I also recommend Double checking your Pit Boss temperature in the cooking location with an independent probe. Don’t fully rely on the display. I was having trouble with cooks taking longer than they should and the meat coming out drier than it should have been, so the next time I did a few racks of spares, I placed a temperature probe on the cooking surface directly between the two racks of spares. What it revealed was that my actual temperature was approximately 50° cooler than what the built-in temperature probe was displaying. Making an adjustment to compensate for that resulted in faster cooks with much more retained moisture. This is just my personal experience.
I really appreciate you putting it out on your failures too. Not a lot of people will own up to them. I know it’s just a video, but glad you did post it. I have been watching a lot of your videos and have learned so much from them. I think these are just as important as the ones you have success with.
I’ve been making tri-tips for several decades now. I feel like I have it down. My pops is getting a little bit old and doesn’t do too well on the grill now. So the last dinner we had at his house I offered to cook a couple tri-tips. I bragged about marinating one and dry brining the other. Well I cooked them to the consistency of a hockey puck. It happens to all of us.
I had a bad cook today, and was wondering why. Saw your video and noticed I made two similar mistakes. Wrapped it too late and my brisket was a thin, I was cooking for a thicker cut. Thank you for sharing and letting us compare notes! 👍🏽
It looks like you took it directly from the smoker into the cooler. So it will keep cooking in the cooler. You should cool it first before putting it in the cooler.
I've yet to do one, but they do the same in all the videos I've watched, and they rest them for 8+ hours, so they cool down slowly. If you were to let it cool down too much it would be cold after 8+ hours.
@@_Daio_ I just made a brisket and had it rest for 12 hours. It was still warm when we eat it. Before a put it in the cooler I had it resting on the kitchen table for about 20min. So the internal temp would drop about 5-10 degrees. (I didn't measure it though) but Im guess it dropped that amount. It was perfect.
@@denmyos Sure, I don't suppose it would cool down too much in 20 mins, but as I said I've yet to do one, so I don't know what I'm talking about. I had a pit boss 850 delivered yesterday, and I'm about to go on holiday for a week, so It's still in the box, and with the British weather, it will be a few months before I get to try it out.
You nailed it bud, it was the quality of the meat and the absence of fat that got ya. Brisket flats without the point are not an easy task. It ain't hard to get that kind of result from a flat. AND YES, BARK DOES MATER!
I agree with you! I've owned a BBQ restaurant in the Midwest for almost 15 years now! The fact that there was no fat plus you were using a flat didn't help you at all! When you use a whole brisket you have a longer window to catch the right temperature! The fat in the point helps keep that brisket stay moist. I go through hundreds of pounds of brisket a day, every single day! Good luck in the future. If I could ever help with any tips in the future don't hesitate to reach out.
I don’t think being exposed in an outside cold temp helped either. Cooked in my Pit Boss in Ohio winter, every time lid is open, temp can come back up very slow. Just got my blanket, ready to put to test.
@@GoOutsideAndCook got to try out blanket yesterday evening on some chicken leg quarters! It was approximately 30 deg, and it worked great maintained temps, and recovered well when lid was opened. Definitely recommend for anyone thinking about it.
Love the fact you put " a LOSS" up there. Everyone only ever show wins, how is anyone supposed to learn if all you see are wins. I wonder what your thoughts are on putting rub on, "Chargrilling" for nice crispy burnt bark, and then wrapping? Do you think that would come out OK on the thinner cut?
You just SAVED my brisket 2022! First time smoking a brisket, it’s thin no fat. I’ll pull it off at 145 and put wrapped in oven at 180 for 2 hrs and then let rest for 2 more!!! Thank you Thank you👍🏻👍🏻👍🏻
Man THANK YOU SO MUCH for showing that NOT every Brisket cook isn't this perfect melt in your mouth brisket. Ive watched probably almost 50+ vidoes of perfectly cooked briskets the last few days. I attempted my 1st today on my Masterbuilt Gas Smoker. I followed ALL the typical rules, & i just knew it was going to be Perfect. Surprise Surprise it wasnt. I dont know exactly why, but maybe a similar reason to yours. I think my brisket hit the stall at 150f, i was waiting for 165f but that took 2.5 more hours. I also didnt let it rest long enough. I read where 45min was good enough. Huge mistake. Heart broke cook. It taste great but still its kind of dry & im oblivious to why the bark is moist & not crunchy. I wanted it to be perfect after 10+hrs work prepping & smoking its just a kick in the testes since it didnt come out perfect. Thanks for showing that they dont ALWAYS come out perfect. All these videos make it look like everything is simple, easy & the brisket should come out perfect.
