Gents,

The brisket cooks on WSM I've been Googling all seem to envolve
frequent mops.

Is there a way I can get a decent brisket done without so much effort?
I know it takes at least 8 hours for a brisket and I can maybe do one
mop but no way will I sit around for such a long time watching the
smoker. I mostly do ribs and leave them for 3 hours, do the foil wrap
and come back 2 hours later. Fairly doable but what I really love is a
good brisket.

Thanks in advance,
Rob

unix wrote:

> Is there a way I can get a decent brisket done without so much effort?

Hello and welcome.

One doesn't need to mop; and from my point of view, shouldn't bother. All it
does is lengthen the cooking time, remove any rub, and keeps a decent bark
from forming. Oh, and never cook to time, cook to internal meat temperature.
You may have heard the joke, Q: How long does it take to do bbq? A: Until
the meat is done. One may estimate, based on the weight of the cut, how long
it MAY take to finish cooking, but there are any number of variables
involved. How often one opens the lid to the pit is but one of those
variables :-)

>.....I mostly do ribs and leave them for 3 hours, do the foil wrap
> and come back 2 hours later.

Good god, man, why??? Seriously, it only takes three hours to do a
succulent rib....less than that if doing babybacks. Ribs don't need to be
steamed :-)

http://www.eaglequest.com/~bbq/faq2/toc.html

--
Dave
"A human being should be able to change a diaper, plan an invasion,
butcher a hog, conn a ship, design a building, write a sonnet, balance
accounts, build a wall, set a bone, comfort the dying, take orders,
give orders, cooperate, act alone, solve equations, analyze a new
problem, pitch manure, program a computer, cook a tasty meal, fight
efficiently, die gallantly. Specialization is for insects."

On Jun 9, 8:24*am, unix > wrote:
> Gents,
>
> The brisket cooks on WSM I've been Googling all seem to envolve
> frequent mops.
>
> Is there a way I can get a decent brisket done without so much effort?

Have never mopped and they turn out fine, plenty juicy.

A "Donald Bones" bones posted this a while ago,

http://groups.google.com/group/alt.f...f4151632323a97

And have never foiled, not any other folderall foo-flam stuff. Rub it,
cook it and eat it. No saucing, no foiling, no injecting or brining
(chix and turkey excepted) for me.

On Thu, 9 Jun 2011 08:24:51 -0700 (PDT), unix wrote:

> Gents,
>
> The brisket cooks on WSM I've been Googling all seem to envolve
> frequent mops.
>
> Is there a way I can get a decent brisket done without so much effort?
> I know it takes at least 8 hours for a brisket and I can maybe do one
> mop but no way will I sit around for such a long time watching the
> smoker. I mostly do ribs and leave them for 3 hours, do the foil wrap
> and come back 2 hours later. Fairly doable but what I really love is a
> good brisket.
>
> Thanks in advance,
> Rob

There is no reason to mop hourly. You only do it if you want to. An 8
hour cook without mopping might become a 12 hour cook mopping hourly. Many
just apply a rub, cook till done, maybe mop it the last 20 minutes or so.
Or have sauce available at the table for those that want it.

I agree, mopping hourly can spoil the enjoyment of barbecuing. The thing I
am concerned with when q'ing, is maintaining the temp. I like to maintain
it around 300°. Plus or minus 20° doesn't bother me. Above or below that,
I will make adjustments. I have a thermometer outside of the WSM that I
set at 300 in the 12 o'clock position. From a distance, I can the see how
much the needle is away from the straight up position.

Once I get the temp stabled, normally the WSM stays pretty solid at the
temp I want. Then, I am free to go about tinkering around the house or
running errands that are nearby. Even take a siesta. I won't need to worry
about it.

BBQ
--
Vegetarian

An old Indian term for poor hunter...

On Jun 9, 2:12*pm, "Dave Bugg" > wrote:
> unix wrote:
> > Is there a way I can get a decent brisket done without so much effort?
>
> Hello and welcome.
>
> One doesn't need to mop; and from my point of view, shouldn't bother. All it
> does is lengthen the cooking time, remove any rub, and keeps a decent bark
> from forming. Oh, and never cook to time, cook to internal meat temperature.
> You may have heard the joke, Q: How long does it take to do bbq? A: Until
> the meat is done. One may estimate, based on the weight of the cut, how long
> it MAY take to finish cooking, but there are any number of variables
> involved. How often one opens the lid to the pit is but one of those
> variables *:-)
>
> >.....I mostly do ribs and leave them for 3 hours, do the foil wrap
> > and come back 2 hours later.
>
> Good god, man, why??? *Seriously, it only takes three hours to do a
> succulent rib....less than that if doing babybacks. Ribs don't need to be
> steamed *:-)
>
> http://www.eaglequest.com/~bbq/faq2/toc.html
>
> --
> Dave
> "A human being should be able to change a diaper, plan an invasion,
> butcher a hog, conn a ship, design a building, write a sonnet, balance
> accounts, build a wall, set a bone, comfort the dying, take orders,
> give orders, cooperate, act alone, solve equations, analyze a new
> problem, pitch manure, program a computer, cook a tasty meal, fight
> efficiently, die gallantly. Specialization is for insects."

