danmdevries wrote:I bought my very first brisket this morning. Got a little 8 pounder for $4/lb.
I'd stopped yesterday and they only had one in the case, a 25 pounder for $100. I've never cooked a brisket, I don't want $100 on the line for my first time. $32 is more reasonable.
I'm not sure how I'm going to do it. When I bought it I was thinking smoke for a few hours then vac seal and sous vide to finish. But I have a tub of wagyu tallow from south chicago packing so I could smoke, slather it up with beef tallow and wrap in butcher paper and finish on the smoker. I need to do a little more reading before I decide on how I'm going to do it.
My brother in law did a brisket last year and it was dry, in line with my experience with beef in the past. I've never had bbq restaurant brisket either so I don't really know where it needs to be.
The only briskets I really have experience with is corned beef. When they're on sale in March I buy a lot and desalinate them, smoke em, and make pastrami.
Another chapter into my exploration of eating beef. Always thought I hated beef. Turns out I just hated beef that was cooked wrong. The only beef I really enjoy is italian beef sammiches, ground beef things, and crock pot chuck roasts. But I've been expanding my horizons and trying new things and I've learned that a lot of the beef cuts I said I don't like turns out I just don't like them cooked the way I've had them cooked. Skirt and flank steaks not long ago in the sous vide were fantastic. I remember my uncle grilling them on vacation as a child and they were even tougher than the sirloin steaks my dad would make every sunday that were grey all the way through.
My childhood experience with beef is what drove me to chicken and pork. I always though meat had to be cooked to a uniform color throughout. You can make some damn good chicken and pork with a uniform color throughout. I just never really tried to get back into beef until my wife got me a sous vide stick. Haven't tried real steaks yet. I do want to.
You can Youtube different recipes on how to prepare and smoke a Brisket. I always put the Brisket in a roaster pan with a couple cans of Coke A Cola and fridge it over night or at least 12 hours. I prep it first with an infuser mix Injected into the meat itself. White Garlic Butter infused. once it's ready for the smoker, I'll do a rub over it entirely (rub from a local Meat Market, but Farm and Homes have been stocking allot of this lately) I'll randomly pick one to try? I set the smoker up and keep a continues temperature at 250 and smoke 6-8 hours checking on it every hour or so and give it a flip... also keep your juices from the roaster adding the rub in with in a squirt bottle on checking dash it down... IE: give it some squirts!!! LOL Woods used for the smoker are your preferences as well. I prefer Mesquite or Hickory (these woods give it an extra Bite) 25 Lbs. is allot of Brisket.. cook time will depend on your smoker as well? use a meat thermometer stuff it in the center while it smokes and move it on roll overs Good Luck!!!
