 percent water, that means I paid a $1.50 for them to brine it for me. Would anybody in here brine 9 lbs of chicken for a $1.50 ? I wouldnt.(its like 12-14% but the math for 10% is easier)

On the other hand I tried the wal mart baby backs that were pumped,,,I did not like the texture at all.

Ray,
I found whole briskets at Fairway in Worcester, Ma. for $2.29/lb. I called some other butcher shops in the area and most had them. Not sure if they're trimmed, but they're telling me 12 - 16 pounds.

PS,
Don't buy the ones at Sam's or Bj's for corned beef. I have 8# of pastrami to eat now!

I usually buy brisket at Walmart.Untrimmed and weighs between 12-16 pounds.And cost wise is best deal in town at $1.68 per pound.Just rub and let sit in fridge for 2 hours and place in smoker oven and let smoke!