I just started to wrap ribs a year ago after seeing youtube vid of a
guy doing it on WSM. Prior to that I could never get them so juicy and
tender and have the meat melt away from the bones.

On Thu, 9 Jun 2011 12:12:50 -0700 (PDT), unix wrote:

> On Jun 9, 2:12*pm, "Dave Bugg" > wrote:
>> unix wrote:
>>> Is there a way I can get a decent brisket done without so much effort?
>>
>> Hello and welcome.
>>
>> One doesn't need to mop; and from my point of view, shouldn't bother. All it
>> does is lengthen the cooking time, remove any rub, and keeps a decent bark
>> from forming. Oh, and never cook to time, cook to internal meat temperature.
>> You may have heard the joke, Q: How long does it take to do bbq? A: Until
>> the meat is done. One may estimate, based on the weight of the cut, how long
>> it MAY take to finish cooking, but there are any number of variables
>> involved. How often one opens the lid to the pit is but one of those
>> variables *:-)
>>
>>>.....I mostly do ribs and leave them for 3 hours, do the foil wrap
>>> and come back 2 hours later.
>>
>> Good god, man, why??? *Seriously, it only takes three hours to do a
>> succulent rib....less than that if doing babybacks. Ribs don't need to be
>> steamed *:-)
>>
>> http://www.eaglequest.com/~bbq/faq2/toc.html
>>
>> --
>> Dave
>> "A human being should be able to change a diaper, plan an invasion,
>> butcher a hog, conn a ship, design a building, write a sonnet, balance
>> accounts, build a wall, set a bone, comfort the dying, take orders,
>> give orders, cooperate, act alone, solve equations, analyze a new
>> problem, pitch manure, program a computer, cook a tasty meal, fight
>> efficiently, die gallantly. Specialization is for insects."
>
> I just started to wrap ribs a year ago after seeing youtube vid of a
> guy doing it on WSM. Prior to that I could never get them so juicy and
> tender and have the meat melt away from the bones.

Most barbecuers want some tug of the meat when eating ribs. If you pick up
the rib and the meat falls off the bone, ah, you no longer have a finger
food item...

BBQ
--
Vegetarian

An old Indian term for poor hunter...

On Thu, 9 Jun 2011 11:16:29 -0700 (PDT), tutall >
wrote:

>On Jun 9, 8:24*am, unix > wrote:
>> Gents,
>>
>> The brisket cooks on WSM I've been Googling all seem to envolve
>> frequent mops.
>>
>> Is there a way I can get a decent brisket done without so much effort?
>
>Have never mopped and they turn out fine, plenty juicy.
>
>A "Donald Bones" bones posted this a while ago,
>
>http://groups.google.com/group/alt.f...f4151632323a97
>
>And have never foiled, not any other folderall foo-flam stuff. Rub it,
>cook it and eat it. No saucing, no foiling, no injecting or brining
>(chix and turkey excepted) for me.
>
>

For beef ribs and butts, I don't even bother with a rub. The only
injection it gets is the probe from my remote meat thermometer... When
the meat is done, no sauce, just good smoked meat flavor. Works for
the wife and I, the kids love it, and the pulled pork actually got a
compliment from my mother and a request for more (that rarely happens,
I could hand her a thousand dollars cash and she would complain the
bills looked used) so why mess with a good thing?

I have to admit that if I have a beer go warm on me during the smoke,
I might open it up long enough to dump it over whatever is in the
smoker. I try not to let a good beer go warm though.

Haven't done a brisket yet, but will probably give that a bit of salt
and pepper and skip any mops or foil.

Well, can't say I never did a brisket... tried half of one in a small
brinkman smoker as my first ever smoking attempt. Didn't have a
thermometer for the smoker, and my meat thermometer was quite a bit
off. I WAY over cooked the damn thing to the point of being
un-edible. I'm taking a mulligan on that one and going to try my new
first attempt on my offset...

Anyway, good luck with the brisket. Try a few things that are
suggested, and develop your own style from it. That is what BBQ is
all about.

unix wrote:

> I just started to wrap ribs a year ago after seeing youtube vid of a
> guy doing it on WSM. Prior to that I could never get them so juicy and
> tender and have the meat melt away from the bones.

Meat melting away from the bones is a sure sign of being cooked too long.
Rib meat should have a bit of 'tug' to it. I've done thousands of slabs of
ribs, they are juicy, tender, and have caused many a sigh of contentment
from customers and family alike. Foil is not necessary, and sounds like its
making your ribs kalua-steamed, rather then bbq.

--
Dave
"A human being should be able to change a diaper, plan an invasion,
butcher a hog, conn a ship, design a building, write a sonnet, balance
accounts, build a wall, set a bone, comfort the dying, take orders,
give orders, cooperate, act alone, solve equations, analyze a new
problem, pitch manure, program a computer, cook a tasty meal, fight
efficiently, die gallantly. Specialization is for insects."

