Grassfed Flat for Smoked Brisket

[TOGIE]

Don't give me your opinion on using a grassfed flat for brisket. It will be ignored.

neighbors have a flat they offered to hand off to me and we'll get together at our house and eat it this weekend. i'm just gonna use whatever i have laying around, sauces, butters, seasoning, won't be going to the store beyond normal groceries.

Give me your opinions on the best methods to produce a decent enough brisket on the smoker using a rather lean grassfed flat.

I don't make brisket, ever. I plan to season overnight, i plant to wrap at 165, i plan to add lots of good tallow/ghee/butter at the wrap. plan to pull in the 200-205 range. plan to rest it for at least an hour.

Does anyone add any sauce at the wrap?

probably won't go bothering to find a proper butcher paper for the wrap. plus, with a grassfed flat let's seal the sucker up nice and tight and i'd like to keep my steady march towards dementia by leaching aluminum into all my food, ya know?

let's start with @WildWill

 

[LuketheDog]

I've only done brisket twice, so take my advice for what it's worth. Salt it and keep it uncovered overnight in the fridge, then season it before it goes on the smoker, definitely do the wrap, I basted mine with cider vinegar once an hour or so until I wrapped it, don't add more liquid when you wrap it-there should still be plenty of juice in the meat, the smaller brisket I cooked got done a little early so I put it in a cooler full of towels and kept it hot for another hour until the rest dinner was ready.

 

[Addicting]

As long as it has a 1/4” fat cap there is no need to add anything when you wrap it. I prefer grass fed and look for the leanest I can find. Don’t ruin it by adding all that crap to the wrap.

 

[longbow51]

I think your method sounds fine; we usually do S&P for brisket, overnight in fridge.

The only thing I would add is that resting for as long as you can will improve it immensely; 3-4 hours at least.

 

[TOGIE]

Don’t ruin it by adding all that crap to the wrap.

pardon me sir, butter is not crap.

 

[MtnElk]

You're using a grass-fed flat for your brisket?!?! How dare you!












As long as it has a decent amount of fat on it, hard to go wrong in cooking it. I tend to inject beef boulin before I put it on and cook it fat side up. I also spritz with apple cider (like the real shit, crushed apples and what not) hourly, and when I wrap it, I do tinfoil also. When its done I let it rest in a cooler for about two hours, I wrap that tinfoil in a towel and throw it in my best cooler

 

[D_Walt]

How much fat is on it & how much does it weigh? I only use Lawry’s season salt and black pepper on mine, the flavor that makes your brisket is from the fat and smoke. I would not sauce it when resting, that will do nothing for the flavor, if folks want sauce they can add it on their plate.

Here’s an 18 pounder I did on Saturday:

 

[TOGIE]

i've never seen it. i'll lay hands on it with enough time to season for 12 hours then get to smoking

 

[JohnCushman]

Brisket only needs coarse salt and pepper. Don't worry about the apple juice. Smoke low and slow, like 250, with lots of smoke until 160, then wrap until about 205. I advise against aluminum foil because that will steam the meat and give it a funky texture. When it reaches temperature wrap it tight in an old towel and put it in a cooler for about 3 hours. You can get pink butcher paper for pretty cheap on Amazon. It's worth the investment. You'll have a stall for probably a couple of hours around 150, so don't panic. Just plan on putting it in the smoker a couple of hours earlier. If it has a decent fat cap, smoke it fat side up. Let it sit in the fridge overnight uncovered and seasoned. You want that dry skin to form for the smoke to stick to. You don't need to inject it with anything or add butter before you wrap it.

 

[Addicting]

View attachment 313135

pardon me sir, butter is not crap.

On a brisket it is! Might as well dip it in ketchup, heathen!

 

[WildWill]

Sounds like you got a solid plan. I gotta agree with @Addicting wouldn't add butter or tallow maybe some Au jus or beef broth. But it'll steam in its own juices without anything especially in foil. Just keep a eye at the end you don't wanna over due it. Every brisket seems to finish at a different temp almost all between 196-206 degrees more about the feel towards the end then temp. When your probe slides in with no resistance it's ready to rest.

 

[TOGIE]

When your probe slides in with no resistance it's ready to rest.

let's keep it PG please.

 

[Bigjay73]

I've only done brisket twice, so take my advice for what it's worth. Salt it and keep it uncovered overnight in the fridge, then season it before it goes on the smoker, definitely do the wrap, I basted mine with cider vinegar once an hour or so until I wrapped it, don't add more liquid when you wrap it-there should still be plenty of juice in the meat, the smaller brisket I cooked got done a little early so I put it in a cooler full of towels and kept it hot for another hour until the rest dinner was ready.

Salt removes water, not sure I'd go that route

 

[TOGIE]

Salt removes water, not sure I'd go that route

The Science of BBQ - Salt | Napoleon

There is a great debate about when one should salt meat before cooking. People get, forgive the terrible pun, rather salty about this. From professional chefs to the weekend warriors, everyone has an opinion about when to salt food. There are a number of scientific factors that come in to play...

www.napoleon.com

 

[Tiredofthebickering]

The Science of BBQ - Salt | Napoleon

There is a great debate about when one should salt meat before cooking. People get, forgive the terrible pun, rather salty about this. From professional chefs to the weekend warriors, everyone has an opinion about when to salt food. There are a number of scientific factors that come in to play...

www.napoleon.com

I'd be more concerned about the uncovered night in the fridge than the salt itself. I'd season it, throw it in a vacuum bag, and then put in the fridge overnight. Then tomorrow bring it out and let it sit uncovered on the counter for a bit before smoking.

 

[CowboyLeroy]

I'd say wrap it to start with to preserve moisture and let it finish open to put the crust on it.

 

[rustednuts]

Your rest is going to be the most important part, let it cool to 170 THEN wrap it in a towel in a cooler for several hours.

 

[WildWill]

let's keep it PG please.

I like to leave temptations for @Nick87 sorry.

 

[LuketheDog]

I'd be more concerned about the uncovered night in the fridge than the salt itself. I'd season it, throw it in a vacuum bag, and then put in the fridge overnight. Then tomorrow bring it out and let it sit uncovered on the counter for a bit before smoking.

There's no harm in leaving it uncovered for a night in the fridge, it allows the outside of the meat to dry, it forms what's called the pellicle, and the smoke will adhere more readily to it. It's standard practice for smoking fish too.

 

[LuketheDog]

Salt removes water, not sure I'd go that route

It doesn't work the way you think...

*edit, read @TOGIE's link above