My brisket also looked as thin as yours. 7.23lb Choice Prime from Publix. I felt it was way WAY overpriced which hurts even more since it didnt come out perfect. $7.99 per lb, 7.23lb, cost $57
I feel your pain Jason. Its a big investment to not turn out awesome. Also, when I spend 10+ hours on something and my wife is like "so where's this delicious brisket?" , that's another big kick in the testes. I'm starting to really like brisket chilli though that's for sure. Based on what you said about your brisket, I think you correctly identified that the rest time was an issue. I've been letting my briskets rest (in the juices) until they go down to 140 before slicing. About 2 hours. Its made a huge difference. Also, I used to feel like an early stall was making my briskets dry as well, just like you. But I've smoked a few choice briskets all the way to 180 before wrapping and they still turned out moist as long as I let them rest in the juices of the foil or butcher paper. I've also been spritzing every few hours but who knows if that really does anything. I've also smoked some wagyu briskets and you can basically cook them with a flamethrower and they will turn out perfect. So im now convinced that moist = fat. Its all about the marbling.
You might try letting it rest outside the cooler until you get close to 140. The cooler might have held it at the 203 it was at when you pulled it for a while, continuing to carryover, rather than resting...?
Seems like you also just put it from the smoker straight into box. I think if you rested it a bit let it cool down a bit then put it in the box. During resting in your case it kept on cooking.
I wonder if the inconsistent cooking temps also played a roll? Did my first brisket in a new electric smoker last weekend, tips i see are allways try to keep the heat at 220, did mine for 18 hrs and it was excellent for my first time. Opening only to baste a few times, i will wrap it next time half way through for added moisture. Again I'm just learning from everyone else and their experiences.. tks for the tips!
Definitely. Temperature is the most important component. Knowing your pit also helps because each pits cooks different. You can cook at 250-275 but if you ventured down the road of 275 make sure you’re able to do a little baby sitting 😂. Be sure it’s a brisket with a decent amount of fat. The fat helps to add moisture and flavor.
Did a flat yesterday and had good bark. Wrapped it in aluminum foil at 160. I let it go another hour and took if off and let it rest for one hour. Come out really good
People dont post their failures. This process is not exactly as formulaic as many people make it seem. The cut is key. I failed 5 times before I got it right. Thanks for the tips.
So, .. if you suspect you have an overly lean flat, then here's what you do .. First, yes, forego the bark .. wrap at 106, don't cook it much beyond 200 F. 198 F is good. Take it off and let it rest in to cooler with towels around it until it get down to about 170 - 185 F. Take it out, unwrap it and inject the flat with very warm butter or tallow .. don't cheap out on this .. get lots in there. Now re-wrap and put it back in the cooler. As the meat cools it will absorb the butter/tallow. It's finished resting before it hits 145 F but not less than 2.5 - 3 hrs. Enjoy...
I usually pull before it gets near 200° FTC for 2-3 hours without looking or opening. I noticed you had snow outside, which makes temperature control more challenging.
@@SmokeTrailsBBQ yeah... I got the custom blanket for my Traeger and I still throw a big ol' welder's blanket over mine. I make a wind break with some 2" foam panels... Great temp control in the Wisconsin winter!
Glad I wasn’t the only one 😂…on the 4th of July i made my first one and it looked just like this…my mistakes…using a pos $20 thermometer/probe set from Walmart! I did everything you did basically and after wrapping it at 166 it stalled at 193 for like 2 hrs so I used another pen thermometer and sure enough, it was past 212-214 so I hauled ass to get it off and into the cooler and it was dry af on the ends. There were some decent pieces in the middle but that was it. I had a badass bark on it tho 😂
if you took it straight off the smoker and into the cooler then you continued to cook it.. because its still high internal temp you need to let it come down to 170/160 before putting in the cooler..
Not familiar with that kind of brisket cut but it appeared to have zero intermuscular fat...I've never heard of putting beef in a brine..could use a water pan..this was a great experiment though! Enjoyed this video and appreciate youvposti it..subbed!
I think that when you put it to brine is because you are going to make pastrami, so if this was not your idea this was your first mistake. Brisket for me is just salt, garlic and Pepper and it has to do fine.
Thanks for this, I had this exact issue in my first cook a couple weeks back, didn't wrap at point of stall. Consistency looked exactly the same. I read about stalls since the cook and this video confirmed what I thought was needed to be done. Other than that it was pretty tasty and falling apart. Next one, better cut of meat (went a cheaper cut for the first time) and awareness of the stall and when to wrap. Loving the smoking learning and challenge 😁
A brisket that lean and that thin at that weight... About 210°- 225°, harder smoke and less cook time. Hard smoke it for 3 hours, wrap it for two and a half to three. LOL I have scrapped out a light brisket like this one before. The suggestion I just mentioned created absolute success. And I believe it would work no matter what smoker you have, provided you know your temperatures are accurate.
