Help needed with Brisket

Hi all,
I was in Sam's club this morning and happened upon a few beef briskets that were PRIME!!! I purchased a 4.81 lb'r..the nicest looking piece there (priced at $3.28/lb. It is cryovacked and good for a few days before I have to cook it. The fat cap is still on (something you don't see in the supermarkets here) and the marbling looks lovely. Here's the problem...I live in the Albany NY area and we have been having horrendous storms every day and predicted for the next 2 as well (3 inches of rain yesterday). Also, I do not have a smoker, but a nice Weber Kettle grill which I have smoked ribs, chicken etc on in the past. Since this cut requires a very low and slow heat, can I start it in the oven say around 225 degrees overnight and then finish on the grill with some natural charcoal and nice wood smoke(I have a selection of various woods)? I make a pretty good rub which I use for other meats, but this is a first for me and since it's PRIME, I don't want to ruin it.

Thank you my fellow RF'rs. Any and all advice is very much welcome.
Hope you all have a holiday weekend full of laughs, love, great food and drinks.
Linda

Most cooks believe that once the meat reaches about 140 internal temp it no longer absorbs any more smoke flavor. Therefore, I would start the brisket on the grill and finish in the oven.   pb 

it's my understanding that while the smoke ring stops forming at 140 degrees, smoke flavor will continue to be added as long as there is smoke. 

ideally i would start with smoke and finish in the oven, as you have more control in the oven, but if you can't then i don't see why you can't do the opposite.  

i don't rub beef with anything but salt and pepper, and maybe some chili powder, but that's just personal preference.  

Thanks PB and TommyEats.The problem is the weather...we are in a terrible pattern of thunderstorms, hail, lightening and torrential rain. Supposedly Sunday will be the best day of the weekend...but if I start the meat on the grill Sunday morning...(early - around 8 am) then I won't have enough time for the oven, which is why I was thinking of starting it in the oven Saturday night before bed and then finishing on the grill on Sunday. I can't really start the grill too much earlier as I live in a townhome community. I wish Mother nature would cooperate.

a 5 pound brisket at 225 should only take about 8 hours to cook to 195 or so.    you can probably just get an early start in the morning and be eating by mid- to late-afternoon.  whole briskets, which include the point and the flat, can run 12-20 pounds, and take much longer.  i'm guessing this is just the flat.  you shouldn't need to cook it overnight.

Linda, some people on the Virtual Weber board believe in the high-heat method for brisket.  You can read about it here and decide if it's something you'd like to try.

Brad

Thanks Brad, some very interesting chatter on the Weber site. Tommyeats, they didn't have any of the whole briskets...I did ask and how could I pass up on PRIME for that price...at the local PriceChopper, a trimmed (no fat cap) small piece of choice sells for $4.99 a lb. So this will hopefully be a bargain and a gem.

Again, the weather will dictate the cooking methodology. Any thoughts on a basting sauce etc?

Start the smoking the brisket Saturday afternoon or evening. Season brisket as desired. Try to keep it as far from the flame as possible and cook on the grill at a low temp with some soaked wood chips for at least three hours. Then double wrap the brisket in heavy duty aluminum foil and bake @ 200 degrees in the oven over night. 8 to 12 hours total time would be fine.

Sunday morning take out brisket and let cool in its own juices. When cool enough to handle refrigerate the meat and cooking juices separately. A half an hour or so before you are ready to serve defat the left over juices, which will have formed a solid layer of fat on top. Slice the brisket against the grain. In a large pan warm up the brisket with the pan juices. This will produce a smoky and juicy brisket. 

I do the oven then smoke all the time on brisket and ribs.  Works fine if you give it 3 hours in the oven at 200 F and 4 hours of cool smoke

I smoke it first then pop it in the oven...My theory is the smoke gets in better and then flavors all the juices in your foil wrap when you bake it..

I'm With Cosmos. Have done the Smoke First With Ribs Many Times.

