Brisket for one.

[Tim Clark]

So here’s the story. My wife, Linda, is out of town for an extended sisters’ reunion. A few days ago I was in town doing food shopping for the week and I came across a a nice looking choice brisket that was marked “special today” because the expiry date was getting close. About 11 pounds and less than 20 bucks so I had to get it. But later on I realized I either had to cook it or freeze it. So, I figured, what the heck, I’ll cook it. It’ll be completely stress free. Linda’s out of town, I have no guests coming so it’ll be done when it’s done. I put it on the Weber with the SnS yesterday about 5 A.M. Then I went off to do a bunch of chores. Every couple of hours I came by to check what was going on. Put in some new charcoal about 11:30. About 1:30 it was up to about 170 so I wrapped it. Looked pretty good. I took it off at 5 P.M. I could tell it was done just by the feel of it in the foil so I didn’t even poke it. Put it in a 150 oven for 2 hours and then unwrapped it and sliced into it with my favorite knife. Man, I couldn’t believe it. The most perfect brisket I’ve ever done and I spent the whole day not paying attention to it! Of course then I realized I had no one to share it with which, to me, is really the whole point of cooking. But still…I had a great slice of point with some burnt ends along with some fresh corn pudding, slaw and pinto beans.

I’ll be eating brisket for a few days, that’s for sure with a lot for the freezer. Main thing I learned-the less you worry about it the better it’s gonna be. That along with never eat a brisket alone. Cheers!

[Jerod Broussard]

And so many people stress over a chunk of meat that merely needs to be darkened, tenderized, and rested.

Great job!!

[Tim Clark]

Thanks Jerod. Means a lot coming from the Brisket King!

[Spinaker]

And so many people stress over a chunk of meat that merely needs to be darkened, tenderized, and rested.

Great job!!

I agree, Brisket is just like anything else. Take your time but more importantly, give it time to Darken up , tenderize and rest. Thats all you need.

Tim Clark Great job on this cook, Great looking smoke ring too.

[Tim Clark]

Thanks! I was actually pretty amazed by the smoke ring. I got some pink all the way to the center on this one. Probably never be able to do it again.

[Danjohnston949]

Tim Clark, You Done Good Young Fella! 👍👍👍👍👍. Eat it All or Freeze Some it Keeps Well!
Eat Well and Prosper! From Fargo ND, Dan

[Tim Clark]

Thanks Dan!

BTW, I'm 2 years older than you...

[CandySueQ]

Don't freeze it in a big mass! Slice it, chunk it up and small packages will make reheating so much easier. Good looking hunk o' beef!

[Tim Clark]

Thanks! I've got one more big dinner to go. Probably eat more than I did last night. Then, vacuum packing the rest in nice portions for trail work this summer. I think my sandwiches will be the envy of the crew.

[RonB]

Congrats - it looks really good.

[Tim Clark]

Thanks, RonB. Yeah, it is pretty good. But kind of like getting a hole in one when you're playing the course by yourself. (That actually happen to me once. Not a long hole, but still...)

[fuzzydaddy]

Beautiful brisket!

[Tim Clark]

Thanks fuzzydaddy!

[Huskee]

DUDE! This needs to go on ABC's Facebook page and the Disqus comments! NICE WORK!

[Tim Clark]

I'd be glad to send it over. Thanks Huskee!

[gcdmd]

Is that knife an old Sabatier carbon steel?

[Tim Clark]

Yes it is. 13 1/2 inch blade. I got it for a couple bucks at a flea market about 30 years ago and brought it back to life. It's amazingly light for the size and you can get it as sharp as a double edge razor. I love this knife.

[gcdmd]

That's a great bargain, Tim. Congratulations. I have some old Sabatier's as well but none that impressive.

George

[ribeyeguy]

It proves a point. I'm one of the worst when it comes to "fiddling around". I'm constantly checking the grate temp, meat temp, coal levels, wood levels etc and wind up adjusting things a few times every hour. 9 times out of 10 a less than perfect product is my own fault due to paying too much attention to what's going on.

Your post drove the nail home, I'm now only going to cook when I have a whole lot of other things to do, mow the lawn, run errands, etc., anything to keep me away from the coals.

[Tim Clark]

I'm the same. Probably even worse than you. Problem is, as soon as you have any kind of pressure, like people expecting to be fed, the calm goes out the window. I made notes to myself so I can remember how good this brisket turned out. But I'll probably wind up forgetting everything next time I cook for a hungry crowd.

[Spinaker]

Tim Clark One way that I increase my smoke ring on my briskets, I place the brisket in the freezer for a few hours before the cook, uncovered on a cutting board. As Dr. Blonder explained to us, Cold meat sucks up more smoke. I have noticed a big difference when I do this simple step before smoking a brisket, ribs or shoulders. Just a little trick I use, give it a try sometime.

[Spinaker]

I would say the difference is nearly cosmetic. The smoke ring is much more pronounced. The overall smoke flavor is not any smokier, that I notice anyway.

[Tim Clark]

That's interesting. What about cooking time? Any idea how much extra to allow?

[Spinaker]

Tim Clark Maybe an extra half hour. The extra cook time is not noticeable. I mean with briskets, your already at plus or minus 1 or 1.5 hours on most cooks. They never get done at exactly 8 hours or however long is suggested. But i suppose its maybe a 1/2 hr later.