So I got a bonus from work and decided to celebrate by staying up all night with beer and a brisket. Got a Prime Brisket from Costco at 14.5 lbs and bought Pecan Chunks which I've never tried on meat. I started what I thought was early enough and eventually put the brisket at 9:30 pm to have ready for 1pm lunch the next day. I got into a zone and I think I over trimmed the brisket, took out most of the deckle but didn't quite separate the point from the flat.
Wife is already shaking her head...
So I rubbed with fresh ground pepper and salt 50/50. Did I over trim it? What do you think? There's 1/4-1/8 of the fat cap on the bottom not pictured.
All was going very well from my end...until I found out I didn't look at the forecast for the weather. We had about 48 hours of rain coming in Chicagoland area starting at midnight. Ugh Oh. I don't want water getting in the smoker and I wanted to stay out there for a bit and clean my brain with some peace and quiet all the while smelling some smokey goodness. Fear not.
I found some things in the garage and I made myself a makeshift tent. It wasn't windy, so the 22.5 WSM book beautifully between 225-250 with only one time I had to get up at 4:30 in the morning to stir the coals. It ran at 240 the rest of the smoking time with no adjustments needed. I sat out there with a 12 pack from 9:30-2am, listened to the pitter patter of the rain, drank beer, smelled the amazing pecan and brisket concoction, and most importantly took in the quiet.
The next morning, my wife wakes me up after feeding our 18 month old son and asks me how many beers I had last night and at what point did I think it was a good idea to make our neighbors think Jed Clampett moved in? I'm from KY originally and she's from Chicago, so she constantly jokes with me about this.
...anyways, the brisket stalled for 5 hours at 153, was at 170 for 2 hours, and was at 190 for another 2 hours. So I didn't meet the 203 goal and had to take it off at 196, but it turned out a fantastic product nonetheless with a fantastic bark. I'm having this issue with the WSM on long cooks for butts and brisket whereas after the stall it seems to still take a ridiculous amount of time at the same temperature points (170, 183, 190). Any advice on this?
This is flat on the bottom of the pic and point cut a little thicker at the top of the plate. It was only able to rest an hour, but my wife, in-laws, and my 18 month old son all thoroughly enjoyed it saying it was one of the best things they've had. My father in law said "This is better than the prime Rib I had at Weber Grill (a downtown restaraunt in Chicago) last night." Major brownie points from all. And even though they laughed at my setup and I'm sure my neighbors are a little wary of us now. They won't be complaining when we have great cooks this summer outside in lawn chairs during good weather.
Thanks for hearing my story. Any feedback is appreciated. I think Pecan is my new favorite smoke wood for beef. It was wonderful! Next time, I'll start waaaay earlier to make sure I get it to 203 and rested with time to spare.
Wife is already shaking her head...
So I rubbed with fresh ground pepper and salt 50/50. Did I over trim it? What do you think? There's 1/4-1/8 of the fat cap on the bottom not pictured.
All was going very well from my end...until I found out I didn't look at the forecast for the weather. We had about 48 hours of rain coming in Chicagoland area starting at midnight. Ugh Oh. I don't want water getting in the smoker and I wanted to stay out there for a bit and clean my brain with some peace and quiet all the while smelling some smokey goodness. Fear not.
I found some things in the garage and I made myself a makeshift tent. It wasn't windy, so the 22.5 WSM book beautifully between 225-250 with only one time I had to get up at 4:30 in the morning to stir the coals. It ran at 240 the rest of the smoking time with no adjustments needed. I sat out there with a 12 pack from 9:30-2am, listened to the pitter patter of the rain, drank beer, smelled the amazing pecan and brisket concoction, and most importantly took in the quiet.
The next morning, my wife wakes me up after feeding our 18 month old son and asks me how many beers I had last night and at what point did I think it was a good idea to make our neighbors think Jed Clampett moved in? I'm from KY originally and she's from Chicago, so she constantly jokes with me about this.
...anyways, the brisket stalled for 5 hours at 153, was at 170 for 2 hours, and was at 190 for another 2 hours. So I didn't meet the 203 goal and had to take it off at 196, but it turned out a fantastic product nonetheless with a fantastic bark. I'm having this issue with the WSM on long cooks for butts and brisket whereas after the stall it seems to still take a ridiculous amount of time at the same temperature points (170, 183, 190). Any advice on this?
This is flat on the bottom of the pic and point cut a little thicker at the top of the plate. It was only able to rest an hour, but my wife, in-laws, and my 18 month old son all thoroughly enjoyed it saying it was one of the best things they've had. My father in law said "This is better than the prime Rib I had at Weber Grill (a downtown restaraunt in Chicago) last night." Major brownie points from all. And even though they laughed at my setup and I'm sure my neighbors are a little wary of us now. They won't be complaining when we have great cooks this summer outside in lawn chairs during good weather.
Thanks for hearing my story. Any feedback is appreciated. I think Pecan is my new favorite smoke wood for beef. It was wonderful! Next time, I'll start waaaay earlier to make sure I get it to 203 and rested with time to spare.
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