Mistakes you made: 1) You brined the meat. Big no-no. Let it sit at room temperature for 2 hours then inject it. 2)You trimmed it way to lean. Cut the fat off that won't render (real thick stuff), and leave 1/4" fat everywhere else. 3) The stall temperature is from 159DegF-162 DegF. Don't wrap it at 143DegF. When you do wrap it, add some apple cider or liquid and wrap it tight. 4) You don't need it to sit in the cooler for 3 hours. 1 hour is sufficient. 1-1/2 hrs. at the most..........Dave
Some other folks have already commented on this, but when I saw the slice bend and flake I thought it had been overcooked. Dry and crumbly = overcooked, dry and tough = undercooked. Besides cooking a thin lean flat, dropping it directly from the smoker into the cooler is probably your problem. Carryover heat will keep that thing cooking way too long. I try to get my briskets to at LEAST start cooling, preferably drop to around 190 or 180, before putting it in the cooler. A long rest at 145-190 is one of the restaurant secrets for tender juicy brisket, and if you don't have a humidified warmer it can be tricky to get at the right temperature.
I didn’t see any fat on it. A long cook and no fat. Seems about right. Cook a 17 pound one from Costco and trim very very little. 225-250 to 165IT, wrap and back on at 250f to 203 ish. I hold in oven at 170 for at least 4 hours prior to carving.
Awesome to post something like this, we all make mistakes, I think the salt brine and thickness/lack of fat on the flat is what got you, all of your methods were good. Also if that’s snow on the ground you might want to check on temp with multiple devices in different locations.
This was helpful but not sure the learning is clear. If 165 is typical wrap time, what is the decision point to wrap at 145. You did state that was the key to this but how would someone else know that was accurate for them? Appreciate this video as it’s important to see mistakes and most people just want to show how great they are with their little meat babys.
@@zenphony The Good: the flavor and tooth was amazing. color was on point. I will be posting a video on the results this week :) The bad: Took way longer than I expected. I cooked it along side a pork butt, so not sure how that may have effected cooking time. Had to finish it to 205 degrees in the oven as my guests were coming and I didn't have time to get through the stall. Lessons learned: Don't cook a brisket for a same day dinner unless you have lots of experience. Texas seasoning (S&P has a secret and I found out what it is :) ). You can reheat your brisket in an oven at 320 degrees F. covered in tinfoil until reaching a temperature of 190-200 and it will be as good as from the grill. Happy Cooking, UB
@@zenphony That's right Zenphony, Lawry's was the secret added to the S/P Texas rub. What I heard was that since Lawry's IS seasoned "SALT", it's still salt, so... lol.
When working with a lean brisket, I put it in and give it maximum smoke for about 4 hours, check the temperature, then move it to a turkey baking bag and put it in the oven to finish it. That saves the moisture and mine usually come out to be very tender and the bark doesn't make that big of a difference to me.
Great video... Thanks for sharing! 😀 Here's a tip: According to Aaron Franklin, you should let it cool down to around 180 before you put it into a cooler... else it continues to cook while in there
Personally not a big fan of the flat. Little to no intramuscular fat to help keep it moist & tender. Brining it pulls all the water out & essentially corned it & needs to then be served with some sort of liquid to lend moisture to it.
Although seeing this year later.. I’d also like to add that if you go directly from grill to cooler that a good insulated cooler will continue to cook your brisket. I’d let cool in room temp to around 180 then toss in cooler .
The first 2 times I cook my brisket they had really good bark but the first brisket looked like this brisket the second time looked better and I’ll be doing my 3rd this weekend
Doing a flat wrap at 165 f and add beef tallow makes all the difference. Also I have done foil wrap little mushy #3, butcher paper #2 but I found Butcher paper with tallow on top and put in foil pan with tallow #1 is the best for keeping bark and juice. Just my 2 cents.
I find if my earlier wrapped brisket can get internal temp over 200 and still be a bit tough to probe so I leave it going till its probing like butter regardless, this has been another half hour sometimes. It seems the earlier you wrap the higher temp the meat needs to render the fat, if I dont wrap it's done at 195 max but if the probe goes in like butter at 185 she's done.
I had the same thing happen one Christmas a couple of years ago. The prime packer came out excellent and started my in-laws love for briskets. But, the choice flat was dry.
yeah...sometimes I wish I had never let anyone taste my brisket. I definitely wish I had never let anyone taste my Kansas City Style Burnt Ends!!! Just like I wish I hadn't let my kids try my shrimp cocktail, or lobster. I really really regret letting my son taste caviar and my Johnny Walker Blue. or my Mcallan 12 or......
