Cooking multiple brisket help.

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What time would you put them on?

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I would have cooked them ahead of time then reheated the day of. What I've done before was instead of putting them in an ice chest, I vacuum sealed straight away then froze. Later when I was ready I thawed then warmed back up on the grill for 2 hours and they were still great. The vacuum seal helped keep all the juices in.

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What if I smoked at say 200 deg for 16 hours? That way I could put them on at 10pm.

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That seems low for me. I usually go @250. How long will depend on how big the brisket is.

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Will they stay warm/hot for ~3hours wrapped in towels in an ice chest?

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Absolutely. I have gone 6 hours and still plenty warm. Just pack any empty space with towels too.

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What temp would you pull them at considering they'll be in an ice chest for 3 hours?

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I don't go for temp, but for tenderness. Around 195 I start using my probe. When it feels like I'm probing butter I pull. But since you go by temp, go with whatever normal temp you aim for.


In your case, I would try and aim to have the briskets done early by at least an hour maybe 2. I'd rather have them sitting in the ice chest a little longer than being pulled too early.

Bring some electric or sterno warming trays. No matter what you will lose some heat when opening and slicing.

All briskets cook different. Most pros use the temperatures as a guide and not an absolute because of this. That being said, not sure I would lower the temperature any.

Still pull at 200. The temperature will continue to increase in the cooler.

You can hold the briskets in the cooler easily for 3 hours as long as you wrap them in a towel and the ice chest isn't too large.

You can also hold brisket in an oven at 170 degrees. I read the other day that there are commercial operations that hold them in an oven,wrapped in butcher paper for up to 17 hours.

Watch the temperatures when holding to make sure they don't get around 140 as this is when dangerous bacteria can grow.

I'd put em on around 11 or 12 at night

That way you can monitor in the AM and have plenty of time if one is taking longer than others.

When they're ready hold them in your oven as described above and then put them in an ice chest for when you're driving off.

I would put them on at 8 PM.
Gives you time to cook longer if necessary.

Will absolutely stay warm for 3 hours in a cooler.

I think you need to cook them till done (whatever your definition is) and let them rest to 180, then put them in a cooler.

If they are done very early, keep in a warm oven until it's time for travel.

You should want to slice them around 140 degrees for serving.

Just my opinion.

A big ole offset rig. I’ll take some pics tomorrow afternoon

So you're gonna have to manage the fire.

Maintaining 250 is pretty easy on an offset provided it's sealed fairly well. Add a split every 35-40 minutes and it should cadillac.

That being sorted, at 250 your briskets will take probably around 12hrs. If you're off Friday, you're golden. Put them on tomorrow morning sometime, smoke to probe tender (198-205 depending on brisket) then rest them on the counter for an hour or so.

Set your oven to 160. Cover the rested/cooled briskets and let them sit in the oven until it's time for you to leave. They'll be money.

Tons of bbq places rest their briskets at 160 for up to 10hrs. Granted, they're in a humidity controlled oven but it's always done like this.