sous vide v. texas smoked brisket

[biggreenmatt]

ICYMI, Meathead gave two thumbs up to Chefsteps' sous vide smokerless brisket method, the particulars of which can be found here: http://www.chefsteps.com/activities/...smoked-brisket.

Speaking as the owner of a single BGE, when I have people over, often the problem is too much product and not enough grill space- especially when you want to perform different applications (smoking v. grilling, etc.). Anything that can make life easier by introducing a different off-grill method is, in my opinion, worthy of consideration (though my smoked brisket is next-level good!).

So for anyone who's tried the sv version, how does it compare to the real deal? Plusses? Minuses? Keen to hear!

[Ernest]

Plus:
Tender, served medium, time server, very beefy flavor

Minus:
less smokey flavor, not much bark.

I finished mine on the grill, using pecan wood.

[Jerod Broussard]

I would parade that around as the "Best Smoke Ring in Texas."

[biggreenmatt]

Interesting.

Did you follow the Chefsteps version, or is this just ("just!") a sv-done brisket, cooked for, what, a day or two at ~140F and then finished on the smoker? Absolutely nothing wrong with the latter- I sv big hunks of shortrib for 2-3 days at 125F, to be finished on the grill, and it comes out rare but fork tender! An amazing trick if I say so myself!

But what I'm interested in is the results of the smoked brisket substitute proposed by CS, and how it compares to a proper Texas smoked brisket.

[cosmo]

I haven't done the ChefSteps smokeless brisket yet. Just a general comment on SV that it does break down connective tissue and cook with ultimate precision. And finishing with a blowtorch, broiler, or grill does give you that maillard reaction that is more pleasant to the mouth. But smoking vs SV is just apples and oranges IMO.

That beings said, I've SV'd short ribs, strip/KC steaks, pork ribs, chickens, you name it and all have been fantastic, out of this world good.

[newintegras2k2]

I'm a huge fan of sous vide. I SV everything from ice cream bases to soup.... This looks interesting. Perhaps, to get more smoke flavor you may want to smoke the brisket first (since smoke penetrates better when food is raw versus cooked) up until 140 degrees then sous vide for 24 hours and hit it again in the oven or smoker?