That's what I just did tonight, not a lot of fat, very thin... luckily I wrapped at 145, so it wasn't dry, but my smoke ring wasn't great. So I bet you are correct. Great video. I'm new to brisket... I'm from Georgia, we're more pork. 😂
Why is your brisket so thin I thought it was a skirt steak you have to cook it for the thickness you can't cook it the same way you would an actual brisket when it's so thin I almost would have just grilled it like a steak
Getting ready to grill my first brisket learning must as possible stumbled on this video and man seeing your brisket made me a little upset. So much time and effort I’d hate for this to happen to anyone. Thank you for the lesson
With a flat that thin I would recommend not putting it into the cooler right off the smoker it will carry any heat with it continuously cooking the internal temperature possibly leading to a drier brisket let the temp climb down 5-10° then cooler it for the rest of the rest period
Small briskets boil in Dr Pepper on your grill for 3 to 4 hours then wrap in butcher paper grill for 2 hours on the grill my bbq truck does really well also if you want great flavor get a can of apple juice concentrate and baste the brisket at the final stage every 15 to 20 min I’ve always been told to never inject a brisket cook fat side up but I listened to all the old timers and I’ve been really successful
Man, that's a tough looking piece of meat, no real intramuscular fat, you gave yourself a challenge. Personally, I would have wrapped and added tallow to get through the stall and just accepted "if I don't do this now, I'm going to have a hockey puck"
Thank you for the video, I agree it was just the cut of meat, didn't see alot of marbling.....had u done the same process with a better cut, it would have been better
I have tried in the past to brine flats it never worked for me. I usually cook brisket at 225 for 14 to 16 hours till 203 internal. Small flats 350 till internal 180 past the stall then wrap cook until 200 internal.
Thanks for sharing your experience with this cook. Looks like you did everything right, but that lean flat really didn't want to cooperate. You can at least make some nice hot roast beef sandwiches with those slices.
Try Smoke Trails BBQ Brisket Rub on your next brisket! You can get it here: www.amazon.com/dp/B0CBY1DB1F
I appreciate your bravery in uploading this video lol
looks like beef jerky man
🤣🤣😁!!
Just the flat is so tricky
Looks like an extra thin brisket. Good video. People learn as much more from failure than success
That's because it's only the flat..there's no point on it
I suggest a little less time since it’s a thin brisket
@@chasepatesel7118 so what’s your point ? …. (Drum roll) lol😂
Facts!
If you haven't messed up a cook then you haven't been cooking long enough. Good on you for learning and teaching others with this one.
I also recommend Double checking your Pit Boss temperature in the cooking location with an independent probe. Don’t fully rely on the display. I was having trouble with cooks taking longer than they should and the meat coming out drier than it should have been, so the next time I did a few racks of spares, I placed a temperature probe on the cooking surface directly between the two racks of spares. What it revealed was that my actual temperature was approximately 50° cooler than what the built-in temperature probe was displaying. Making an adjustment to compensate for that resulted in faster cooks with much more retained moisture. This is just my personal experience.
I really appreciate you putting it out on your failures too. Not a lot of people will own up to them. I know it’s just a video, but glad you did post it. I have been watching a lot of your videos and have learned so much from them. I think these are just as important as the ones you have success with.
I’ve been making tri-tips for several decades now. I feel like I have it down. My pops is getting a little bit old and doesn’t do too well on the grill now. So the last dinner we had at his house I offered to cook a couple tri-tips. I bragged about marinating one and dry brining the other. Well I cooked them to the consistency of a hockey puck. It happens to all of us.
I had a bad cook today, and was wondering why. Saw your video and noticed I made two similar mistakes. Wrapped it too late and my brisket was a thin, I was cooking for a thicker cut. Thank you for sharing and letting us compare notes! 👍🏽
Yup me too , trimmed too much fat off , and wrapped too late...😮
It looks like you took it directly from the smoker into the cooler.
So it will keep cooking in the cooler. You should cool it first before putting it in the cooler.
I've yet to do one, but they do the same in all the videos I've watched, and they rest them for 8+ hours, so they cool down slowly. If you were to let it cool down too much it would be cold after 8+ hours.
@@_Daio_ I just made a brisket and had it rest for 12 hours.
It was still warm when we eat it.
Before a put it in the cooler I had it resting on the kitchen table for about 20min. So the internal temp would drop about 5-10 degrees. (I didn't measure it though) but Im guess it dropped that amount.
It was perfect.
@@denmyos Sure, I don't suppose it would cool down too much in 20 mins, but as I said I've yet to do one, so I don't know what I'm talking about. I had a pit boss 850 delivered yesterday, and I'm about to go on holiday for a week, so It's still in the box, and with the British weather, it will be a few months before I get to try it out.
