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smoking First time smoking a brisket


 

 

 

 
Thanks to seeing all of the great looking dishes here, I bought a Weber Smokey Mountain and here was my first attempt at brisket this past weekend.   The brisket was about six pounds, the rub was one of Chris(Joyner's Hot Pepper) recipes that I saw as I was reading older posts.  Seemed to turn out pretty good, but I really do not have anything to compare it too.  Do most leave the fat cap on?  I did, next time I think I am going to trim it off and see how that turns out.  Any comments, suggestions are appreciated.
 
 
How long did you rest it? Looks good to me. 

That bark looks pretty killer. Not charred black, you got that nice mahogany! 

And you can still see some of the spices in the bark, which I like with beef. A "peppery" texture.
 
Wrapped it in foil and rested it an hour before I sliced it.  I will chalk it up to all the good advice i saw on the threads here.  I am going to try ribs again this weekend.  My first attempt 2 weeks ago had great flavor, but they basically fell apart when i was done(used the 3-2-1 method).  Guess I am going to keep practicing.   :party:
 
Congrats on your first one, it looks awesome!
 
Cut the 6 hours on ribs to 5, at 225. Won't fall apart.
 
I posted this elsewhere. These are not rules, just stuff I learned. Experiment and make your own rules!
 
The Hot Pepper said:
I would not foil as the last step, I would foil as the middle step. You want the ribs directly on the smoker first and last.
 
I would not add any liquid to the foiled step, this will cause braising. You can braise indoors in a crock pot. Put butter and rub on the bottom of the foil and lay the ribs meat side down and wrap tightly. You want fall apart meat, but firm, not stew meat.
 
You want the ribs on the smoker unfoiled that last hour. You don't want wet rub sludge. The last hour they'll get more smoke and the surface water will be removed and the rub will tighten up.
 
3-2-1, 2-2-1, 2-1-1, whatever, all depends on the temps. You can cook them a bit faster at higher temps. 225 for 6 hours. 250 for 5 hours. 275 for 4 hours. If you like more of a bite to them, you can cook them for 5 hours at 225, for example. It's all formulas.
 
I would suggest 5 hours at 225. More of a competition rib, and not fall-off-the-bone.
 
NO SAUCE DURING COOKING!
 
SPRITZ after the rub forms a crust (I don't really consider it a bark). Don't over spritz. You just want to moisten the rub so it doesn't turn black. When it looks dry, spritz. Avoid sugars. Use water. Sugar is already in the rub. You don't need to keep adding apple juice! You don't need to keep adding spices! People over mop because they're bored and think they need to keep busy and keep adding ingredients. Water is all you need. When you cook a steak do you stand there and add salt and pepper every minute?
 
"But water is so boring!" Fine, so go with your apple juice, spice rub, beef broth mixture. All up to you! But all the flavor you need is in the smoke and the rub. I say... stop the madness! There is no point in moistening with sugars, when those sugars will caramelize into a black bark.
 
I like what's called a dry rib. A dry rib is not cooked with sauce, and is not constantly mopped with sugars, or foiled with liquids. The meat is tender and juicy but has a bite. The rib is dry on the surface and you can see the rub, it is not a bark like a pork butt. When you cut the ribs the sides are very flat, not like stew meat. I sauce it AFTER with hot sauce.
 
HAVE FUN!
 
Looks good! Just picked up a new barbie-smoker this weekend since it has been way too hot to cook in our house lately. The old grill died a month ago and we've been in serious need. Looking forward to putting these recipes on here to the test as well. I feel anyone can follow a recipe, but the art is learning how to work the grill. Sounds like Hot Pepper has got it down, and by the looks of it, you too.
 
Yeah that doesn't look like a first time to me, he got the color, the bark, the smoke ring, and the juiciness.
 
Really was my first attempt at brisket, second time using the WSM. It was just under 6 pounds, put it on at 8:30am took off at 6:30pm. Internal temp was 182, I wanted to get it to 190 but after letting it rest an hour 7:30 was late enough for dinner on Sunday night. I should have posted a pick of my ribs, trust me you would see I am a beginner. The temp range that I saw was from 215 degrees up to 262. When I sliced it open and saw the smoke ring I was pretty happy before even trying it. Any suggestions about the fat cap? I left it on and had the fat side down, as I read that tip here.
 
SL3 said:
Looks good! Just picked up a new barbie-smoker this weekend since it has been way too hot to cook in our house lately. The old grill died a month ago and we've been in serious need. Looking forward to putting these recipes on here to the test as well. I feel anyone can follow a recipe, but the art is learning how to work the grill. Sounds like Hot Pepper has got it down, and by the looks of it, you too.

Good luck and have fun.
HopsNBarley said:
Bangin!
Gotta love the WSM.
So far it has been pretty easy to use.
 
If you hadn't said it was your first, I would have assumed you were a seasoned veteran. Helluva job, bro. Nice smoke ring.
 
A tip for the ribs, they're done when they pass the bend test. Grab them by one end with the tongs and lift them off the grill.... they'll bend in the middle. The muscle fibers will separate and pull apart while bending when they're perfectly pull off the bone done.
 
Happy smoking!
 
Buzz said:
If you hadn't said it was your first, I would have assumed you were a seasoned veteran. Helluva job, bro. Nice smoke ring.
 
A tip for the ribs, they're done when they pass the bend test. Grab them by one end with the tongs and lift them off the grill.... they'll bend in the middle. The muscle fibers will separate and pull apart while bending when they're perfectly pull off the bone done.
 
Happy smoking!

Thank you. I am going to try the ribs again this weekend.
 
most leave some of the fat cap on and smoke it with the cap up so as to moisten as the fat renders over time in the smoker.  You should trim to about 1/8" fat cap before prep for best results.  Stay pat till you hit 190 next time (easier if you start about 11pm the night before you plan to server) and then wrap and hold in a cooler for at least 1 but up to 3 hours.  Meat will be fork tender and juicy - and no need to inject anything at all.   
 
The fat cap (I find) really has nothing to do with it being moist. Same as a steak, or prime rib. Outer fat melts and rolls off, it does not penetrate. And you'll get a better bark with most removed, and fat cap on bottom. Just my experience.

Looks like he doesn't need tips though. That thing is beautiful. Just do what you did.
 
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