# Brisket rookie questions



## T_Sebastian (May 12, 2010)

I started my first brisket today. Its an 8 pounder. Smoker temp was 225 when i put it in and brisket internal temp was 51. After the first hour it was already up to 98? Also how long do you let it go before you start mopping on sauce?


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## mharris1 (May 29, 2010)

Everbody does it different. Heres how I do mine. i usually use 12-13 # briskets. cover with a good bbq rub, and smoke fat side down at 225 for about 50 minutes per pound. leave the lid shut and let it work. when time is up, wrap in a towel and put it in a clean empty ice chest for about an hour before slicing. i dont mop mine, and never wrap in foil. if you wrap it, your steaming not smoking, and might as well cook it in the oven. good luck


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## FREON (Jun 14, 2005)

T_Sebastian said:


> I started my first brisket today. Its an 8 pounder. Smoker temp was 225 when i put it in and brisket internal temp was 51. After the first hour it was already up to 98? Also how long do you let it go before you start mopping on sauce?


 If you are lookin then you aint cookin!!! Not sure if you are asking about putting on BBQ sauce or moping on a baste?


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## liftologist (Dec 8, 2007)

IMHO, I dont sauce or mop but I do foil. I'll foil when it hits 165 or 170.. I do like to pull mine at 195 and like above mentioned do let it rest at least 30 mins but an hour is better. dont take the temps to heart a lot depends on your thermometer and the brisket. Done when you can slide your thermometer in with no resistance. 
Once the meat hist 130 or so thats all the smoke it will take in. After that you are just making bark. Have fun and good eating..


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## T_Sebastian (May 12, 2010)

So jst let it go? Ive been checkin the internal temp every hour.


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## T_Sebastian (May 12, 2010)

And i put together a basting "sauce" that i found on a link, in a thread here. Along with a bunch of good ideas for rubs.


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## liftologist (Dec 8, 2007)

Give your mop/sauce a try. I am a firm believer in the Texas Crutch (foiling) but what was your last temp?


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## T_Sebastian (May 12, 2010)

Last was @ 3:45 it was 153 deg.


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## liftologist (Dec 8, 2007)

you still holdin around 225 on your pit>?


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## T_Sebastian (May 12, 2010)

Trying to but itsdown to 190.


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## T_Sebastian (May 12, 2010)

Addin more wood and open the firebax door a crack.


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## liftologist (Dec 8, 2007)

lol.. welcome to bbqing


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## liftologist (Dec 8, 2007)

remember just a thin blue gray smoke is what you want.....


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## Richard P (Jun 20, 2010)

So how did it turn out? It took me several trys to get the hang of everything when I started smoking briskets. Everyone develops their on style and technique. Just keep trying different things and you will finally settle on something that is to your liking. Welcome to the club. Cooking on the smoker is a lot of fun and good eats.


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## T_Sebastian (May 12, 2010)

It turned out ok. Flavor was pretty good, and had a decent smoke ring but was still a little tougher than i would have liked in the middle. Maybe next time i might try to inject it and leave it in for a little longer.


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## El Carnicero (Aug 27, 2009)

T_Sebastian said:


> It turned out ok. Flavor was pretty good, and had a decent smoke ring but was still a little tougher than i would have liked in the middle. Maybe next time i might try to inject it and leave it in for a little longer.


If its not for a competition I would rather always overcook it by an hour or so. Worst will happen is it will fall apart and you won't be able to slice it. I always wrap, and I threw the thermometer away along time ago. Don't over cook it if you are cooking unwrapped though. I feel mine. You need some of the heavy rubber bbq gloves, while its wrapped just reach in and grab one end of the foiled brisket and try and pick it up, if it feels soft and very flexible pull it and let it rest. I cook around 250 and a 8lb'r should take about 5hrs.


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## rjackh (Mar 16, 2011)

mharris1 said:


> Everbody does it different. Heres how I do mine. i usually use 12-13 # briskets. cover with a good bbq rub, and smoke fat side down at 225 for about 50 minutes per pound. leave the lid shut and let it work. when time is up, wrap in a towel and put it in a clean empty ice chest for about an hour before slicing. i dont mop mine, and never wrap in foil. if you wrap it, your steaming not smoking, and might as well cook it in the oven. good luck


ive always heard to put it on fat cap up, that way the fat juices stay in the meat instead of just drip off?


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## BlueWaveCapt (Jan 8, 2007)

liftologist said:


> IMHO, I dont sauce or mop but I do foil. I'll foil when it hits 165 or 170.. I do like to pull mine at 195 and like above mentioned do let it rest at least 30 mins but an hour is better. dont take the temps to heart a lot depends on your thermometer and the brisket. Done when you can slide your thermometer in with no resistance.
> Once the meat hist 130 or so thats all the smoke it will take in. After that you are just making bark. Have fun and good eating..


This is what I do too.
NO mop/basting...ever.


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## BlueWaveCapt (Jan 8, 2007)

rjackh said:


> ive always heard to put it on fat cap up, that way the fat juices stay in the meat instead of just drip off?


There is a LOT of discussion about this on every BBQ forum I've ever seen. What I've decided is that it has a lot to do with what kind of BBQ pit you're using, and personal preference. For me...fat cap down. Some say fat cap up always...then others swear by flipping it a few times thru-out the cook.