You nailed it bud, it was the quality of the meat and the absence of fat that got ya. Brisket flats without the point are not an easy task. It ain't hard to get that kind of result from a flat. AND YES, BARK DOES MATER!
I agree with you! I've owned a BBQ restaurant in the Midwest for almost 15 years now! The fact that there was no fat plus you were using a flat didn't help you at all! When you use a whole brisket you have a longer window to catch the right temperature! The fat in the point helps keep that brisket stay moist. I go through hundreds of pounds of brisket a day, every single day! Good luck in the future. If I could ever help with any tips in the future don't hesitate to reach out.
I don’t think being exposed in an outside cold temp helped either. Cooked in my Pit Boss in Ohio winter, every time lid is open, temp can come back up very slow. Just got my blanket, ready to put to test.
@@keithkahl8097 The blanket is going to help a lot!
@@GoOutsideAndCook got to try out blanket yesterday evening on some chicken leg quarters! It was approximately 30 deg, and it worked great maintained temps, and recovered well when lid was opened. Definitely recommend for anyone thinking about it.
That looks like flank steak not brisket.
Love the fact you put " a LOSS" up there.
Everyone only ever show wins, how is anyone supposed to learn if all you see are wins.
I wonder what your thoughts are on putting rub on, "Chargrilling" for nice crispy burnt bark, and then wrapping? Do you think that would come out OK on the thinner cut?
Hey Chris, yea could work! I think the big thing for a crappy brisket like mine was maybe wrap it early and for longer
You just SAVED my brisket 2022! First time smoking a brisket, it’s thin no fat. I’ll pull it off at 145 and put wrapped in oven at 180 for 2 hrs and then let rest for 2 more!!! Thank you Thank you👍🏻👍🏻👍🏻
Shootting brine in just before cooking, may have been a little to much.??
I never brine a brisket. Thanks for posting your fail. Not many would do this. Honesty, I like that.
Thanks!
Man THANK YOU SO MUCH for showing that NOT every Brisket cook isn't this perfect melt in your mouth brisket. Ive watched probably almost 50+ vidoes of perfectly cooked briskets the last few days. I attempted my 1st today on my Masterbuilt Gas Smoker. I followed ALL the typical rules, & i just knew it was going to be Perfect. Surprise Surprise it wasnt. I dont know exactly why, but maybe a similar reason to yours. I think my brisket hit the stall at 150f, i was waiting for 165f but that took 2.5 more hours. I also didnt let it rest long enough. I read where 45min was good enough. Huge mistake. Heart broke cook. It taste great but still its kind of dry & im oblivious to why the bark is moist & not crunchy. I wanted it to be perfect after 10+hrs work prepping & smoking its just a kick in the testes since it didnt come out perfect. Thanks for showing that they dont ALWAYS come out perfect. All these videos make it look like everything is simple, easy & the brisket should come out perfect.
My brisket also looked as thin as yours. 7.23lb Choice Prime from Publix. I felt it was way WAY overpriced which hurts even more since it didnt come out perfect. $7.99 per lb, 7.23lb, cost $57
I feel your pain Jason. Its a big investment to not turn out awesome. Also, when I spend 10+ hours on something and my wife is like "so where's this delicious brisket?" , that's another big kick in the testes. I'm starting to really like brisket chilli though that's for sure. Based on what you said about your brisket, I think you correctly identified that the rest time was an issue. I've been letting my briskets rest (in the juices) until they go down to 140 before slicing. About 2 hours. Its made a huge difference. Also, I used to feel like an early stall was making my briskets dry as well, just like you. But I've smoked a few choice briskets all the way to 180 before wrapping and they still turned out moist as long as I let them rest in the juices of the foil or butcher paper. I've also been spritzing every few hours but who knows if that really does anything. I've also smoked some wagyu briskets and you can basically cook them with a flamethrower and they will turn out perfect. So im now convinced that moist = fat. Its all about the marbling.
Sometimes separating the point and flat helps with smokers size issues.
Totally!
You might try letting it rest outside the cooler until you get close to 140. The cooler might have held it at the 203 it was at when you pulled it for a while, continuing to carryover, rather than resting...?
I can’t believe you don’t have more followers. I really like your channel. Hope it continues to grow.
Thank you Zack!
I'd be really hesitant to brine in a salt solution
A brine is a salt solution. Salt seasons the meat and holds moisture. That moisture is removed when the meat is cooked past well done, however.
Do your wrapping at whenever you notice the temperature stall ( no matter what it is ) and finish cooking. Let the meat tell you when to wrap.
Seems like you also just put it from the smoker straight into box. I think if you rested it a bit let it cool down a bit then put it in the box. During resting in your case it kept on cooking.
