Sorry to start yet another thread, but the other one has devolved
somewhat.
So I pulled my first brisket off the grill about an hour ago and the
results aren't too bad. It will serve up well tomorrow as is.
It was on the grill for 5 hours - last 2.5 in foil - and as you might
imagine, is not fork tender. I pulled it because the internal temp had
hit 195 deg and I didn't want to overcook it. First one and all that,
you know.

My grill is holding a steady temp very nicely so I feel confident to
start it early tomorrow morning and not keep an eye on it until time to
wrap in foil. I've sliced it and covered it in the drippings and
rewrapped tightly in foil. I'll probably put it in the oven @ 250 deg.
tomorrow for a couple of hours before the event to try to tender it up.

I'm cooking the other one (7 lbs) tomorrow and want to achieve a more
tender result.
I'm guessing I need more cooking time, like about 4 hrs at 250 deg.
then another 4 in foil at 225 or so. Whaddaya think? Can I assume
that a lower temp like 225 will cook slower and longer resulting in
extra time before 195 deg. internal temp is achieved?

Again, sincere thanks for the many relevant replies I've received thus
far.

Mike

On 9 Sep 2005 21:04:39 -0700, "geemike" wrote:

Sorry to start yet another thread, but the other one has devolved
somewhat.
So I pulled my first brisket off the grill about an hour ago and the
results aren't too bad. It will serve up well tomorrow as is.
It was on the grill for 5 hours - last 2.5 in foil - and as you might
imagine, is not fork tender. I pulled it because the internal temp had
hit 195 deg and I didn't want to overcook it. First one and all that,
you know.

My grill is holding a steady temp very nicely so I feel confident to
start it early tomorrow morning and not keep an eye on it until time to
wrap in foil. I've sliced it and covered it in the drippings and
rewrapped tightly in foil. I'll probably put it in the oven @ 250 deg.
tomorrow for a couple of hours before the event to try to tender it up.

I'm cooking the other one (7 lbs) tomorrow and want to achieve a more
tender result.
I'm guessing I need more cooking time, like about 4 hrs at 250 deg.
then another 4 in foil at 225 or so. Whaddaya think? Can I assume
that a lower temp like 225 will cook slower and longer resulting in
extra time before 195 deg. internal temp is achieved?

Again, sincere thanks for the many relevant replies I've received thus
far.

Mike

Sorry to highjack your last thread. I didn't intend it. I won't
reply in this one, no matter what. I apologize.

Put your brisket in asap tomorrow at 212-225F and just let it go.
Leave it in foil. Hopefully you're serving around noon.

It wouldn't hurt to have a water pan in place. Water boils at 212 and
will help with the temp. It also increases humidity and will slow
drying.

The object now is to make what you have tender without drying it out.
I did this with a small tri-tip this weekend and it came out fine.

Regards,
Larry

geemike wrote:

I'm cooking the other one (7 lbs) tomorrow and want to achieve a more
tender result.
I'm guessing I need more cooking time, like about 4 hrs at 250 deg.
then another 4 in foil at 225 or so. Whaddaya think? Can I assume
that a lower temp like 225 will cook slower and longer resulting in
extra time before 195 deg. internal temp is achieved?

Congrats on your first time at bat. You definetely got on base.

I haven't found that lowering to 225 F will do as you say. I think
the next one should just be cooked longer at 250 F.

I know several people who use the fork test alone to cook brisket
and don't own a thermo or care about internal temperature. I'm not
in that camp but that tells you something.

I'd rate doneness tests in the following descending order
of importance:

1. Fork test
2. Internal temperature

and in last place:

3. Cooking time

The last one is included more for reference and really
doesn't count for much.

So, first I'd test your thermo and make sure it's not off. Dunk
it in ice water and check for 32 F. Then in boiling water and see
if it's 212 F. They don't have to be exact but they should be
within a few degrees.

That may answer the question right there as to why it read 195 F
but was not quite tender enough yet. It may also be that you
should have tried reinserting the probe to a slightly different
spot in or around center of mass. It's sometimes possible to
get off readings.

In any case when you cook the next one if it gets to your
target temp and it's still not tender enough, keep cooking
until it is. Remember, you have a bit of extra protection
against dryness because you're using foil.