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## fangard (Apr 18, 2008)

T_Sebastian said:


> So jst let it go? Ive been checkin the internal temp every hour.


Get a wired digital thermometer and you won't have to keep checking. It will accurately give you the box temperature as well as the internal temperature.

Huge help.


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## manintheboat (Jun 1, 2004)

get a good digital thermometer. I use a thermopen now. Just make sure you are not injecting the probe into a fat vein or you will get a very high reading. If the brisket is too tough, it is undercooked. If it is falling apart, it is overcooked. The real skill is knowing when it is properly cooked. All the foil, wood choice, mops and rubs in the world cannot make up for knowing when a brisket is ready to come off of the pit. Generally, when the flat hits an internal temp of 190-195, the brisket should be done. I like to separate the flat(lean side) from the point (fatty side) and put the point back on the pit to cook longer. The flat will dry out. The point is like pork butt and has so much fat, you can hardly screw it up. 

Don't worry, briskets are a little difficult at first, but keep on trying. You will get it very quickly.


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## jwfish (May 31, 2010)

*Overnight Cookin*

Here's a question about smoking: I've found myself in many situations where I need the food to be ready early afternoon. Our family likes to eat earl on Sundays. Do any of you start your smoker before you go to bed and keep it running all night? Or just start it let it die out and continue when you wake up in the morning? :texasflag


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## manintheboat (Jun 1, 2004)

that all depends on your smoker and how long it can hold temperature. If you have a fire box pit, you most likely have to babysit the fire to keep the temperature in a workable range. How much babysitting depends on the quality of the build. I had a cheap Bandera for years and had to add fuel about every 45 minutes and could not leave the pit for long at all. Even the best pits you probably have to check in every couple of hours, so I am not sure overnight is the best bet. 

If you have a Kamado type cooker it is more possible. I have a Primo, but have yet to do an overnight cook. I am sure it would be no problem. Once I get my temperature stable, it will remain there for an easy 8 hours and more. People with Traeger pits can do overnight cooks with no problem.


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## CoastalOutfitters (Aug 20, 2004)

jwfish said:


> Here's a question about smoking: I've found myself in many situations where I need the food to be ready early afternoon. Our family likes to eat earl on Sundays. Do any of you start your smoker before you go to bed and keep it running all night? Or just start it let it die out and continue when you wake up in the morning? :texasflag


dry rub the meat the night before and wrap in saran wrap

get up the next am early and put the oven on 300

unwrap the meat and put in a pan w a foil cover

light pit as normal, but get it good and hot up front, say 300

you are power warming the meat and can knock off alot of time

don't buy briskets over 12 lbs and you can knock one out in 5-6 hrs


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## BlueWaveCapt (Jan 8, 2007)

jwfish said:


> Here's a question about smoking: I've found myself in many situations where I need the food to be ready early afternoon. Our family likes to eat earl on Sundays. Do any of you start your smoker before you go to bed and keep it running all night? Or just start it let it die out and continue when you wake up in the morning? :texasflag


Yes - I've done this often. I use a remote thermometer from Academy that will alert me if the pit temp drops below whatever I set it at (usually 220*) and I have another remote thermo to monitor the meat internal temp. Each has an alarm pager that I set on my night-stand. If it needs attention...my pager goes off and wakes me up.

With my pit (UDS) I can hold a temp in the 220-230* range for 18+ hours on ONE load of lump coal/wood chunks...so over-night cooks are no problem.


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## Bankshot (Mar 27, 2011)

I do overnight cooks alot. I 've got a great big Green Egg with a BBQ Guru for temp control. 210 degrees 18 hours. Too much smoke is my current issue. I have too control it by strategic placement of wood chunks in different parts of the charcoal based on when I think that part will burn. You have to take the outside ambient temperature into account. I definitely do not have a handle yet but I'm getting better.


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## Tate (Aug 25, 2005)

If you don't have a Maverick ET-73 remote thermometer I suggest buying one. It has 2 probes - one for the meat, one for the smoker. Best thing I ever bought. I think you can only order them online. I guess the new model is the ET-732. I can start my brisket around 3 or 4am and go to sleep. You can set alarms for both probes. If the temp drops or gets too high you will know. You want to keep it around 220 - 230 max, although Myron Mixon cooks his hot and fast and is a world champ. I have tried hot and fast, but don't get as good of results as slow and low. I have used lump charcoal, kingsford and wood. All 3 work great, but with the lump or kingsford you can use the minion method. This helps keep the heat even for a long time. You can google minion method to see what I mean. I also add some oak, mesquite and apple wood for smoke on brisket - I start fat cap up and then flip once to fat side down halfway through. The fat runs through the meat through the first half of cooking. The second half of cooking the fat cap holds the juices in so they don't all run out into your pit. If you get a good brisket you will see the fat bubbling through the top of the meat during the second half of cooking. If you see this, you know you will be eating good. I only use a custom dry rub and no mopping and basting. When the brisket hits 160 - 165 wrap it in foil, unless you are cooking a lot of briskets on a large pit. On a large pit their is more ambient moisture and reduces the need for foil. When it hits 190 - 195 take it off and let is rest for at least an hour. Put it back on over a hot fire for a few minutes to crisp up the bark. Not too long because you don't want to lose moisture.


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