sear in oven first?

You don't need to sear it it will get a bark becauce its going to be a long cook time.Just use a good rub I like to use a lttle brown sugar in the rub to help carmalize it.You sear it the smoke want get into the meat.OPen the door once through the cook to let some moisture out.

The concept behind searing is to create a crust that won't let the juice out. You do this because you need to cook steak and things on high heat.

If you sear, you have an opposite problem in smoking, you won't let the smoke penetrate.

Don't sear. Don't need to.

Exploding the myth of searing.....

You sear meat to start the Maillard reaction....NOT to seal juices. There is no way possible to seal juice in any piece of meat...simply much too porous. To seal in any juices, you would need to burn to a blackened crisp.

The Maillard reaction is what most of us know as carmelization....applying enough heat to draw the sugars from the meat. A clip from Cook's Illustrated explaining this...

SEARING SCIENCE
The How and Why of Searing
Our recipe for Boneless Leg of Lamb calls for searing the lamb on all sides, and on each end, prior to roasting. Why do we do this? You might think it's to "seal in the juices"--but you'd be wrong. Food scientist Harold McGee debunked this conventional wisdom in his book "On Food and Cooking" (1984) when he proved that meat loses the same amount of liquid whether it has been seared or not.

The real reason to sear meat is to obtain the best flavor by encouraging a process known as the Maillard reaction. The Maillard Reaction In the early 1900s, French chemist Louis-Camille Maillard became the first to describe the effects--and gastronomic benefits--of browning meat. When meat is exposed to direct heat, sugars react with proteins to release hundreds and
hundreds of flavor compounds. These compounds combine, break down, and ultiply,
creating deliciously intense flavors and rich brown coloration.

As long as I am exploding myths....how about "not using a fork to turn your meat". This is also false....meat is comprised of millions of INDIVIDUAL cells...not one big large water cell. So, poking several small holes will not result in any meaningful liquid loss. Many restaurants use a tenderizing instrument called a Jacard...it has many sharp pointy needles. Even using this, you can get very juicy meats.

But you still don't want to carmelize or Maillardize the brisket, I'm sure it won't let much Smoke Flavor in, you think?

I stand corrected. Always good to explode the myths. See what I get for giving a quick answer.

Then why after sear a beef loin and cooking it high temp in the oven and I pull it out and stick a therm. in it and pull it out juice shoot out?

Hey, Smokin'!

I think plenty of smoke will penetrate even after carmelizing. Now there's a good test to run, Smokin'!

When searing, you don't seal the meat, you realy just lightly singe it, which turns it dark brown in spots. Then you flip it..if grilling or pan-frying...and do the other side. This whole process takes only about 10-15 minutes...not enough time to seal out any smoke penetration.

Anyway....you just keep doing what you been doing, my friend...it's worked great for all these years!

Ricky....

Not clear on what your question is. Please re-post.

Thanks!

Stogie,

I think he might be asking about your Poke Theory. And you did forget the "meat runs away from the heat source theroy". Man, I ought to get a job at Cooks Illustrated with all of these ideas, you and me could have fun the Stogie.

quote:

Originally posted by Stogie:
[qb]
So, poking several small holes will not result in any meaningful liquid loss. Many restaurants use a tenderizing instrument called a Jacard...it has many sharp pointy needles. Even using this, you can get very juicy meats.[/qb]

Here's another test. Take two similar steaks & grill them to desired doneness. Cut one steak immediately & let the other sit for at least 10 minutes. Compare the amount of juices on the plate. I think you'll see the one cut before allowing the juices to redistribute into the meat will lose much more juice.

I know if you cut a pork tenderloin you start lossing juices until its dry. I'm just having a problem with the idea that you can't seal juices in the meat.

Ricky...

"I know if you cut a pork tenderloin you start lossing juices until its dry"

That is simply not true..cutting any meat will result in some liquid loss...however, it will not keep pouring out until the meat is dry. That would mean that every piece of meat has one large water bag and if you pierce it, all the water comes pouring out. That doesn't happen because meat is composed of millions of individual cells. Yes, those cells that are cut will bleed liquid, but the whole piece will not drain dry.

As fas as sealing in juices....just think how hard it is to contain water....it will leak out of the tiniest of holes. Therefore, to seal in juices, you would need to completely close all the tiny little holes...simply impossible to do and still have an edible piece of meat.

You are correct when you notice juices squirt out of the hole for the thermo. But, if you poke another hole in a different spot, it will also squirt out. That proves that not all the liquid is lost when poking holes in meat.

Incredible testimony. Many thanks.

And as for intowin's original question, if it's a bark you're after, you don't need to sear it to get it. After a good long smoke, you should have what you're after. Having a rub (with brown surgar) seems to help achieve that crusty crust.

Now I have to go. Stogie left a lot to think about. Mallard Reaction...Hmmmm.

Come to think of it...........

I seem to recall some Questers putting the hunk of meat under direct fire afterthe smoking session. Especially chicken. For chicken, people even use a blow torch to crisp things up.

So, you can think about a "post-smoke sear." How 'bout that? (Sounds sexy, no? [Do you sear after smoking, Dear?]))

I would not sear your brisket in the oven first. Down here in Texas we cook alot of brisket and don't sear any that I know of. If it is the bark you are after the smoker and rub will take care of that for you. The brown sugar will help in the bark buildup also. I have a great bbq rub that is available on my site. It has some brown sugar in it and I have used it to cook hundreds of briskets. Cooking up 2 cases this weekend for the Super Bowl. The link to the site is www.texasbbqrub.com. Glad you are trying that brisket cooking out as it is wonderful piece of meat. Some claim it is the hardest to smoke. Get after it and enjoy the rewards of your work.
Bill