So this is my third brisket on the BGE and my first ever getting smoke rings. I used lump with a few chunks of post oak and hickory. I smoked for abt 13 hours at 235-240. Seasoning was coarse black pepper and kosher salt. How does it look guys be brutally honest. It tasted great but did seem a little dryer than normal and not sure if I trimmed off too much fat or when I wrapped in pink butcher paper was too loose because I did find at the point that there was a big gap. Critique away please
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Looks mighty fine to me. -
Way to go, that brisket looks fine! Now for some of the finer details:
The BGE creates a very moist smoking environment. You may want to run it at 275 deg F instead, this will give you better bark.
As for the dryness: don't worry about the trimming, I trim mine pretty hard. The butcher's paper needs to be wrapped tight, as you already indicate. You could also try aluminum foil. One is not necessarily better than the other, it all depends on quality of meat, which cooker, which temp et.c. Try both and see what works for you.
A factor to consider when wrapping is when: beginning of the stall, or just after? I wrap mine after, since I want maximum bark. But if you wrap earlier you will have a more moist brisket.
I use foil as it gets me the result I want on my smoker. But I often smoke briskets in a commercial setting where I have my timing (max 9 hours).
What type of brisket (prime, choice, select) are you using? You don't need to buy prime, you can smoke a great choice brisket too, but skip the select ones.
Good job, just keep cranking out a few and you'll be a pro in no time!Comment
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Good job!Comment
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Looks good! I could eat that every day!Comment
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Looks mighty tasty to me!
Nice Job!Comment
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Looks great! How did you season it?Comment
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That looks great! I believe its been said here to "only slice the amount you need and at the time you need it" as the meat will get dried once sliced.Comment
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I don't have a BGE, but when I smoke on my Weber Summit Charcoal Grill (WSCGC) in kamado mode, it initially took me a few tries to get a nice smoke ring as well. I found that I had to add more wood: 5 to 6 chunks, 4 to 6 oz each, to get a nice smoke ring (I had initially started out with 3 chunks of wood).
I tuck the wood in so that it was pretty evenly spaced. In my WSCGC I light the coals at one side so it slowly burns across to the other side during the cook. By spacing the wood, it does not all burn at the same time. I always load it with ~160 charcoal briquettes for a long cook. Your ratio of charcoal to wood might be different.
I think your brisket looks delicious! When I make brisket, I only slice off enough for the first servings all around. That helps keep the juices in the flat until we go back for seconds. Just a thought.
Kathryn
Edited to add: HawkerXP and I were posting at about the same time--hence the double tip from him and me of slicing off only what you need. We must have been channeling each other.
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To repeat - don't slice more than you can serve at once. When I serve a brisket, I call the guests to my "carving station" and slice for each person. When someone wants more, I slice it for them.Comment
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Looks pretty darn good to me. I can't add to anything already said, the tips are spot on.Comment
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I think it looks very tasty. I didn't see a mention of letting it rest in a faux cambro of some sort so not sure if that was taken into account. The only other thing I can mention is to make sure to cut each slice against the grain of the meat. As you get to the point the grain takes a turn and goes a different direction. Believe me, I wish my first brisket looked as good as yours. Nice job!Comment
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The only critique I have is that it looks like you are being too hard on yourself.
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I like to leave a generous 1/2" fat cap on the flat section, to me it's not as crucial on the point, but I typically will leave it there too. I remove a lot of the fat between the flat and point, because I find it's just not needed, but It certainly wouldn't hurt to leave it there if you're not as trim happy as I am. I also agree that it looks better than my first brisket did!Comment
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Looks great - especially if it is only your 3rd attempt! As others have said - maybe take the temp up on the Kamado for better bark, also consider wrapping later (for better bark) or in foil (for more moist brisket), and do not pre-slice that much brisket, unless people are going to eat it all at once. Brisket dries out when sliced more than just about anything else I have ever cooked, very quickly after slicing, and you only want to slice it as needed, and across/against the grain, which changes in the point versus the flat.
On just now getting a smoke ring on your kamado, I think this has to do with the efficiency of the kamado style cookers. They are so efficient that they need little fuel, and have low airflow. So there just is not as much smoke flow across the meat to give it the level of smoke ring you will see on other type cookers (offset for example). There's always a tradeoff with any cooker, and you pay for ease of temp control and high efficiency with reduced smoke in this case. Try fzxdoc 's advice above and use more wood chunks next time, along with a fire that burns across the charcoal bed.Comment
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