Please help!!

check out Smokins Brisket 101's on the cookshack website.
Have you checked out the posts at the top of the brisket forum? Lots of great advice there and many answers to your questions are there.
If this is for a big event or special occasion, recommend you do a practice run first to work out the kinks.
let us know how it goes.

Thank you!

I've been to Brisket 101_ it is good. Would you consider cooking time on total weight or each piece weight?

I can muddle through this but as long as the smoke will be, will it be best to foil? Is 225 the best temp or lower? I've had a tough time getting to the zone - 190-200 degrees

I don't have the AmeriQ, but if I did, I'd cook at 240* with the point on the top grate and the flat the next one below it. Prolly take about 1.25hrs per pound.

If you get done early, put it in foil then put it in your oven with the oven off. It will be good for 3 hrs or so there.

Temp "could" be around 200-203*, but smokin' taught us to use the probe by inserting it into the thickest part of the flat, you want it to feel like it's going into room temp butter.

Good luck!

Smoked my first brisket a couple days ago. It was a 16lb'er smoked in my old SM55. Left it whole, and mostly untrimmed. Gave it a quick rub with salt, pepper and garlic then put the whole thing into the smoker, 2nd rack from the bottom. It was too large to fit on the grill and too thick to fold under, so I just arched it up and crammed it in there thinking it would shrink and settle in after cooking a while.(I was right) It was started in a cold smoker and smoked with a few ounces of Mesquite wood @ 225*. Hit a plateau @ 180* at around 17hrs into the smoke. At 19hrs the thermometer hadn't moved and since this was a "no grade" (Select Maybe?) piece of meat, I was afraid it was going too long and might turn out dry so I decided to foil it. Added some rich beef broth to the package, sealed it up well and put it back in the smoker. Turned the temp up to about 235* Meat hit 203* at about 22 hrs. Took it out, wrapped it in an old blanket and placed in a cooler for about 3 more hrs.
It turned out tender and flavorful. Gave some to the neighbor, she said she had worked at a place that served brisket, but mine was the best she ever had. (Made me feel good, but of course she might have just wanted me to offer more brisket! Anyway, Stop worrying and start smok'in. If this no grade piece of meat can come out good on my first attempt, I'm sure you'll do fine.

Brisket is one of those "Magical" pieces of beef. People say that it is the hardest to get right. I think Smokin has a video on trimming Briskets, I know that Franklin has one, Trim your brisket as close as you can to what they do. Pick your rub. These are everywhere from salt and pepper to wild and crazy. Put the rubbed brisket in a large ziplock bag, and let it sit over night in the fridge. That 16 pound Brisket looks like it won't fit on the rack, but with a little scrunching, and bending it will fit. I put them in cold fat side up in a cold smoker. and set the temp at 180. I use Hickory, or mix of woods. I use a remote read thermometer, and when I don't see smoke out of the vent, I add more wood until the internal temperature of the brisket hits 140 degrees. I bump the temp up on the smoker to 250 degrees. Once the Brisket hits 190 degrees internal temp, I start probing it with a skewer. When the skewer goes in like it would in warm butter, it is done. I foil it, and stick it in a pre warmed cooler for several hours. I plan on a 24 hour cook with 29 hours in the smoker and 4 hours rest. I am sure I could do this all in less time, but it works for me, and I haven't had any complaints.

Mike, Ive done pretty much the same thing, which I've posted here before. The low temp overnight with a small(ish) increase the next day until done, total 24 hours (or even more) is what finally got me to love my brisket. Not too much time on even a 6 lb flat. The last few hours do not need to be foiled, and the result for me is great!
Glad to see someone else has had success that way.

Jay 1924: I hit on this method many years ago. I went through the pan with liquid in it, and foil the top. to spraying the brisket with apple juice every hour. This just the simplest and best way I have found to do Brisket. I would like to try the Franklin method, but can't find small rolls of the butcher paper.

quote:

Originally posted by Idaho Mike:
Jay 1924: I hit on this method many years ago. I went through the pan with liquid in it, and foil the top. to spraying the brisket with apple juice every hour. This just the simplest and best way I have found to do Brisket. I would like to try the Franklin method, but can't find small rolls of the butcher paper.

You can order small rolls off of AMAZON. It's the same stuff Franklin uses. I like it and its cheaper than foil. They have 18", 24", & ?30". The 24" is good for me. I will definitely buy a big roll next time.

If you use the Franklin method of wrapping with butcher paper, just remember to get the UNCOATED butcher paper - you don't want that plastic coating on the paper.
I use Franklin's method. What I have found to give me the best results though in the FTC (Foil-Towel-Cooler) rest for at least 1-hour or more after removal from smoker.