--
Reg email: RegForte (at) (that free MS email service) (dot) com

Well, our street pot luck is over. We hosted 40 people on our front
yard and I was really surprised at the enthusiasm of the crowd. Waving
to each other from cars is the extent of our interaction for the most
part, so people were really glad to sit down for a couple of hours and
meet or get reaquainted.
I got big kudos for proposing the event, which meant knocking on
everyone's door, selling them on the idea and signing them up to bring
a food item to make sure we had a complete menu represented.
So about my brisket:
I learned from last night's brisket and vowed to cook today's 7 lb-er
longer. So I grilled at 250 deg for 4.5 hours with hickory wood chips
and then another 5 or so wrapped tightly in tin foil.
I verified that a fork would twist easily in it and was satisified that
it was done well enough for my needs.
I sauced the meat before serving, slicing it thinly then plattered with
last nights 5 pounder and dumped most of a bottle of Stubbs sauce over
it all, wrapped it back in foil and put in a 175 deg. oven for another
45 minutes to settle the sauce into the sliced meat.

Todays Brisket turned out really, really well and nearly everyone paid
sincere compliments to me on the result. I'm sure it wasn't on par
with what many here do, but it exceeded my own expectations and pleased
our guests. So thank you AFB for the patient advice. I'm really glad
I didn't do brisket pot roast with onion soup mix in the oven.

Best

Mike

"geemike" wrote:
Well, our street pot luck is over. We hosted 40 people on our front
yard [ . . . ]

Todays Brisket turned out really, really well and nearly everyone paid
sincere compliments to me on the result. I'm sure it wasn't on par
with what many here do, but it exceeded my own expectations and pleased
our guests. So thank you AFB for the patient advice. I'm really glad
I didn't do brisket pot roast with onion soup mix in the oven.

". . . it exceeded my own expectations and pleased our guests."

That's a damn good start!

--
Nick. Support severely wounded and disabled War on Terror Veterans and
their families:
http://saluteheroes.org/ & http://www.woundedwarriorproject.org/

Thank a Veteran and Support Our Troops. You are not forgotten. Thanks ! ! !

geemike wrote:

Todays Brisket turned out really, really well and nearly everyone paid
sincere compliments to me on the result. I'm sure it wasn't on par
with what many here do, but it exceeded my own expectations and pleased
our guests. So thank you AFB for the patient advice. I'm really glad
I didn't do brisket pot roast with onion soup mix in the oven.

Way to go Mike. Glad it worked out.

--
Reg email: RegForte (at) (that free MS email service) (dot) com

On 9 Sep 2005 21:04:39 -0700, I needed a babel fish to understand
"geemike" :

My grill is holding a steady temp very nicely so I feel confident to
start it early tomorrow morning and not keep an eye on it until time to
wrap in foil. I've sliced it and covered it in the drippings and
rewrapped tightly in foil. I'll probably put it in the oven @ 250 deg.
tomorrow for a couple of hours before the event to try to tender it up.

Mike

Want to throw a little note on personal experiences....
When I do a BBQ for a decent size group, I usually cook my Briskets
the day before and other meats the day of.
When the Brisket is finished on the smoker, I wrap it up and let it
cool some.. Then off to the fridge. I do my cutting the day of, when
the brisket is cool. Then refoil it and heat in the oven.
I have sliced it the day before, and what I felt was that the brisket
maintained its moisture better when left whole in the fridge.

Good luck on the run.
----------------------------------------
"Any sufficiently advanced technology is
indistinguishable from magic."
- Arthur C. Clarke

On 11 Sep 2005 06:21:41 GMT, I needed a babel fish to understand
:

"geemike" wrote:
Well, our street pot luck is over. We hosted 40 people on our front
yard [ . . . ]

Todays Brisket turned out really, really well and nearly everyone paid
sincere compliments to me on the result. I'm sure it wasn't on par
with what many here do, but it exceeded my own expectations and pleased
our guests. So thank you AFB for the patient advice. I'm really glad
I didn't do brisket pot roast with onion soup mix in the oven.

". . . it exceeded my own expectations and pleased our guests."

That's a damn good start!

couldn't agree more.... If you liked it and they liked it..... its
all good.
----------------------------------------
"Any sufficiently advanced technology is
indistinguishable from magic."
- Arthur C. Clarke