Small Brisket advice

[jdiver]

I've got a small Brisket ready to go. Lightly rubbed it down with Famous Dave's Rib Rub. Chilling overnight in the fridge.

It's small, only 4.6#, the point end, what's that called?

So since it is rather thin compared to the monster of a full Brisket I thought to do it at a lower temp? I could always increase it later in the smoking if need be.  Was thinking normally I'd do 225, but since it's thiner maybe 200-210.

What do you think? Or would I be better off keeping the temp the 225 and just plan on it not taking as long? Was going to set the thermometer alarm for 190.

 

[DivotMaker]

It's called the "point," JD.    Two parts of a brisket - point and flat.  Personally, I'd run 225 on a point.  They can fool you on time as they shrink and get thicker.  The point has more fat in the meat than the flat, so even a 4+ pounder can take awhile.  The point is great for burnt ends!

 

[puddle jumper]

I did one just like that today,,
Marinated it overnight and cooked it for 7 hrs at 225, till the temp hit 195,then wrapped and let it rest for a hr,,
turned out good, if I had to do it again I think I would have gone to 200 or 205, its was tender and jucy but had a little bit of a roast beef feel to it , not as tender as I was looking for...but I'm hard on my cooks , the Girls loved it, 8)
That's how I did it but this is only my second shot at doing Brisket but im happy with both cooks so far,,
Good luck with it,,
PJ

 

[DivotMaker]

Good to see you again, PJ!  Been missing you around here lately!

 

[puddle jumper]

Thanks brother
Its been a busy summer,
Still smoking about once a week though...
By the way I used the injection "Texas Style" you put up on here for both of my cooks, works great..
PJ
Sorry JD ,Did not mean to hi-jack your thread, how did it turn out???
Great I hope
Oh and this is what ,Just the flat looks like...

 

[jdiver]

Not a problem PJ...
Appreciate everyone's advice. Will stick with 225...

I'll post some pics when done.

 

[jdiver]

The Brisket has been in for 1 hour now at 225. I've got an iGrill two probes. One in the thickest part, where it was cut from the Flat. And one on the other side, much thinner side.

Probes at 1 hour are reading

95f
114f

Starting temp was 42f. Isn't that too much rise in the first hour? I do see the graph is starting to flatten out, but still...

 

[Walt]

Sometimes its easier to not watch the sausage making process.  Trust the process & remove when @ the proper IT.

 

[jdiver]

That is the case, hard not to watch...

 

[Smokster]

It's small, only 4.6#, the point end, what's that called?

So since it is rather thin compared to the monster of a full Brisket I thought to do it at a lower temp?

Correct me if I am wrong, but it sounds like you have the flat end of the brisket. If it looks like the pictures posted by John (puddle jumper) in this thread, then you are smoking a flat.

 

[jdiver]

A very triangular shape cut, I'd say point...

BTW for the last couple hours the temp is hardly moving. It's at about 162 now.

 

[jdiver]

I know you all have mentioned the plateau... How long does it sit without moving? Again, my #2 is set to 225. It's been at 162 now for over 1.5 hours. Not a budge...

Is that normal? It's at 7 hours now, 4.6# brisket

 

[jdiver]

I had to pull it out of the smoker. I wrapped in heavy foil and stuck in a 250 degree oven.

I was using the iGrill for my temps. It went NUTS right after I posted the last. Said probe 1, the one I was really watching went from 162 like it was stuck at. To 275... Umm that ain't right.

Don't know if low batteries could cause that. First thought maybe just bad reading, so went close it it and broke/reestablished the bluetooth connection. Nope, 275. Actually bouncing around from 250 - 275.

So pulled it out. Checked with another instant read, said 164. Wrapped it, stuck my oven probe in it and it's now sitting in the oven.

 

[Walt]

The stall can last a couple hours & @ 1.5 to 2 hrs per lb, it could take a minimum of 6.9 hrs to 9.2 hours useing that math @ 225.

 

[jdiver]

Yum! Brisket turned out really good! Also the stuffed jalapenos I did were quite enjoyable.

 

[jdiver]

Even though had thermometer problems, had to pull it out, it came out GREAT. Very tender, could pull it apart, yet still fork it And very very juicy. As you can see it had a quite thick cap of fat. But that just pulled right off, and what was left just melted in your mouth.

No injections, no brine. Just a good light rub, and low and slow.

 

[puddle jumper]

Man it looks good to me,,
I had always heard how hard Brisket was to cook right and not get tough,, I don't think its to bad just has a learning curve like everything...
nice job...
PJ

 

[jdiver]

And this has been a great place to learn. Now what's off putting is the cost of MEAT!

I was worried as I didn't know what grade this meat was. Didn't find it indicated anywhere. Probably stamped on the piece it was cut from But what matters was the taste and texture. And that was GREAT!

 

[DivotMaker]

Nicely done, JD!  Welcome to the land of "Lazy Q!" 8)

 

[puddle jumper]

And this has been a great place to learn. Now what's off putting is the cost of MEAT!

Boy isn't that the truth, I picked a full brisket the other day, right at 50$ , wow BBQ meat is supposed to be the cheep cuts of meat...not..