BARDSLJR Posted January 10, 2021 Report Share Posted January 10, 2021 A few reports and observations on last night's brisket cook, still going on now at 11 AM this morning. First, here's the prime Costco brisket as I took it out of the fridge yesterday to prepare it- approximately 14.5 pounds untrimmed. The second photo shows it trimmed and dusted with Maldon salt and coarse-ground pepper. It went on the 32" KK at 1 AM with the Guru set at 225*, I wanted it to cook a little more slowly than typical, because if I were actually trying to time it for dinner on Sunday at 6, working backwards, I would have started it at 4AM, and sorry, I am not getting up at 4AM to start a brisket. So....the third photo is brisket at 9AM, ready to come off and be wrapped. The Guru was reading the cook temp at 216- the KK's thermometer was showing it a bit higher, maybe 240. The Guru's meat probe was showing the brisket at about 175-180 at this point. The last photo is the brisket, tightly wrapped, and ready to go back into the smoker. At this point I raised the Guru temp setting to 280*. Here's the rub: it is now 11 AM and the brisket is nearly done- one probe, the Guru's-showing about 198* and some probing with my Thermapen, is showing low 190's in some other parts of the brisket. So what's going on? If I follow all the standard instructions- Franklin and the like- I should expect this brisket to take 12-14 hours and then I should rest it for 2 hours. It looks to be now like it will be done 12 and will need to come off. If this is the case, I should be getting up at 6AM to put a brisket on and serve it at 6PM (6 AM being acceptable, 4AM, not.) What are your experiences? How long does it normally take you to cook a 14-15lb brisket? At what temps? When do you wrap? BTW, this is a BEAUTIFUL brisket. 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
tony b Posted January 10, 2021 Report Share Posted January 10, 2021 No worries. If you wrap it in foil, then inside a bath towel, and into a good insulated cooler, you can hold it for at least 4 hours (if not more). I've had similar experience with them (and butts) finishing faster than anticipated. I guess it has to do with the actual piece of meat being cooked. Each one is somewhat unique. I always plan to finish early and stash it in the cooler. I'm like you - no "middle of the night" cooks for this kid! 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BARDSLJR Posted January 11, 2021 Author Report Share Posted January 11, 2021 So here are the final two photos: this is the finished version of the brisket.....but five hours later. So you cannot let a brisket sit for 5 hours and reheat it and expect it to be as good as Franklin/Micklethwait/LA Barbecue (and 20 other great Austin-area brisket master), but I am getting closer. Back at 1 PM, when I SHOULD have been slicing it, it was probably a lot closer. SO NEXT TIME.....I am going to start the brisket at 6AM for a 6-7PM serving. It seems to be cooking in 11, not 13 or 14 hours. Anyone else have the same experience? The flavor was good. Quite good. I am going to back off a little bit on the salt, but the pepper was pretty much perfect. It was a lot of fun, and the family loved it. And it is a LOT easier for me to get up at 6 than to stay up till 1AM. 9 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jonj Posted January 11, 2021 Report Share Posted January 11, 2021 Well, it looks terrific! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jeffshoaf Posted January 11, 2021 Report Share Posted January 11, 2021 Looks good! In my experience, it's a lot less stressful to have a cook get done earlier than expected instead of later than expected, especially if you have a crowd waiting hungrily. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bruce Pearson Posted January 11, 2021 Report Share Posted January 11, 2021 Bards that looks soooo good! Nice cook Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
