Packer Brisket

[rangerone]

Sept 17, 2014 13:53:21 GMT -5 arniesbbq said:

Thanks Tom. I tried cooking briskets twice before on my crappy off-set smoker that I use to have. Always ended up finishing them in the oven. The flavor was okay but couldn't give my self credit for a total cook. I won't be happy til I do one from start to finish on my Weber Kettle.

Hey Arnie, please let everyone know what you do and how it turns out. I have not tried a brisket yet, and you are going to be my role model. 

[arniesbbq]

Too much pressure Rangerone!!! I'll try not to let you down!!

[pilfjd]

Sept 17, 2014 13:20:06 GMT -5 ncsmoker said:

I agree beef prices have gone out of sight. I bought three when they were around 2.25 a pound, now they are over $3. Just do the same thing with the smaller flat as I did with the whole packer. Depending how much of a fat cap is on it you might want to mop it. I would also lower the kettle temp to 230 instead of my 240 and smoke the whole time it is on unless you go over 10 hours.

Again if you have any questions please feel free to ask. That is what the forum is for.

Tom

$3 a pound!  I wish I lived where you are, prices here in NY are outrageous - about $6 and change/lbs.  Anyway, I didn't want to start a separate thread because I don't have many pictures, but I did a small brisket (3 lbs) yesterday.  The brisket was marinated for an hour in some unsalted beef stock a little bit of soy sauce and a touch of Worcestire sauce.  After that, it was rubbed with an equal parts mix of kosher salt and ground black pepper.  I started late, 5:30pm, and the cook went all the way to 10:30pm.  It turned out great. The SO and I were eating right off the counter as I was slicing, we didn't even make it to the table!

[arniesbbq]

So I go to the local Wally-World here in Franklin, Pa last Friday and they only had flats and points. One was 47.00; the othER 49.00. The nearest Sam's Club is over 60 miles away but I think that's my best shot at finding an "affordable" packer. Meaning one I don't have to finance. GEEZE!!!!

[rangerone]

OMG Jay, that looks AMAZING! Just look at that smoke ring!! And cooking a 3 lb. brisket in about 5 hours would be something even I should be able to pull off. I am definitely going to go and look for a small brisket. Since I have never done one before, could you tell me if that is a point or flat and is either a better choice?

[whiskeycharlie]

Jay, that is beautiful!

Allan, that's a piece of the flat; it's great for slicing for sandwiches, especially when it's warm and soft. The point is sometimes referred to as "stringy meat". When it's cooked right, it just falls apart into a pile of the best pulled beef you can imagine!

Arnie, I've found packers here in Sacramento ranging in price from $2.59/lb. to $9.99/lb. The problem with the cheap one, it smelled funky when I cut the cryopak open. The problem with the expensive one, it's $10/lb. (but it cooked up SOOO good). I'm gonna keep looking for something in the middle pricewise.

Respectfully submitted,
Whiskey Charlie

[ncsmoker]

Jay that is a great looking piece of brisket flat. My favorite piece is the point. It has a little more fat than the flat so soaks up more smoke. Unfortunately you don't normally find them for sale alone. When doing a whole packer it has to be separated from the flat as the grain runs 90 degrees from the flat. Then both are sliceable. WC the 10.00 packer was probably a choice grade packer. I have had a couple and they are delicious but oh so expensive.

Arnie I'd try to find another grocery store before making the run to Sam's I have found the meats at Walmart and Sam's are not that different in price and Sam's are sometime more expensive as they deal with the restaurant crowd. Like you my nearest Sam's is 60 miles away. So we always pack a cooler in case we do find a deal. Seldom do.

Keep on smoking guys,

Tom

[rangerone]

Hey WC, thanks for the explanation between "Flat" and "Point". I will have to go check out prices at my local stores. I have never bought brisket before, only corned beef, so I am not sure of the prices yet. Hopefully it is not too expensive.

[ncsmoker]

Jay a follow up question from yesterday. I'm sure the guy's would love to hear how you got that great smoke ring, what temp you smoked it at, type of wood and any other details you can provide to help them duplicate what you did.

Thanks in advance!!

Tom

[pilfjd]

Sept 24, 2014 9:44:34 GMT -5 ncsmoker said:

Jay a follow up question from yesterday. I'm sure the guy's would love to hear how you got that great smoke ring, what temp you smoked it at, type of wood and any other details you can provide to help them duplicate what you did.

Thanks in advance!!

Tom

Allan, I hope you can find a small flat like I did, and, yes, everyone was correct about it - I'm impressed you guys know your meat! I've seen no brisket points at the markets I frequent, but I haven't ventured out to the meat markets, yet.

Tom, sorry, I'll definitely elaborate more on the details. I didn't before because work is still pretty busy and the wife and I have been trying to prepare our yard/property for winter, cleaning up, etc.

