Just Smoked my First Ever Brisket…it was weird

[13Bravo]

Hi All, have a question for you: Have you ever heard of a full packer brisket, trimmed down to just over 11 lb get to temp in under 9 hours at 225??

Some background: Bought a full choice brisket at costco, tried my hand at separating the point/flat and trimming it down myself (that was interesting experience…I don’t think I did a horrible job but don’t think I did a good one either but survived). Had just over 11 pounds once done.

I was expecting a 16 to 20 hour smoke as I was not going to use a crutch. Put in the smoker at 7pm, both pieces rocketed up to 180 within roughly two hours…figured I did a bad job in placing the thermometers but then it seemed to flatten out and stayed that way until I went to bed a little after 1am so thought maybe it was legit and it hit the stall (i read it is possible for it to go to 180 before the stall). I woke up at 7am and my heart sank when I saw they both had temp of 210. I thought maybe again, the thermometer placement was wrong so I grabbed my instant read, opened smoker door and sure enough they both read 210! The thermometer felt like it was going through cardboard on the flat…the point wasn’t that bad but it didn’t feel like “buttah.” My temp chart showed them hitting 203 just before 4am while I was sleeping and showed the avg smoker temp as 224.9.

I made some beef broth, took them both out and put in aluminum foil pouring some broth over each and put them in a cooler for a few hours. When I took them out the point wasn’t bad, was kind of moist but not oozing juice. The flat felt and looked like cardboard (kind of tasted like cardboard too, sigh…), it was incredibly dry.

Now all that said, the burnt ends came out awesome, I was very happy with them. The next day I reheated the flat with some tallow and water, basically steaming it in a pan under a lid and it came it much moister, really enjoyed the sandwich. All is well that ends well I guess but had disappointed result for my guests on smoke day.

Is this even possible for an 11lb brisket to get to 203 in under 9 hours? I will be paying closer attention during my 2nd brisket smoke but had to ask this experienced group if you’ve ever experienced this.

Thanks in advance and sorry for the long background.


Thanks,

13Bravo
U.S.H.A.

[STEbbq]

So, yes, but that is mainly because you separated the point and flat. You were not cooking a 11 pound brisket. You were cooking probably a 7 pound flat and 4 pound point. That can easily reach temp in 9 hours. If you left them as one piece, then you might have a 15 hour cook.

[13Bravo]

Did not think of it this way but that makes sense. So for planning purposes next time when separating, based expected cook time on their individual weights?

[STEbbq]

Correct!

[13Bravo]

Thanks STE! So then I’m assuming all of my brisket smokes will be much shorter in duration!

[STEbbq]

Some thermometers will allow you to set alarms and notify your phone when the meat reaches temp too. That could be helpful for an overnight cook.

[13Bravo]

Yeah, amateur move on my part…mine has that but didn’t even think about using it, never have before, but this was my first ever overnight smoke. I’ll definitely be using it next time!

[BFlynn]

I think a good thermo-meter, or 3, is probably the most important equipment I own.

Love the Fireboard with the fan drive. It does all the things and I could (not that I have) adjust my PBC temp from my office.
Do you need a thermo-meter that fancy? Nope.
But it's nice to have. All the alarms and program for different temps for different times.

On the other end, I still use a thermopro 19. They're like $12. They do the job. I've bought a few to leave at other people's houses

[13Bravo]

That’s my exact setup BFlynn, I have a Fireboard and my instant read is a Thermopro 19! That said, I just ordered the Thermoworks ONE during their Memorial Day sale because my Thermopro started acting wonky.

[Jfrosty27]

It really depends on how thick it was. I had a small one, about 9-10 pounds trimmed, that hit 203 in about 8 hours cooking at 235 on my pellet cooker.

[13Bravo]

As the articles on this site have noted, it’s the thickness that really makes the difference but not sure how to make judgements based on thickness…are there rules of thumb? I’d imagine it can get complicated between weights and thickness (at least for simple minded guy like me)…

Also weird, according to the charts, the two pieces temps were lock step the whole way…hit 180 the same time, hit 203 the same time, hit 210 the same time….just makes the above even more confusing for me…

[TripleB]

One thing I have learned on Brisket is that taking the temperature is one of the important things to do, but the other is picking it up and feeling it. I had a brisket at 208 internal temp, but when I took it out it still felt tight. Another brisket I did was at 203 and when I took it out it jiggled like jello.

So I use temperature as an indicator, but the meat has got to jiggle before I take it out of the smoker and let it rest. FWIW.....

[HawkerXP]

Floppy in the Cryovac and Jiggly like jello when done.

[13Bravo]

Another point of note, I got the last brisket at Costco, they were sold out by the time I got there and it was pretty stiff in my opinion. But as this was my first brisket smoke, I don’t have anything to compare it to…

[Donw]

To me another indication of ready is to use my thermometer as a probe. When it slides in like its going though soft butter I know its ready.

[13Bravo]

Unfortunately, by the time I woke up, it was already overcooked and it was more like a cold but sharp knife going through cardboard…