Smoking Meat Questions and Discussion

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JM4CY

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Put a couple of 15 lb packers on last night around 9 pm. One is choice the other is prime. Probably took off around 2.5 lbs of tallow and fat on each. Current temps are fairly consistent on both around 165. I have a water bath in the smoker also. My typical kosher salt/Black pepper 50/50 rub on. Paid $2.98 lb on the choice and $3.38 on the prime. I needed to open some space in the freezer. This is the first time in a long time that I've done full briskets. I prefer to separate them to cut down on the amount of cook time. Just wanted to see if I could still do a full one yet.

View attachment 91351
Do you pull them at 165? What'd you smoke them at?
 

cycloner29

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Do you pull them at 165? What'd you smoke them at?

They are at 170 right now. I will foil them at 10 and then take them to around 190-200. I started the smoker at 180 for 3 hours then went to around 225. Right therm says 225 (side with the point) and the left therm is at around 200 (side with the flat). It's just hard to keep the flat from becoming dry. Will see if the wrapping will help with that. I started with the fat side up for 6 hours and then fat side down for 6 hours. Turned them fat side up at 9 am.
 
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JM4CY

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They are at 170 right now. I will foil them at 10 and then take them to around 190-200. I started the smoker at 180 for 3 hours then went to around 225. Right therm says 225 (side with the point) and the left therm is at around 200 (side with the flat). It's just hard to keep the flat from becoming dry. Will see if the wrapping will help with that. I started with the fat side up for 6 hours and then fat side down for 6 hours. Turned them fat side up at 9 am.
Thanks. Brisket is the one thing I actually haven't done yet so I am making a little log of different peoples tips.
 
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cycloner29

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Probably will pull them off in the next 30 minutes. Temp probe goes in like butter. Sitting at around 180 right now. Didn't wrap due to phone calls. Once you get past the stall point the temp does seem to go up rather quickly. Into the cooler wrapped in foil and a towel. These things will stay hot for hours.
 

NickTheGreat

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Probably will pull them off in the next 30 minutes. Temp probe goes in like butter. Sitting at around 180 right now. Didn't wrap due to phone calls. Once you get past the stall point the temp does seem to go up rather quickly. Into the cooler wrapped in foil and a towel. These things will stay hot for hours.

That's what I do. I don't really take brisket (or butts) to a specific temp, just feel.

Looking forward to finished pictures! :cool:
 

scyclonekid

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Haven’t done brisket yet on my pit boss, will this fall at some point. Also does it freeze well after being smoked? I’m assuming it does, but never done one.
 

BACyclone

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Haven’t done brisket yet on my pit boss, will this fall at some point. Also does it freeze well after being smoked? I’m assuming it does, but never done one.

Absolutely. Pro tip is try to reserve some of the juices/fat from the cook and pour some into your bag of brisket. Even do this if you are just throwing it in the fridge or the freezer.

The only downside is you have to be careful on the reheat process to not dry it out. That's why I recommend saving juices -- you might also sprinkle in a touch of water -- and reheat in a 350F oven in a closed dish to allow your meat to sneak back up to serving temp.

But even if you reheat a single serving in the microwave, when you open that dish up you'll immediately get all that smoke smell and flavor from the brisket, almost as good as fresh off the smoker.
 

Gonzo

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Absolutely. Pro tip is try to reserve some of the juices/fat from the cook and pour some into your bag of brisket. Even do this if you are just throwing it in the fridge or the freezer.

The only downside is you have to be careful on the reheat process to not dry it out. That's why I recommend saving juices -- you might also sprinkle in a touch of water -- and reheat in a 350F oven in a closed dish to allow your meat to sneak back up to serving temp.

But even if you reheat a single serving in the microwave, when you open that dish up you'll immediately get all that smoke smell and flavor from the brisket, almost as good as fresh off the smoker.

This is how I reheat and it works well. I usually add a bit more than sprinkles of water to the dish before closing and putting in the oven, depending on how much I'm reheating, up to 1/4 cup.
 
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BACyclone

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Once you've done it enough, BBQ'ing to feel is much more satisfying and more times than not tastier!

For brisket especially, and maybe butts, I use the internal temp as the first guide, and go by the resistance to the probe as my final deciding factor when to pull it.

However with butts I've found that it's best to always try to smoke that baby to 206 as long as I wrap it well. I have had some odd pork butt cooks where it seems to take too long ~200F where I pull it "early" based upon feel.

Temperature is the hint, but ultimately you want the probe to feel like you're testing butter or a sheet cake. And if you're planning to slice the brisket, you might want it to be just a *bit* more firm than that.
 

Blackhawk6515

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This is how I reheat and it works well. I usually add a bit more than sprinkles of water to the dish before closing and putting in the oven, depending on how much I'm reheating, up to 1/4 cup.

I use my leftover brisket and use it in chili.
 

cycloner29

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Here is one of the two I pull off 193 on the point end and 187 on the flat end when I pulled them off at 11:30. The point end (right side of pic) is weird as you can see the grain of it goes a different direction than normal. I noticed this while prepping it.

Capture.JPG
 

ISUAgronomist

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Absolutely. Pro tip is try to reserve some of the juices/fat from the cook and pour some into your bag of brisket. Even do this if you are just throwing it in the fridge or the freezer.

The only downside is you have to be careful on the reheat process to not dry it out. That's why I recommend saving juices -- you might also sprinkle in a touch of water -- and reheat in a 350F oven in a closed dish to allow your meat to sneak back up to serving temp.

But even if you reheat a single serving in the microwave, when you open that dish up you'll immediately get all that smoke smell and flavor from the brisket, almost as good as fresh off the smoker.
Vac seal. Keep sealed and boil in pot to reheat. No drying out or nasty microwave flavor.
 

scyclonekid

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So I watched the mad scientist BBQ on brisket and he spreads smoked Wagyu tallow on his. Anyone here done that?
 

JM4CY

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Get on that, expensive, but once you get it down to exactly how you like brisket, it's so rewarding. I never really get brisket anymore if I go out for BBQ because it doesn't compare.
Im confident this will be the case. I’m for whatever reason a little nervous. It’s my last smoking frontier.
 

JP4CY

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Get on that, expensive, but once you get it down to exactly how you like brisket, it's so rewarding. I never really get brisket anymore if I go out for BBQ because it doesn't compare.
Brisket seems pricey because of the size.
You'll lose some fat from a packer from trimming and cooking but when you break it out to price per pound it's not too bad. Granted not what it used to be our what pulled pork can cost.
 
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