So, as mentioned above, the brisket was a small ~3lbs flat. When I picked it out, it looked like it had some decent marbling for a flat. I'm not the injecting type but I've read that marinating/soaking works well to infuse with moisture/flavor so I decided to try and soak the meat in a mixture of beef stock (unsalted), soy sauce and Worcestire (sp?) sauce for an hour. I perforated the meat with a small pairing knife (my meat tenderizer is on order :-) on both sides and combined the "brine/marinade" and meat in a pyrex baking pan. I flipped the brisket after 30 minutes to get the other side soaking up some juice and then got the grill ready using standard procedures. :-)

After the 2nd side was done soaking for 30 minutes, I patted it dry and applied a nice coating of rub. My rub was 1/4 cup of kosher salt, 1/4 cup of freshly ground black pepper, 1 tbsp of garlic powder, 1 tbsp of onion powder, and 1 tsp of cayenne pepper. The "brine" was poured into a medium pot, brought to a boil then boiled for 5-10 minutes and then cooled slightly. I was planning to use it to baste the meat which is why I decided to boil it. At this point the grill was right around 220 so I stuck a chunk of applewood in with the coals and gave it maybe 5 minutes before putting the meat on, which was right around 5:30p.

At hour 1, 2, and 3, I would top off the water pan, baste the meat with the "brine" mixture, and add a single chunk of applewood. The temps at the grill would drop to around 210 when I added water/chunks/basted but other than that they were locked in at 235-245 during the cook - it still amazes me how easy the SN is. In a different post regarding smoke from charcoal briquettes, I suggested that I was adding coals every hour, but I was mistaken and Tom was correct that the SN didn't need that. 3:30 into the cook, it was approximately 9pm and the meat was right around 155 and we were getting hungry. The bark was nicely formed so I decided to wrap in foil thinking it would help to cook faster. Who knows if the foil accomplished that.

At hour 4, I was getting anxious that it was late. There wasn't much water left in the water pan so I just added about 10 coals and opened up the vents fully. The temps got up to 270 pretty quick and I left it that high for the last hour. At just past the 5 hour mark, the meat temp was right at 198-200. The vents were closed and the wrapped brisket was stuffed in the microwave to rest for 45 minutes - my version of a faux cambro. It was right around 11:30pm when I sliced and took that picture and saw that gorgeous smoke ring. I'm not sure how it got that way, maybe it was the "brining" or basting that helped, but I was pleasantly surprised and it tasted as good as it looked. Like I said, the wife and I ate at the counter as I sliced! :-D

The next day, I reheated the leftovers at 300 degrees in the oven and had a brisket sandwich, on plain old sliced white bread. Easily, one of the best sandwiches I've ever tasted.

[ncsmoker]

Here is a good article on the smoke ring. bbq.about.com/od/barbecuehelp/g/gsmokering.htm and what causes it. Basically it is the moisture of the meat combining with the smoke. This is helped by the water pan of the SN adding moisture to the surface of the meat.

Tom

[pilfjd]

Sept 24, 2014 13:49:07 GMT -5 ncsmoker said:

Here is a good article on the smoke ring. bbq.about.com/od/barbecuehelp/g/gsmokering.htm and what causes it. Basically it is the moisture of the meat combining with the smoke. This is helped by the water pan of the SN adding moisture to the surface of the meat.

Tom

Interesting.  I wonder if perforating the meat with the pairing knife helped smoke penetrate as well.  I found a small 2.5-3lbs USDA Choice chuck roast.  It seemed like it has decent marbling and now that I know it will take 2 hours/lbs, I know what to expect!  I'm pretty excited.  I'm going to try marinating the meat like I did with the brisket.  Hopefully work doesn't get in the way.  :-D

[whiskeycharlie]

Tom,

Both packers were USDA Choice. The $3/pounder one came from a left-coast, cut-rate, semi big-box retailer; I took it home, opened the cryopak and trimmed it myself. The $10/pounder came from my local "gourmet" grocer; the butcher cut open the cryopak and asked how I was going to prepare it. Then while I watched, he trimmed the brisket and explained what he was taking off and why. When I got it home & unwrapped it, it smelled really sweet & fresh.

PS, I asked the butcher about taking the point off and cooking it separately; he recommended against it, he was concerned the point would fall apart in the smoker without the support of the flat.

PPS, I haven't had a chance to get over to Costco, but I've heard good things about their meats and want to give them a try.

WC

[ncsmoker]

pilfjd poking the meat with a knife won't help with the smoke ring but it might help with a marinade. To be honest I wouldn't worry about it. Just marinate it over night. My study of how marinades work show that even over night they will only penetrate at most 1/4 inch on beef.

WC I was down visiting my brother in Birmingham and we went to the Costco there. The meats looked very nice. They didn't have any whole packers but some very nice looking 6lb flats. Some nice roasts and steaks and ribs and butts.

Tom