Thanks Topferment, andydeahl, Cosmos and Tony White,
Again it will depend on the weather as to when I can put it on the Weber. I'm also trying to decide on the wood...I have hickory chunks and mesquite chunks, though I'm more partial to the flavor of hickory. I also have apple wood chips and some chips from bourbon barrels that I could mix in.  I wish all the decisions one has to make in life were like this...life would be so much more fun!!!

I would go to The Home Depot and get an Orion Grill Smoker...Russ
 
 
http://www.roadfood.com/Forums/tm.aspx?high=brisket&m=258079&mpage=6#258238

LindaW

I'm also trying to decide on the wood.

I've been converted to oak (for beef) since a couple of BBQ tours in Texas. If you can get some, you might give it a try.

If you can get the temps in the Weber down in the 160 range, I would smoke it for up to six hours in the Weber.  I like hickory as the flavor wood for smoke myself.  Then wrap it in double HD foil and add a little low-salt beef broth with it.  Maybe half a cup and finish it in the oven at 225.  It won't take long.  When it hits an internal temp of 193-195, start checking it for tenderness.  Use the probe from a theremometer.  When it pokes through easily in a number of spots, take it out and stick it in a preheated cooler, still wrapped in the foil, and put a towel on top.  Leave it in there for two - four hours.  After that, it should ready for slicing.  I would also smoke it fat side down in the Weber to protect the bottom from drying out.
 
Below is a link to a diagram of a Weber Kettle and how it can be used for smoking meats:
 
http://www.thesmokering.com/HowTo/weberribs/default.jsp

John

If you cook a first cut briskit overnight it will probably be well done by the time you get up, 4 to 6 hrs in the oven at 225, depending on the thickness, internal temp is everything, put the smoke on it at 135-140,  at 195 you should wrap it in foil till ready to slice. Ideally you should do it a day ahead, put in the fridge for 24 hrs, slice it cold then simmer very low in beef broth to desired heat, don't let it recook, low simmer! That will be $1000.00, thanks!

So, what did you do and how did it come out?

It came out INCREDIBLE!!! Here's what I did...I rubbed it with my own dry rub and then opened a can of I believe it's Cambell's Healthy Request carmelized onion soup and poured it over the top. Covered and refrigerated it overnight. Very early Saturday morning, I got the charcoal grill going with 2 piles of charcoal (natural and Kingsford)some hickory chunks, a very low fire and wiped off the excess onions..oh, put a drip pan in the center between the two piles of coals. I wiped off the excess onions and put the meat fat cap up over the drip pan. Kept it on the grill, occasionally adding to the coals and hickory for about 4 hours or so. I then took the meat off and wrapped it tightly in foil and put it in a 225 degree oven for about another 4 hours or so. Meanwhile, I took the juices left from the marinade and reduced them to less than half of the original volume, adjusted the flavors with some heat and some sweet...cayenne, chili powder, worcestershire and honey.
I took the meat out and let it cool about 15 min and sliced it into about 1/4 inch slices...it was soooooooo tender, juicy smokey..etc. The sauce was wonderful, but not even needed. Everyone raved about it and begged me to make more the next time.
Thank you all for the input and help in my first and certainly not my last time with making brisket. Roadfood Rocks.
Linda

Russ Jackson


I would go to The Home Depot and get an Orion Grill Smoker...Russ
 
 
http://www.roadfood.com/Forums/tm.aspx?high=brisket&m=258079&mpage=6#258238

Orion

Woot.com has these once in a blue moon as well, usually highly discounted as is usual for their site.

hey my good friends...I went back to Sam's this morning to get another brisket for this weekend (the folks at the picnic want more). Anyway, the meat looked great, but the only markings on it said Angus and USDA Certified Program (I believe that is the correct terms)...no Prime, Choice or even Select indicated. The meat had a nice fat cap and the underside had good marbling, but I was nervous. Anyone know what Program Certified means? And am I going to be wasting my money buying it? They were whole briskets much larger than the Prime cut I purchased last week. The price per pound was the same as last week.
Thanks again for any and all input.
Linda