What to use to slice

[DavidNorcross]

I also use a slicer often and not just for brisket. With that said there is nothing wrong with an electric knife at all if that is what you want. I have considered one a number of times.

[Skip]

I have a few knives I use for slicing. Each one serves it's own purpose. One thing to remember about a knife besides being sharp...it has to feel comfortable to you.

[realdocBBQ]

I'll second (third?) the notion it may have been a little overcooked. This has been my problem a lot of times, especially when I used to take briskets to 203-205ºF. I no longer do that. If I WERE to do that anymore... say I needed to get it done and just absolutely DIDN'T have time for a long rest - I might go right up to the 200ºF edge, then take it out and let it cool/rest open-air down to 180ºF before wrapping for a short rest. I just about absolutely positively under no real circumstances anymore recommend cutting and eating a brisket within a couple of hours of pulling it off the pit. I've just had so much better briskets when I wrap and long-hold them.

As for knives.... I've been using this Mairico one for a couple of years. It was inexpensive and works well, although at 11", there have been a couple times I would have liked it to be a bit longer. I won't buy a 12", as it's not worth it for the upgrade, but I will likely someday upgrade to a 14". This one has been quite good for me, though. I had another one before... can't remember... ahh yes, here it is. No longer sold. I don't know what happened to that one, it disappeared somewhere. Prolly left it at someone's house, or the church, or somewhere I brought food for a crowd. Gotta be more careful with my stuff.

Anyways, what I really want is something like a 14" Dalstrong slicer someday. I got a lot of 'wants'. I got a lot of 'needs' too, so I guess at the moment the 'wants' are on the 'wish' list. lol

[DaveD]

In addition to the need for high sharpness that others have mentioned, in my experience the length of the knife is also very important. A typical chef's knife is just too short. Being able to cut through the entire breadth of the piece is key, whether it's brisket or anything else, IMO. Welcome to the forum!

[stevenschwartz]

Thanks so much to all. I'm going to give both the Mercer and my electric knife a shot on future tries. Perhaps I even cooked it oo long? In general if the meat is tender my gut feeling is it can;t be wrong, but do any of you real pros out there think it can be too much of a good thing? I took it up to about 201-202 and then let it rest in cooler for about 3 hours. I also find rested brisket is a much happier beast than fresh off the smoker. Perhaps next time I will take off under 200 (thermometer in the point - I was not able to find a good place in the flat, and TBH I rather doubt after 17 hours there was any temp variation in a smoker at about 220.)

TIA,

Steve

[LA Pork Butt]

I think it all personal preference. As long as you are happy all is fine. You don’t have to please anyone, but you and your guest. I am sure you please your guests, but like many of us we keep raising the standard.

[realdocBBQ]

Yes, even a couple of degrees can make the difference between good slices and crumbly meat. Also, if you wrapped it right off the cooker and threw it in the cooler, it could have risen a few more degrees. It's all about practice... practice, practice, practice. Refine your method. Play around with it. Experiment. For ME, I've found pulling at no more than 195ºF, and a LOOOOOONG hold (like 15 hours) at 150ºFish leads to the best I've ever made. Multiple times. Just my experiences.

[JCBBQ]

Some great recommendations, but I’ve got a stupid question: by any chance did you continue slicing the point the same direction of the flat? I didn’t know to cut it perpendicular to the flat slices and shredded my first couple of points.

[Redwng]

I also use the one Ram posted from Amazon. I will touch it up on my Chef's Choice gently before cutting a brisket.

[DTro]

I was gifted the a knife like PGH_RAM posted above but mine has a faux pas wooden handle and no hollow edge. I love that knife!

[stevenschwartz]

Some great recommendations, but I’ve got a stupid question: by any chance did you continue slicing the point the same direction of the flat? I didn’t know to cut it perpendicular to the flat slices and shredded my first couple of points.

I took off the point and turned it so I was again cutting against the grain. Of course it was the point that was falling apart. Yes, it tasted the way I wanted it just not pretty. I think in the future I will follow a previous suggestion of letting it sit out for a while prior to wrapping. I wrapped and put in cooler immediately. I would bet it had at most lost a few degrees from the 201 or so 3 hours later.

Steve