Pre-Xmas brisket & ribs test

[SheffSmoker]

Hi all,

This year we're having a smoked Xmas - Brisket, beef ribs, pork ribs and a turkey crown. As the new smoker is still a bit of unknown quantity having only smoked a pork butt so far, we're having a small test today.

Small store bought rolled 1.5KG brisket, and just a couple of beef ribs - there's only me and the wife here at the moment so no point doing loads.

This is 2 hours in.

I've since added an aubergine again to try, and just wrapped the brisket in butcher paper.

The beef ribs, though not up to temp, are so soft it's ridiculous. Temp probe slid in like a hot metal toothpick in warm butter.

Not long now!

[SheffSmoker]

Ribs done, brisket still an hour or two away. Snack time!

Wife has also made some spicy BBQ sauce from scratch, and some potato salad. I knew there was a reason I married her.

[dacolson]

Yummmm. Beef lollipops. My fave.

[SheffSmoker]

Yummmm. Beef lollipops. My fave.

Mine too Dave. Just sooo rich, only done us one each this time round. Have another 2KG of them in the freezer.

[Dirtytires]

Multiple meats are definitely more of a challenge. Good luck with the cook.

[SheffSmoker]

Cheers DT - gonna be fun on Xmas day with 4 different meats!

[SheffSmoker]

Brisket came out divine as well. Best one so far

Still learning though, and once it was through the stall I wrapped it in butcher paper to try that method. The internal temp actually started falling for the next hour before climbing again very slowly, so for the last hour we unwrapped again and it hit 203 internal in next to no time.

[dacolson]

Brisket came out divine as well. Best one so far

Still learning though, and once it was through the stall I wrapped it in butcher paper to try that method. The internal temp actually started falling for the next hour before climbing again very slowly, so for the last hour we unwrapped again and it hit 203 internal in next to no time.

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Never seen that happen. How long did you have it out to wrap? Also, it’s important to wrap it tightly. I spray the paper a with 50/50 apple cider vinegar to make it wrap easier.


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[SheffSmoker]

Probably as long as it takes to type this, Dave! Out, in kitchen yards away, wrapped tight, back in.

It was only a couple of degrees C it dropped but I watch everything like a hawk and make notes.

Doing the big one in a few days so be interesting to see if the same happens.

[dacolson]

Your pics of the sliced brisket looks really light colored. Very interesting. The bark and smoke ring look awesome. I wonder how different the fat content is for you vs. here. Do yours seem fairly lean or do you get a lot of marbling in the meat?
Are you doing a full packer cut for xmas? Point and Flat? Wrapping will help keep your thinner Flat from overcooking on the bottom too much so the thicker Point can get up to temp. It also helps keep the bark from getting too thick/dark for those longer cooks. I think you're on the right path taking notes. Always helpful to remembering what works/doesn't.

[SheffSmoker]

Bizarrely, as I posted that I thought "Wow, that looks bland!" - I had the flash on and I think it's washed out the true colour of the meat. It was much darker than it looks in that photo. It had jiggle, it was moist and it tasted fantastic. It was a rolled brisket so if you notice there's no smoke ring on the bottom, as that's where it was sat on top of the other bit.

I know our cows in the UK are slaughtered at a much younger age than the US, meaning we don't get as much fat or marbling as a USDA brisket.

Doing a half packer for Xmas - just the flat end. Just me and the wife again, so no point cooking a full packer with the rest of the stuff we're having too.

[SheffSmoker]

This is the flat we've got, loads more marbling than the other rolled one we just did. Dammit, now my mouth is watering again.

[dacolson]

This is the flat we've got, loads more marbling than the other rolled one we just did. Dammit, now my mouth is watering again.

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Looks great! It will be awesome


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[shearman23]

I've heard the same about fat content on Cattle in Australia. A lot of them are younger at slaughter and a lot of them are grass-finished and most of the ones that are not grass-finished aren't finished on corn due to availability so fat content suffers.

[SheffSmoker]

Gonna be a tasty Xmas. Brisket done, beef ribs eaten already! Pork ribs on last half hour, turkey breasts went on after this photo done and one eaten already, and the best turkey I've ever had in my life. Yum.

[dacolson]

[Dirtytires]

Glad it turned out as planned. Definitely makes the work worth it.

[tinspark]

Gonna be a tasty Xmas. Brisket done, beef ribs eaten already! Pork ribs on last half hour, turkey breasts went on after this photo done and one eaten already, and the best turkey I've ever had in my life. Yum.

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Yeah, that turkey looks amazing sliced up like that!! Nice work

[SheffSmoker]

Thanks all!

Overall it was a resounding success. First multi meat cook I've done, first time ever doing pork belly ribs and first time doing turkey. With the exception of the beef ribs being done a couple of hours before, everything else was done within an hour of each other.

The ribs... Oh my gawd. We were a bit apprehensive after reading a few "they are easy to screw up" comments in our books, but 3hrs bare, mopped and wrapped in foil, 3 hours more and we both agreed they were the best ribs we have ever had - and we've been to a lot of BBQ smokehouses in the UK. We were that excited to eat them I forgot to get a photo!

The turkey was just a couple of breasts someone gave us, but they turned out awesome too. Wrapped in foil and butter after a few hours and they were moist, juicy and smoky.

Beef ribs as usual were fantastic.

Brisket, though really tasty and had an awesome smoke ring, was still a tad on the dry side in the middle. I'd spritzed it a few times during the cook, wrapped in butcher paper after the stall and pulled at exactly 203F then rested for 2 hours in loose foil. I'm sure this is down to the fat content of UK briskets, so next one I will experiment pulling off earlier, and perhaps trying a water pan (we haven't tried this as yet). Burnt ends were amazing though!

Bit more practice required, every day is a school day - good excuse to smoke more brisket though.

[dacolson]

Great looking meat. I do love a good turkey breast on the smoker. And don’t let that brisket beat you. It’s the trickiest cut. Try only changing one thing every time you cook one so you can see what happens based on a control.

[SheffSmoker]

All logged in my smoker's logbook Dave - making tons of notes as I go with timestamps on everything.

[dacolson]

All logged in my smoker's logbook Dave - making tons of notes as I go with timestamps on everything.

Of course you do, lol. Love it. You better keep that thing under lock and key. Gonna be invaluable


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[Pete Mazz]

Did you add any liquid when you wrapped it?

[SheffSmoker]

Did you add any liquid when you wrapped it?

Hi Pete. Just before wrapping in pink butcher paper it was spritzed with a water and cider vinegar mix.

[Pete Mazz]

I use beef broth or sometimes Campbell's French Onion Soup.