Looking great! Love my Fireboard, I just think it can't be beat. And pellet smokers are awesome for getting a good night's sleep, as well!
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The story so far, zoomed in a bit to the previous ~8 hours. The first drop in the cooker temps was when I got up to check, second is when I did the foil boat, third a little while ago to check & spritz for the final time. Should be on track to pull it out around midday to start the rest.
Bark and color looking fine.
The foil boat is working its magic... check out all the liquid pooling in there, keeping the flat nice and moist. When I did this the first time, same thing happened, and after the brisket came off the cooker and into the Cambro to rest for several hours, almost every bit of that juice was reabsorbed by the meat. When I finally picked it up out of the foil, there was just a trace of liquid remaining--hoping to see that same result today. Temps are cruising along, everything remains nominal AF.
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Here's this morning's earworm... I'm sure you can guess why
(And how is it possible that this song is 35 years old?!?!?)
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Alrighty, progress report. By 1pm the brisket was probing super tender in most spots, so I pulled it for resting, for a final cook time of 16.5 hours. I finally remembered to try a little trick that occurred to me previously but that I kept forgetting to do, namely preheat the pyrex baking dish that I sit the meat in to put it in the Cambro to 200F/93C before putting the meat in it. Glass is such a great insulator that putting it in at room T means it will soak up a bunch of heat from the meat, making it cool more quickly than I want.
Working great so far: almost 2 hours into the rest, the IT has dropped from ~200F/93C to 180F/82C. For comparison, when I did my first brisket, I put it in a room temp pyrex pan and put that in the Cambro, leaving it uncovered so as not to disturb the bark (a needless concern I now know). It dropped from 200F/93C to 156F/69C in the first two hours. That one actually sat in the danger zone for well over an hour, and although we escaped any ill effects, that is to be avoided at all costs of course, and this looks like it will do the trick without having to resort to using the kitchen oven (which my lovely bride is using this afternoon).
OK, photos! Check out all the juice collecting in the boat:
After pulling it off, before covering snugly with two layers of heavy duty foil:
I'll probably need to pressure-wash the patio stone under the cookers at some point, but meanwhile, Luna-pie is on the job!
Here's a closeup on the temp profile showing the pull and rest thus far:
Next up will be the after-action. Thanks for following along
Last edited by DaveD; December 4, 2022, 02:21 PM.Comment
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Alrighty, time for the verdict: STUPENDOUS! Another contender for the very best thing we have ever put in our mouth. Despite not getting all the way to 203F, the brisket was unbelievably tender, explosively juicy, incredibly flavorful. I mean I'm running out of superlatives here. You know that old saw, "Need no teef to eat my beef"? That's exactly what this was, it basically dissolved in our mouth. Every bite, we'd keep shaking our heads in amazement, "Can you believe this???" Dunno if it's the foil boat approach, or the hours-long rest, or having excellent quality starting material, or all three, but DAYUM.
Temps had drifted down to about 165F/75C by the time we were ready to eat, and ended up resting for just under five hours all told. The brisket almost fell apart in my hands as I was struggling to lift it out of the boat, where there was still ample juice remaining.
Slicin' & servin' with sides of corn on the cob and some oven-roasted parmesan green beans prepared by my lovely bride. Pretty happy with that smoke ring.
Plated.
Sliced off a hunk from the flat to bring over to my next door neighbors, and still plenty of leftovers. Yum!!
Current status: food coma.Comment
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I haven’t tried the foil boat approach but a quality cut and a nice long rest are hugely helpful. This looks spectacular as usual DDComment
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Reading your success is motivating me to pull a packer out of the freezer! Great write-up and wow it looks delicious!👍Comment
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This was such a fun topic to follow along with, DaveD . Thank you so much for bringing us along with you.
You've sure got that Pit Boss singing your song. The brisket is perfect, and better yet, you had a great time smoking it. Win-win.
KathrynComment
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Thanks for the support everyone! Much appreciated. Next time, I want to use a brisket from the grocery store rather than the pricey Prime piece from Wild Fork, using the identical technique, to try to isolate the contribution of the meat quality. That'll probably be after the new year though.
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