COSTCO.. Brisket found.. If it worth buying??

Flats or packers?

These were packers,, they did have flats there also which were huge,,, but the whole briskets were vacuumed sealed while the flats were packaged in that typical foam plate/plastic wrap,,,

Never smoked a packer this size, so it would be a learning experience for me. I'm one that believes the more you smoke the better you will get, so I'd try one if that was all that I could find. Some regions just aren't as lucky as us folks in the Midwest.

Don't be afraid to ask the meat cutter if he has any in a box/case that are more to your liking.Tell him what your up to, he might help. That could be where the BIG flats came from that was not in the crov, just a thought.

I'm sure some of the finer brisket cooks can answer your question on those small packers?

Yeah I will have to call again,, our ask on my next visit.... But they were so cute,, lol,, perfect size for my smoker I might give it a try,,, shorter cooking time,,,,

I could never dial in on briskets 5-7 lbs. Had some nice ones; but very inconsistant results.

Found a local butcher that has nice choice (and prime) 12-14lb packers and havent gone back to Sams.

If you follow the advice in the forum and probe for when its done, the smaller brisket should still turn out pretty good.

The small cut pieces of flats are for the nice little old ladies to make their New England Boiled dinner/pot roast,etc with potatoes,carrots,onions for Sunday dinner after church.

That is their market.

All practice is good,but I'd rather go to the local walmart,take a chance on a big ugly select 18 pounder and learn to cook it.

There are a bunch of different types of cut/grain on it and you learn how to make each better,each time you cook.

It really isn't about finding a piece of meat to make a one time dinner for the spouse.
Life will probably not be like that in the brisket world.



We all hope to make the perfect researched brisket our first time out.

I'm no expert,but those that are tell me its like growing big tomato,or squash gardens.

You grow enough,cook enough,eat enough-you get better.

Someone like Smokin',can take the brisket you hand him,and make a pretty good meal.Give him 30 packers and he'll make a bunch of pretty good meals.

Not perfect,but experience let's him and a Cookshack make pretty good meals out of whatever you hand him.

Not many folks can do that by stopping at the store,buying what is on hand,and cooking Sat night dinner.

Cook what they got,you can always throw in a couple leftover bakers and make brisket hash,if it doesn't turn out perfect.

The nice thing about a CS is even our bad cooks are pretty good eatin'.

A few weeks ago one of the cable channels (Travel Channel maybe?) did a segment on Kreuz Market. The briskets they were pulling out of the pit looked small...I'd guess around 8 lbs. cooked. Kreuz sells a LOT of BBQ so perhaps they favor smaller briskets so as to increase output.

$3.15 is pricey for Ch packers. Were they a buck a pound cheaper, I'd but 1 or 2 and give em a go.

Well Smart&Final has larger whole packers from 8-12+lbs at only 1.99/lb,,, but its USDA Select,,, I think I will do the smaller Choice meat and practice my rub and injections and cooking procedure (fat up/fat down/wrap or not,,,etc....)

The smaller ones are easier for me and would not go to waste,, since the WAF (wife acceptance factor) is already at a low...she hates smoked meat,,, lol

There is a stock number that some of those restarants use that is a "nose off" packer.

Maybe it is a thicker cut,without as much point?

They may also do a lot of shoulder clod,which the pix show?

One of my better packers was a 14lb select brisket, just cause they label them choice,select doesn't mean much.

I'd use one of them big select with some of that injection and LEARN how to cook briskets, but that was what I have been taught by the members of this forum.

It will freeze and reheat easy. Might try making burnt ends out of the point...they're to die for around this part of the country and you can cook like you want.Have you ever split the point and flat?

quote:

Originally posted by JAEJW1:
Well Smart&Final has larger whole packers from 8-12+lbs at only 1.99/lb,,, but its USDA Select,,,

Don't get yourself hung out to dry over the Choice vs Select issue. 75% of the Choice grade beef sold in large chain/box stores is only marginally "better" than Select. Look for the clues that suggest a good brisket...white fat, thick flat muscle, nice streaks of intramuscular fat on the underside.

USDA graders are rolling hundreds of sides per day and probably get no more then a second or two to judge the marbling between the 12 & 13th rib. Let YOUR eyes and hands be the judge.

Like Max says,when the" ol' peanut farmer from GA" decided to alter the grades and the basically ungraded became a level of choice,you really need to use a little experience/common sense,etc.

Depending on the "manufacturing" plant,you may open those excel choices with 3-4 slashes all the way thru the flat and then those choice??angus?? should be no roll and go to the ground beef bin with the rest of the "pounded out" old dairy bulls.

Well my next cook will probably be either next week or the week after,,, I will decide then on what I will get I will post my results,,,,

Keep in mind that the technique of slo and lo cooking is about rendering the fat and breaking down collagen.

Each bite might take the same long time,so buying tiny may not be productive.

Cooking it until done can work frying it,as in a 1/4 ich thick, bottom round steak in a hot skillet for three mins on a side.

Yes it is good and dead,but may be a little tough to pull.