re: What's a good brisket rub?

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Second, you can take a brisket I cook with my method and a brisket cooked with your method and an unbiased bystander couldn't tell you which one was cooked with my method. Well, besides the fact that it would be more moist and tender than yours. Other than that there is absolutely no difference in smoke flavor or bark if using the same smoker setup.

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I guess we should just accept this as fact, right?

I think I see where the disconnect for everyone is, myself included.

Everyone has been thinking "225 degrees for 8 hours, and it's done." That's not at all what you said, at least not to how you cook it...and "done" is a relative term. You said that's what your BIL does, but made no claim to his brisket prowess or tenderness of the meat, etc. I know a few folks who prefer to very thin slice brisket, and will do what you are saying he does. They love it. I know a few restaurants who do it that way as well. I don't order from there, but I know folks who do.

As to what you said...

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I like mine to be "pulled" tender so I do five hours uncovered at 225 and four wrapped in foil as hot as my smoker will get.

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I'd guess this temperature to be at least in the 300 range. Having read this over again, I have full confidence in that your brisket will reach that magic "tender" temperature in the time you listed to where you can shred it easily. 100%. What folks are saying though is that a brisket simply will not reach 200 degrees in 8 hours at 225, wrapped or not. For most folks, anything less than that will result in tougher than desired meat.

The BBQ with Franklin show is pretty weak IMO. That's not the way he BBQs in his restaurant and the sauce recipes he has done are nothing like his real ones. There is one he put out that is pure shite. I think the guy trolls wth that show. People swear by that show though. Some of his books are a better source.

I need to go back and look at my brisket temp curves, yes I have graphical data for my smokes, lol. If you are reaching around 140 by hour 4, no reason you can't wrap then. Smoke intake and bark would be done. Time is never that big a deal for me cause I do it at night and use a PID to control temps. I will wrap in the stall, since I can see when it flat lines.

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The BBQ with Franklin show is pretty weak IMO.

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I love it. But, I don't necessarily watch to learn how to smoke meat. My favorite shows were when he went to the brewery, the one with the real old guy out in the country and the lady and her crew that go around collecting smoke wood from fallen or damaged trees.

He does give out good info sometimes like his series on smoking brisket. I started trimming my briskets differently after I saw that show. Before that I would score the fat cap down to the meat with a butcher knife and work the seasonings in.

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I need to go back and look at my brisket temp curves, yes I have graphical data for my smokes, lol. If you are reaching around 140 by hour 4, no reason you can't wrap then. Smoke intake and bark would be done. Time is never that big a deal for me cause I do it at night and use a PID to control temps. I will wrap in the stall, since I can see when it flat lines.

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I got a Christmas present that does the temp curves. It has a temp probe and sends the information to your cell phone. I haven't used it. I need to put it in my cooking bag. I never think of it until after I have the meat on the smoker.

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e quoting something from some person at SouthCherryFarm.com (whatever TF that is) and their version of a Franklin brisket. Watch the instructional videos from the man himself and see how he does it. There is no foil or ovens involved and he calls such a "crutch". But by all means cook them how you want

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I can explain it to you, but I can't make you understand it. He has used foil, paper and nothing in the past. he doesn't exclude anything. he is fairly opened minded. You could use a bit of that.

You were praising Golden Corral buffet a few days ago, so maybe your palette just more advanced

Thanks for trying to get the thread back on topic. The brisket came out okay but not quite as good as I was hoping. But this is the first one I've done so its a learning experience. I cut the brisket at the flat and the point and instead of putting them on separate racks I put them on top of each other which was probably a mistake. I initially wasn't going to wrap it however I started running out of time and wrapped it for the last 3 hours or so and pulled it on the internal temp got to 200. It wasn't as tender as I had hoped at least the flat wasn't and didn't have quite the amount of smoke that I like but I am finding that it's hard to get a lot of smoke flavor with these electric smokers. For my next one I am going to put them on separate tracks and going to add to apple cider vinegar to the water pan. I saw something about adding a couple briquettes of charcoal to the wood chips tray for extra smoke flavor, has anyone heard of this? I may have to try the bit with using the jalapeno pickle juice. I mixed some mustard and Worcestershire sauce together along with a rub recipe I got from a local barbecue joint here and it came out pretty decent.

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Everyone has been thinking "225 degrees for 8 hours, and it's done.



This is what I said. My BIL and sister and according to him all of his neighbors prefer being able to slice it. So when we do briskets at their house we do 225 unwrapped for four hours and then wrap (the way the Professor from MIT and Harvard explains) and smoke for another four hours at 225.

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See this is where you lose everyone because this defies the laws of freakin physics. In fact you can put a 15 pound brisket wrapped in the oven from the start and it still wont be done in 8 hours at 225. Maybe 275 or 300 but not at 225.

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The brisket came out okay but not quite as good as I was hoping

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What were you looking for? Some people look for the pull effect and some look for the chopped type? And what are you looking for in taste? Again, as subjective as it is, some people swear by injecting it and others swear by rub and nothing else. You have to figure out what your looking for and then start working that way. I love eating the flat in slices and chopping up the point so i can tinker with a good barbeque sauce to go on sandwiches.

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I cut the brisket at the flat and the point and instead of putting them on separate racks I put them on top of each other which was probably a mistake

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I'm a big fan of cooking them together as one piece. Franklin's video from him trimming a brisket at Texas A&M is good video to learn some basics.

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I initially wasn't going to wrap it however I started running out of time and wrapped it for the last 3 hours or so and pulled it on the internal temp got to 200

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What temp were you cooking at? Also, the debate to wrap or not to wrap is always a debate but always leave yourself time...If you have a decent ice chest and towels, you can hold the meat for a long time. If you use a thermometer while cooking, just leave it in and wrap around it while it rest. Bacteria will start to form when the meat starts to sit to long in the 140s temp to long. There is a general four hour rule once the meat hits into the 140s. With a good ice chest and wrapping it tightly in towels i've held brisket up to five hours pretty easy. Always start sooner than you think.

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I may have to try the bit with using the jalapeno pickle juice. I mixed some mustard and Worcestershire sauce together along with a rub recipe I got from a local barbecue joint here and it came out pretty decent

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Have at it. I don't like straight mustard because its too thick to me but people use many different combos, some don't use any liquid, and some use just water. I'm pretty sure this thread is a good example. Just keep working at it. Figuring out what you want and how to get there is step one. I've found that 203 is a number that help me get there consistently for the smoker I use. Tiger Ree can shove his comment about the numbers up his smoke pipe because a person just trying to learn isn't going to be able to rely just on feel or touch. Start with a thermometer and start learning what the brisket looks like when the bark is formed, or how the stall works, the good and bad of wrapping vs not wrapping. Fall is the season for working out the kinks...Good weather, football, and bourbon. If you are doing it for a group, throw a pork butt on there as a back and have fun learning.