>
> There is no reason to mop hourly. You only do it if you want to. An 8
> hour cook without mopping might become a 12 hour cook mopping hourly. Many
> just apply a rub, cook till done, maybe mop it the last 20 minutes or so.
> Or have sauce available at the table for those that want it.
>
> I agree, mopping hourly can spoil the enjoyment of barbecuing. The thing I
> am concerned with when q'ing, is maintaining the temp. I like to maintain
> it around 300°. Plus or minus 20° doesn't bother me. Above or below that,
> I will make adjustments. I have a thermometer outside of the WSM that I
> set at 300 in the 12 o'clock position. From a distance, I can the see how
> much the needle is away from the straight up position.
>

We peel the membrane, rub and let sit for hours in the
fridge. We use lump and slow cook. I do not mop I only
maintain my BAC to a modest level for rib enjoyment during
cooking. (Dry ribs)

The ease of rib enjoyment.

Craig

On Thu, 09 Jun 2011 16:36:10 -0400, mike wrote:

> On Thu, 9 Jun 2011 11:16:29 -0700 (PDT), tutall >
> wrote:
>
>>On Jun 9, 8:24*am, unix > wrote:
>>> Gents,
>>>
>>> The brisket cooks on WSM I've been Googling all seem to envolve
>>> frequent mops.
>>>
>>> Is there a way I can get a decent brisket done without so much effort?
>>
>>Have never mopped and they turn out fine, plenty juicy.
>>
>>A "Donald Bones" bones posted this a while ago,
>>
>>http://groups.google.com/group/alt.f...f4151632323a97
>>
>>And have never foiled, not any other folderall foo-flam stuff. Rub it,
>>cook it and eat it. No saucing, no foiling, no injecting or brining
>>(chix and turkey excepted) for me.
>>
>>
>
> For beef ribs and butts, I don't even bother with a rub. The only
> injection it gets is the probe from my remote meat thermometer... When
> the meat is done, no sauce, just good smoked meat flavor. Works for
> the wife and I, the kids love it, and the pulled pork actually got a
> compliment from my mother and a request for more (that rarely happens,
> I could hand her a thousand dollars cash and she would complain the
> bills looked used) so why mess with a good thing?
>
> I have to admit that if I have a beer go warm on me during the smoke,
> I might open it up long enough to dump it over whatever is in the
> smoker. I try not to let a good beer go warm though.
>
> Haven't done a brisket yet, but will probably give that a bit of salt
> and pepper and skip any mops or foil.
>
> Well, can't say I never did a brisket... tried half of one in a small
> brinkman smoker as my first ever smoking attempt. Didn't have a
> thermometer for the smoker, and my meat thermometer was quite a bit
> off. I WAY over cooked the damn thing to the point of being
> un-edible. I'm taking a mulligan on that one and going to try my new
> first attempt on my offset...
>

LoL. My first was a disaster to. Wasn't un-edible, but was not a good que
either. I tried using a half brisket to. I think that was the main
problem. Really gotta get the whole "packer cut". Big Jim says it best.
Learn to cook the meat. Don't worry about rubs and sauces. Heck, he
doesn't even worry about temp that much. I've heard he will let his cooker
get up to 350° or more and not worry about it. Let it go. Cook till
done...

But then he has cooked over 1000 briskets. Me, less then 10... Experience
helps !!!!

> Anyway, good luck with the brisket. Try a few things that are
> suggested, and develop your own style from it. That is what BBQ is
> all about.

Very true. After you learn to cook the meat. You can have the best rub or
sauce in the world, but it won't do you any good if the meat is tough as
leather.

BBQ
--
Vegetarian

An old Indian term for poor hunter...

On Jun 13, 2:40*pm, bbq > wrote:
> .................................................. .............
> The only opinion I have is he doesn't know what he is talking about when
> it comes to brisket, or barbecue for that matter. *I can think of *one
> category of people that would like people to cook brisket to 160°..
> That is dentists. *................................................. ........................
>
> BBQ
> --
> Vegetarian
>
> An old Indian term for poor hunter...

As an old, live-alone, denture wearer, I lower that temp to about 220,
cook to 195, no foil wrap, takes nearly twice as long. I like to
"gummit", lol.

unix said

> It did look perfect when I cut it. My friend suggested to try it with
> Grey Poupon and it was just heavenly. Also server with Bush beans on
> a side. One guy who owns a deli told me that 180 was way too high and
> suggested next time to take it out around 160. Any opinions?

If you want pulled pork, I don't think 160 would do. I shoot for 190. I
think the guy who owns the deli is smoking more than meat. ;-)

Nice reference:
http://www.eaglequest.com/~bbq/faq/toc.html
http://www.eaglequest.com/~bbq/faq/10.html#10.1.2

> Also, I was looking at some Maverick remote thermometers for WSM
> cooks. Are they fairly good or are there better bets? (I don't really
> want to spend too much $$ but do want something that is reliable).

I love mine. [Maverick Industries ET-73]
http://www.amazon.com/Maverick-Indus...Chek-Wireless-
Thermometer/dp/B0000DIU49




--
Better living through smoking.