x2. ALWAYS.

Even when smoking at 215 - 225 - the grease will flow down through the meat keeping it moist. No need for the 'Texas Crutch'. The only time you need foil is during the rest period.

There was a discussion on here that now I am unable to find. It is a bit of a long read, but here is what I copied from the discussion:

I also trim pretty radically for a standard packer. That big white piece of fat on a typical packer will get soft but it won't give you much benefit through rendering. The fat and collagen between the fibers of meat makes it tender as it renders. You can trim nearly all that outside fat off and get the job done a lot quicker since a smaller hunk of flesh takes less time to finish. I also trim nearly all the fat from between the two pieces of meat (deckle and flat). That allows you to get extra flavor (mustard, rub, etc) on the meat at these inside surfaces. I'll trim a big old 13 pound packer down to about eight pounds. For contests, I buy Certified Angus Beef packers from Brookshire Brothers. They seem expensive, but they are real value because you're not paying for five bucks' worth of worthless fat. They are perfectly trimmed right out of the cryo bag, so you are really getting value for your money and you're pretty much guaranteed to get a quality and flavorful brisket. These briskets are high-Choice quality meat; not the lower Select grade you'll buy most places.

As for wood, I have pretty much settled in with hickory. I'll burn oak after the meat is foiled since I can usually get Oak cheap or for free. I was really in a pecan mode for briskets for years...and I like it, but for general appeal, folks just seem to like the taste of hickory best overall. I really do too, and I love it for pork.

Pit temperature- I got "low and slow" out of my system. This took me ten years. I really enjoyed all the beer I'd drink when it took me fifteen hours to cook a brisket...and I know that the mere suggestion of cooking brisket fast can get you into serious trouble in certain areas...I know, I know. Be that as it may, I have been gradually doing briskets hotter and hotter over the years. I have done them up to 350 and I do find they're slightly tougher at that temperature, but the real key is to get them to an internal temperature of right around 200 degrees F where the collagen breaks down...and then it's done. If you go much longer, it will be overdone. When the meat probe first pushes into the brisket like it's butter, you're done. 200 deg F is a good rule of thumb and should be within a couple degrees of about perfect. I really like 275-300 for about six to seven hours for a huge brisket (and also for bone-in butt for that matter). Temperature control doesn't really matter that much either...this is probably a big paradigm-breaker for many too, but I find it to be true. A great big hunk of meat like that isn't really sensitive to temperature swings. Even a runaway to 400 degrees for a few minutes when the wind decides to change and blow directly into your intake vent...that's not going to really hurt your brisket.

On the smoke...less is more. It sounds crazy to say it, but most people don't like smoky tasting brisket. Thick billowy smoke coming out the chimney means a poor tasting brisket. Open that inlet vent when this happens and learn to control your burn by looking at the quality of your smoke. Don't put so much wood into your pit that you need to cut way back on the intake air and poison your meat with too much smoke. Use bigger pieces of wood for milder smoke. Chunks or logs are what you want. Not chips- they produce a lot of smoke quickly, which doesn't give you the subtle smokiness you want. Oh, yeah...never mess with the outlet vent. That stays open all the time.

Finally...for every person that says "you have to do it this way or that way", there's another person doing it pretty much the opposite and winning trophies doing so. But this is what is working well for me. I ruined a lot of briskets learning. If you're really, really serious, go to a bbq school. I wish I'd done so years ago.
A major tip I learned from Konrad Haskins' bbq school last year is to smoke your brisket for two to three hours and then braise it to finish it. Big-time secret- helped me get grand champion and reserve grand champion in the cookoffs I entered last year. Finish the brisket by braising it in liquid in a foil pan with foil wrapped over top. A variety of liquids can be used ranging from dr pepper, beer, etc...even water.

I have a very similar somer and and I cook mine at 230 (creates better smoke) for 4 or 5 hours then wrap it up tight in foil for the remainder of time at 220.

1.4 hours per pound FAT SIDE UP. I always use the top rack and make sure you BARELY crack the damper to hold in heat and smoke.

I buy the very fine wood chips from Albertsons that come in a foil wrapper type pan ($1 each).....it smolders and smokes real well with the electric element design.

I also put a light coating of mustard on mine as it helps hold all the seasoning on meat.

I fired up the pit around 7:00 this morning and put the brisket on a half an hour later. I'm trying something a little different this time, I picked up some apple tree limbs from a neighbor who lost a tree in the drought last year so I decided to smoke it in that. I'll let you know how it comes out.

Best Store Bought Brisket Rub IS:



put rub on room temp meat(both sides) and let it sweat for a cpl hrs.....and smoke Fat side up......fat breaks down to juices and trickles down thru the meat............