Getting ready to do my first brisket this video has helped learn alot thank you for sharing your failure so others can learn
I wonder if the inconsistent cooking temps also played a roll? Did my first brisket in a new electric smoker last weekend, tips i see are allways try to keep the heat at 220, did mine for 18 hrs and it was excellent for my first time. Opening only to baste a few times, i will wrap it next time half way through for added moisture. Again I'm just learning from everyone else and their experiences.. tks for the tips!
Definitely. Temperature is the most important component. Knowing your pit also helps because each pits cooks different. You can cook at 250-275 but if you ventured down the road of 275 make sure you’re able to do a little baby sitting 😂. Be sure it’s a brisket with a decent amount of fat. The fat helps to add moisture and flavor.
I did the same exact thing haha first time ever making a brisket and first time using my Traeger. Lesson learned. Expensive lesson. But, learned.
Did you burn the bottom?
You can totally wrap early and toss back on later to get the bark you want as well.
Yes!
Did a flat yesterday and had good bark. Wrapped it in aluminum foil at 160. I let it go another hour and took if off and let it rest for one hour. Come out really good
I think the moral of the story here is don’t buy thin brisket with no fat on it lol. I definitely learned something from this video.
People dont post their failures. This process is not exactly as formulaic as many people make it seem. The cut is key. I failed 5 times before I got it right. Thanks for the tips.
So, .. if you suspect you have an overly lean flat, then here's what you do .. First, yes, forego the bark .. wrap at 106, don't cook it much beyond 200 F. 198 F is good. Take it off and let it rest in to cooler with towels around it until it get down to about 170 - 185 F. Take it out, unwrap it and inject the flat with very warm butter or tallow .. don't cheap out on this .. get lots in there. Now re-wrap and put it back in the cooler. As the meat cools it will absorb the butter/tallow. It's finished resting before it hits 145 F but not less than 2.5 - 3 hrs. Enjoy...
Just got a Pitt Boss smoker and I appreciate your detailed notes
I usually pull before it gets near 200° FTC for 2-3 hours without looking or opening. I noticed you had snow outside, which makes temperature control more challenging.
Great point about the cold!
@@SmokeTrailsBBQ yeah... I got the custom blanket for my Traeger and I still throw a big ol' welder's blanket over mine. I make a wind break with some 2" foam panels... Great temp control in the Wisconsin winter!
Glad I wasn’t the only one 😂…on the 4th of July i made my first one and it looked just like this…my mistakes…using a pos $20 thermometer/probe set from Walmart! I did everything you did basically and after wrapping it at 166 it stalled at 193 for like 2 hrs so I used another pen thermometer and sure enough, it was past 212-214 so I hauled ass to get it off and into the cooler and it was dry af on the ends. There were some decent pieces in the middle but that was it. I had a badass bark on it tho 😂
There's always chilli!
@@SmokeTrailsBBQ true story lol
Getting rid of my pos thermometer! 😊 thanks
@@rosalees.5318 😂😂 did the same happen?
As a fish smoker that I am. A liquid salt brine pulls fluids from your meat and drys it. Use a dry rub and not a lot of salt
Could be!
never seen beef jerky that big before. But great video. thanks
So dry!
if you took it straight off the smoker and into the cooler then you continued to cook it.. because its still high internal temp you need to let it come down to 170/160 before putting in the cooler..
Totally agree. He continued cooking unknowingly.
Not familiar with that kind of brisket cut but it appeared to have zero intermuscular fat...I've never heard of putting beef in a brine..could use a water pan..this was a great experiment though! Enjoyed this video and appreciate youvposti it..subbed!
Also what temp did you cook at
You did beef jerkey!
Fail early, fail often. Great video.
I think that when you put it to brine is because you are going to make pastrami, so if this was not your idea this was your first mistake. Brisket for me is just salt, garlic and Pepper and it has to do fine.
Thanks for this, I had this exact issue in my first cook a couple weeks back, didn't wrap at point of stall. Consistency looked exactly the same. I read about stalls since the cook and this video confirmed what I thought was needed to be done. Other than that it was pretty tasty and falling apart. Next one, better cut of meat (went a cheaper cut for the first time) and awareness of the stall and when to wrap. Loving the smoking learning and challenge 😁
A brisket that lean and that thin at that weight... About 210°- 225°, harder smoke and less cook time. Hard smoke it for 3 hours, wrap it for two and a half to three. LOL I have scrapped out a light brisket like this one before. The suggestion I just mentioned created absolute success. And I believe it would work no matter what smoker you have, provided you know your temperatures are accurate.
