Finally had a chance to do that flat

Maybe you were just in the "stall"? I've had brisket show a slight decline in temp around that range. My experience says don't open it, just wait. My flats usually come out a little dry too, so I try to keep them a little under 200 and foil immediately for a while until serving. I bet Cal or Tom will chime in here.

You have a tough cut to be assured of great finished product.I'm certainly no expert on flats.We have cooked a bunch for cater/vend,because less labor.I have attempted more than I like to admit for contests.

I've cooked with and against really good cooks that acquire large[8-10 lb ] C.A.B. flats.Sometimes they can hit great and other times not.Most of them have given up using them for comps.

The small flats that are often available at 3-4 lbs -in non brisket country are typically what the butcher trims out of large pieces.They are good for the nice elderly ladies to pot roast with vegetables until falling apart and then make a nice brown gravy.They make a nice Sunday afternoon dinner and then a nice leftover meal for the hostess lady.My grandmother made some great ones and I still love them.

They seek out the flat that resembles round steak/London broil and has little waste.Even if they are labeled "choice" they are often "bottom" choice.Large old dairy cows can provide the "flat like" cuts for these meals.


Also,depending how many you have cooked and what your feel for "like butter" is,like Jay says"they could be undercooked".

I have been taught that sometimes you might have to take them above 205degrees and then hot box them for 4 hrs and they may rise to 212.

A comp cook often likes large flats,even off their packers,because it gives them more area to select that six to eight slices of better quality to present to the judges.

You usually wind up with the finished quality that you start with.
I am amazed how much better brisket cook I became,when I cooked top quality packers all the time.

If that cut is all you are able to get,there are some techniques to at least help you out.

We have discussed them at length and maybe you could try a couple that way.

Keep trying and you will get better.We all seem to.

I have made a couple on my pellet grill, and they got wrapped usually put in a pan with a bit of liquid and foiled. they came out decently and I was happy with them, I just wanted to do one in the smokette, never made one in it. Figured with the humidity in the smokette I would have no need to wrap. It did get to 207° before dropping back to 203° when I took it off

I am nowhere the expert Tom is, however the few flats I have smoked, I foiled part way through the cook. When doing packer briskets, I never foil. But with flats, I foil part way through the cook about 160 IT or so, until the end of the cook. They just get too dry. Not enough intermuscular fat I suppose.

Soleman, I agree. I have heard that toughness means undercooked, but I wonder if tough plus dry can ever be fixed by more cooking. I suspect not, but I'm very willing to be corrected!

quote:

Originally posted by shtrdave:
internal it seemed tender the screamin fast Yellow Thermapen went in easily. But is came out a little on the dry side to me. Too it off at 4:30 9 hours was to long, did it fat side down.

Experience has taught me not to use a Thermapen for testing tender. The needle is just too sharp and thin to provide the intended result. 8" bamboo meat skewers are more reliable.

Agree with the consensus that dry flats are usually undercooked but then again flats are the red headed stepchildren of the BBQ world