Odd brisket cook time.

I thought the AmeriQue is a true set-it-and-forget-it smoker/cooker. The brisket might have been done at 8 am had you not had it turned down to 200* for 6+ hours. Without sounding too smart, (probably too late) I think you should use the smoker as it is intended, set-it-and-forget-it. You turned it back up to 225* at 5 am. It might have been to 190* by 10 am had it been on 225* all night. Make sense?

Disclaimer: I do not have an AmeriQue, nor do I have any idea what it is like to cook in one.

Main thang: brisket is good enough for chili or beans.

Hi GLH,

I think your right.
Should have left it at 225.
Maybe 200 was to low and thats why some parts were too tender to cut and others stringy.

Thank you,
Brian E.

Let's consider that a brisket is the sorriest piece of meat around,with the most contradictions.

This is why it is cooked in many sanctioned contests,along with the "worthwhile" meats.

Like GLH,I've not cooked on an AQ.

If there were no probe/electrical problems ,like GLH said,leaving it at 225º should have brought it in on time.

Yes,I tend to vary cook temps,to assist my scheduling.

You don't mention size of brisket,and if it was Certified Angus Beef marketing program,or simply Angus beef.

CAB's would be from the 8% of beef that includes prime,and hopefully the upper third of choice.

It would be from a less than 30 month old steer,greater than 51% black,with no drop ear,or hump genetics.

Angus could be from a 3/8 Angus mother/cow and a dairy bull,and be 20 years old.

The grading would still be somewhat helpful.

At 225º, a four hour plateau would not be uncommon,and another around 183º-187º could last a couple of hours.

I'm assuming you cut the flat pendicular to its grain and turn the point to cut perpendicular to its grain.

Falling apart/overcooked can happen in the loose part of the flat,under the point.

The stringy could be slightly wrong cut angle,or undercooked in that area.

Briskets can have a mind of their own.

Hi Tom,

Thank you for the info
Yes I did try to vary the cook time to my schedule.
Weight of brisket unknow I bought a case.
Six briskets to the Case weight was 74 pounds.
I will check the label on the box later today for Certified.
This was my regular meat supply.
Sound like CAB'S would be beter than Angus?
It seemed that it was over cooked on one end and the other under cooked.
This was the first time not cooking with a full smoker.
What do you look for when chosing a brisket?

Thank you,
Brian E.

Well,I've been seeing these TV ads about "happy cows" from California, so that may be the answer.

I'm no expert,but we like full cut,untrimmed packers.

We try to cook choice,or better.

We like around 15 lbs.

This is a good narrative,that I like from a fine comp cook,that also cooks on a CS 160.Darcy's Indirect Cooked Brisket

Hi Tom,

Thank you

yessir