Mistakes you made: 1) You brined the meat. Big no-no. Let it sit at room temperature for 2 hours then inject it. 2)You trimmed it way to lean. Cut the fat off that won't render (real thick stuff), and leave 1/4" fat everywhere else. 3) The stall temperature is from 159DegF-162 DegF. Don't wrap it at 143DegF. When you do wrap it, add some apple cider or liquid and wrap it tight. 4) You don't need it to sit in the cooler for 3 hours. 1 hour is sufficient. 1-1/2 hrs. at the most..........Dave
Good to know, im cooking a brisket flat in a couple days so i will be careful not to dry it out. Thanks for the info bro
Thank you for your excellent insights! According to my own experience, think quality is key!
I’ve heard you should unwrap and let it rest out for 15 minutes before placing in cooler.
Yep!
Does the brine not dry the brisket out? If salt draws out the natural juices would it not be better to salt just before cooking?
Try adding a pan of water in the grill so evaporating water helps to maintain moisture. It has helped me tremendously....
I made the same mistake, not wrapping soon enough, with a flat as well. Same results.
Yea meat quality is huge too
i will make sure i dont do nothing you did LOL good video man good info keep tubing my friend
Thanks you probably save my brisket I’m cooking tomorrow!
Some other folks have already commented on this, but when I saw the slice bend and flake I thought it had been overcooked. Dry and crumbly = overcooked, dry and tough = undercooked. Besides cooking a thin lean flat, dropping it directly from the smoker into the cooler is probably your problem. Carryover heat will keep that thing cooking way too long. I try to get my briskets to at LEAST start cooling, preferably drop to around 190 or 180, before putting it in the cooler. A long rest at 145-190 is one of the restaurant secrets for tender juicy brisket, and if you don't have a humidified warmer it can be tricky to get at the right temperature.
Thanks dude!
I didn’t see any fat on it. A long cook and no fat. Seems about right.
Cook a 17 pound one from Costco and trim very very little. 225-250 to 165IT, wrap and back on at 250f to 203 ish. I hold in oven at 170 for at least 4 hours prior to carving.
Yea no fat at all!
Awesome to post something like this, we all make mistakes, I think the salt brine and thickness/lack of fat on the flat is what got you, all of your methods were good. Also if that’s snow on the ground you might want to check on temp with multiple devices in different locations.
This was helpful but not sure the learning is clear. If 165 is typical wrap time, what is the decision point to wrap at 145. You did state that was the key to this but how would someone else know that was accurate for them? Appreciate this video as it’s important to see mistakes and most people just want to show how great they are with their little meat babys.
Cooking a flat right now. noticed it's stalling at around 144. Going to run and wrap it now :) Thanks for the tips
Happy Cooking,
UB
How did it go?
@@zenphony The Good: the flavor and tooth was amazing. color was on point. I will be posting a video on the results this week :)
The bad: Took way longer than I expected. I cooked it along side a pork butt, so not sure how that may have effected cooking time. Had to finish it to 205 degrees in the oven as my guests were coming and I didn't have time to get through the stall.
Lessons learned: Don't cook a brisket for a same day dinner unless you have lots of experience. Texas seasoning (S&P has a secret and I found out what it is :) ). You can reheat your brisket in an oven at 320 degrees F. covered in tinfoil until reaching a temperature of 190-200 and it will be as good as from the grill.
Happy Cooking,
UB
@@UncleBillsKitchen secret to seasoning? Lawreys? Pickle juice?
@@zenphony That's right Zenphony, Lawry's was the secret added to the S/P Texas rub. What I heard was that since Lawry's IS seasoned "SALT", it's still salt, so... lol.
@@UncleBillsKitchen Thanks Bill!
When working with a lean brisket, I put it in and give it maximum smoke for about 4 hours, check the temperature, then move it to a turkey baking bag and put it in the oven to finish it. That saves the moisture and mine usually come out to be very tender and the bark doesn't make that big of a difference to me.
You channel has really grown since I got off UA-cam. Kudos to you. 👍. Lean cuts I always foil them. Little more roast beef flavor but I like roast
It's not about wrapping time. Apparently problem was brying in a salt water. Keeping long time in salt water makes meat dry like rubber.
Great video... Thanks for sharing! 😀
Here's a tip: According to Aaron Franklin, you should let it cool down to around 180 before you put it into a cooler... else it continues to cook while in there
...12.5 hours for a 7 pound flat at 300 degrees? Woof haha.
That one in the thumbnail looks like the first brisket I smoked.
Personally not a big fan of the flat. Little to no intramuscular fat to help keep it moist & tender. Brining it pulls all the water out & essentially corned it & needs to then be served with some sort of liquid to lend moisture to it.
Holy crap. What in the hell did I just witness?😧
Although seeing this year later.. I’d also like to add that if you go directly from grill to cooler that a good insulated cooler will continue to cook your brisket. I’d let cool in room temp to around 180 then toss in cooler .
