Hot and fast brisket fail….

[Mark-B]

Tried hot and fast brisket yesterday. FAIL!
WSM @300-325 degrees. I used only a choice point (little over 5 lbs) from Fareway to save some money and do some testing. Wrapped in paper @172 degrees. By about 4.5 hrs the brisket reached 202 and I removed it. I poked a few places in the thickest part and felt tender. Rested about two hours in a cooler wrapped in same butcher paper. Here is the result. The flavor was on point, the internal fat had not rendered. I don’t think I cooked it long enough even though the temp was at 202. Prob should’ve gone to 210 or higher is my guess. Not many post failures, but I do as I experiment. Might try again but it’s a pricey test. I don’t have the time or patience for 11 -14 hr cooks so looking for alternatives.
Anyone do a hot and fast successfully? What did I miss if so? I know it’s done all the time, so still learning on this one. Pork butt worked great with this technique so a bit confused.

[Donw]

Just from my experience cooking to a temperature doesn’t work well with brisket. When I think it is getting close to the finish I probe until I feel the probe going into the meat like it would in soft butter.

[Huskee]

Not a fan. I've tried it, but my 'hot & fast' was 275 to 300 at a few points. It was ok but I like my 12hr ones much better. Gotta have that time for the heat to work its magic. Looks like yours just needed a touch more time at that high point. I just force myself to get up about 5am on brisket day, the ends justify the means in my opinion.

[Mark-B]

Yeah, I’m stubborn and I’m always looking for a way to speed up the process. it’s one of the main reasons I don’t do brisket often. Honestly, it’s been years. Now prices have gone sky high too. I’ll give it another shot, but next time it’s going to be a Sam’s Club prime whole packer. Pork seems to be my jam. It’s hard to screw up and love the ribs and pork butt doing hotter\faster. Pork is like the BBQ for dummies. Hmmmm, maybe that’s telling me something 😂!

[Oak Smoke]

I do hot and fast with good results. The difference being I cook on a kamado. There’s very low airflow and lots of moisture retained that make the cook different than on most other cookers. I cook at 300 F and normally am headed for the faux cambro in about 6 hours.

[LA Pork Butt]

Oddly enough I cook on a BGE and did a hot and fast Brisket which I think came out better than any of the low and slow briskets I did.

[mrteddyprincess]

I did whole packers 15 lbs and 17 lbs on Saturday at 300-325 F in about six hours and they were wonderful. Cooking on a stick burner.

[Jfrosty27]

I had something similar happen to me with a chuck roast I smoked recently. It temped at around 203 if I recall after only about five hours or so. It probed tender it seemed. I rested it in a warm oven for a couple hours before serving. Tasted great but a little tough in spots. Needed more time in the cooker for sure.

[STEbbq]

Some tips here:

[Mark-B]

Yup, been watching some videos. Watched Kosmo’s already. I’ll look at this one too. He’s one of my favs on YouTube. Seems like a genuinely good guy. Frankly, I’m amazed at the quality of videos the BBQ YouTubers put out. Has to take a lot of time. Malcom Reed is great too.

[bbqLuv]

A lot of work. but interesting.

[Andrew]

A couple of things based on the pics:

1. I don't wrap until the fat on the outside is rendered... i.e. when I poke it my finger sticks in it and there is a dent... but there are certainly other valid ways of determining when to wrap.
2. Don't ever trust temp on a brisket. The fat in those pics was not rendered. When a sharp object (thermometer probe) feels like it is going into butter AND the when you pick up the brisket and it feels like jelly i.e. all wobbly, then take it off the smoker, let it get down to about 180-190 (if you're going for a short rest) or 160 if you're going for a long rest.

[Mark-B]

Thanks, next time I'll def pay attention more to the "feel" rather than temp. I was a bit distracted the entire day with other tasks while trying to cook this too. Next time, hopefully I can focus more on the actual cook when it gets close to doneness.

[jfmorris]

I think the others are spot on when saying to cook to tenderness more than a specific temp. That said, my "hot and fast" briskets were done in the 275 to 300 range, and not at 325. I did a flat a month or two back at 275, and considering it was a choice flat, was pretty pleased with the results at 275. I also wrap in foil once the bark is set, at about 170F, to get it done faster. If I do that, I can start the cook in the morning, and be eating at dinner that same day.

[jfmorris]

Mark-B I've never bothered to buy butcher paper - I was pleased enough with the results I get using foil, and the bark seems to be pretty set by the time it reaches 170F or so before the wrap. Also, foil is available locally - I would have to get on Amazon or somewhere and order the butcher paper.

[Panhead John]

jfmorris The pink butcher paper is available in most grocery stores and a few other places as well. My local Kroger sells the Oklahoma Joe pink paper and it’s also sold at Academy. I bought some last year and didn’t have to use Amazon, forgot where I bought it locally though.

https://www.academy.com/search?searchTerm=Butcher%20paper

[Oak Smoke]

I am going to wrap mine in foil when I get ready to rest it so I just don’t bother with paper. The few times I used butcher paper I got excellent results, but it was so messy and I still had to wrap it in foil at the finish.

[MsTwiggy]

You could consider adding the oven to your toolset. Once you get your bark set you can bring it in and finish in the oven. You could do that overnight at 200 and all the fat and collagen will render. I suggest a hotel pan and either paper or foil. So start it at 4pm and bring inside by 9pm to slow cook all night, then rest/cambro in the morning and have brisket for lunch.

[bbqLuv]

Low and slow over knight, I'm too old and lazy for hot and fast.
But it is worth a try.

[Mark-B]

Funny, I'm lazy too and I figure, work smarter not harder. I don't want to babysit anything during the night while I sleep and 4-5hrs in the day for a brisket cook is enticing to me.

[bbqLuv]

Mark-B With my Traeger Timberline 850, I sleep just fine all night on an overnight cook.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uxkU-I7e63E