(Don't ask me how to spell 'famous'. I didn't put up this sign, but apparently 'fameous' is an accepted alternate spelling for 'famous'...)
Ahh.... Friday afternoons were made for firing up the smoker and creating brisket masterpieces, don't you agree...?
My 'brisket vigil' started about 1 PM this afternoon. I'll try to blog some brisket tips for my friends throughout the day and evening as I'm cooking. I'd love to compare notes on tips and tricks for making good brisket. I don;t really have any BIG secrets, but I love to talk bar b que with friends of 'the craft'. Please feel free to post comments below...
OK, on with my essay entitled: 'A Brisket Weekend...'
This weekend I have a small tennis social of about 12-16 people. I've just put a 12.5 pound brisket on the smoker and I'll add some sausage to smoke later this evening. We're planning to have brisket and sausage sandwiches with all the sides and trimmings after a fun morning of tennis Saturday morning.
I always plan 90 minutes of cook time per pound. Of course, that's provided my pit temperature stays a constant 220 degrees. I cook the old fashioned way with wood and charcoal for my fuel so the temp will probably vary a bit during the 18 hours it will take to get this brisket 'just right'...! Yes, if all goes well, I should have a delicious, tender, juicy, smokey brisket ready about 7 or 8 AM Saturday morning.
I remember growing up that My dad always used to cook his briskets much quicker and with higher heat and I thought they were great. But looking back I know they never came out as tender, juicy and flavorful as mine do today. One thing my dad did have going for him though, was a great secret sauce recipe. I could on and on about sauces, but I think I'll save that for another post. Let me just close this little section by saying if you want really good, tender, tasty smoked brisket, you better plan on cooking a long time on a low temperature.
For planning purposes I usually figure a half of pound of meat per person which is very generous especially if we're making sandwiches like we are for the event this weekend. -And that 12.5 pounds will cook down to about 9-10 pounds of finished product after trimming.
9:40 PM Friday Night Update... The brisket has been in the pit for almost 10 hours now. The temperature and smoke have been pretty steady so far... I'm using combination of mesquite wood and charcoal for my fuel.
Now begins what I call the 'Brisket Vigil'... That's staying up pretty much all night to maintain the smoke and temperature. At least tonight the sci fi channel is having a Star Trek marathon. That will make staying up a little easier. When it does get to the point that I absolutely can't keep my eyes open any longer then I'll just set my alarm to go off every 45 minutes to check the fire. For now, so far, so good...!
Post Script (Sunday Aug 31, 10:30 PM) I pulled the brisket out about 6:30 AM. It came out pretty good. There were no complaints and only a little bit was left over.. I was pleased with the result...!