Good info
The first 2 times I cook my brisket they had really good bark but the first brisket looked like this brisket the second time looked better and I’ll be doing my 3rd this weekend
Spot on man. Fat is everything when it comes to brisket.
Cheers!
Doing a flat wrap at 165 f and add beef tallow makes all the difference. Also I have done foil wrap little mushy #3, butcher paper #2 but I found Butcher paper with tallow on top and put in foil pan with tallow #1 is the best for keeping bark and juice. Just my 2 cents.
I learned from this, but quite easy to see what went wrong
I find if my earlier wrapped brisket can get internal temp over 200 and still be a bit tough to probe so I leave it going till its probing like butter regardless, this has been another half hour sometimes. It seems the earlier you wrap the higher temp the meat needs to render the fat, if I dont wrap it's done at 195 max but if the probe goes in like butter at 185 she's done.
I had the same thing happen one Christmas a couple of years ago. The prime packer came out excellent and started my in-laws love for briskets. But, the choice flat was dry.
Yea its so dependent on grade
yeah...sometimes I wish I had never let anyone taste my brisket. I definitely wish I had never let anyone taste my Kansas City Style Burnt Ends!!! Just like I wish I hadn't let my kids try my shrimp cocktail, or lobster. I really really regret letting my son taste caviar and my Johnny Walker Blue. or my Mcallan 12 or......
Great tips,thanks for sharing 👍
That's what I just did tonight, not a lot of fat, very thin... luckily I wrapped at 145, so it wasn't dry, but my smoke ring wasn't great. So I bet you are correct. Great video. I'm new to brisket... I'm from Georgia, we're more pork. 😂
Why is your brisket so thin I thought it was a skirt steak you have to cook it for the thickness you can't cook it the same way you would an actual brisket when it's so thin I almost would have just grilled it like a steak
When ypur frozen brisket turns out better then a try hard brisket
Can you let the flat rest in your oven on low heat, I e. 170 degree? If yes when would you pull/ and for your long?
That's the flattest flat I ever seen🤣🤣, but I appreciate your vids 👌🏾👌🏾
Getting ready to grill my first brisket learning must as possible stumbled on this video and man seeing your brisket made me a little upset. So much time and effort I’d hate for this to happen to anyone.
Thank you for the lesson
With a flat that thin I would recommend not putting it into the cooler right off the smoker it will carry any heat with it continuously cooking the internal temperature possibly leading to a drier brisket let the temp climb down 5-10° then cooler it for the rest of the rest period
Small briskets boil in Dr Pepper on your grill for 3 to 4 hours then wrap in butcher paper grill for 2 hours on the grill my bbq truck does really well also if you want great flavor get a can of apple juice concentrate and baste the brisket at the final stage every 15 to 20 min I’ve always been told to never inject a brisket cook fat side up but I listened to all the old timers and I’ve been really successful
Man, that's a tough looking piece of meat, no real intramuscular fat, you gave yourself a challenge. Personally, I would have wrapped and added tallow to get through the stall and just accepted "if I don't do this now, I'm going to have a hockey puck"
My flats are always dry. Think I'll make them into corned beef. Points are always really good.
Man that looks like jerky. I would be in tears lol
“I tasted it” no cut mark or bite mark lol
Thank you for the video, I agree it was just the cut of meat, didn't see alot of marbling.....had u done the same process with a better cut, it would have been better
You did so many things wrong, this cook was doomed off the bat.
Great honest video!
Why didn't you do a full packer?
Thats just what I had.
When I saw the raw state of it I thought it was a chuck roast at first
90% flats are lean, hard to keep moist. unless you can get a fresh one from a butcher shop. or order a good prime flat
I have tried in the past to brine flats it never worked for me. I usually cook brisket at 225 for 14 to 16 hours till 203 internal. Small flats 350 till internal 180 past the stall then wrap cook until 200 internal.
Thanks for sharing your experience with this cook. Looks like you did everything right, but that lean flat really didn't want to cooperate. You can at least make some nice hot roast beef sandwiches with those slices.
Biggest mistake was using a pellet “smoker”. Salt and pepper, offset smoker, beer and time is all you need.
Amen Brother!
Agree 👍
Hahahaha! Man, I wish I watched this yesterday!
You need to let that temp come down before you put it in the cooler! You kept cooking it for the entire resting period.
Never brine a brisket. Use only salt and pepper for the rub. Cook to 170. Wrap it. Than pull it at 200 to 205. Thanks for showing the video.
Couple things...that brisket is VERY lean. Two, I don't recall anyone brining their brisket. Just my .02.
That is the strangest looking brisket ever...
Yea no fat