Cooked my first ever brisket.
17 pounds / 8kg from Costco, trimmed somewhat. I had found a charcoal/truffle rub in NZ that I mixed with fresh ground salt n pepper, applied a day before.
Cooked with pecan smoking chunks, at a (dome temp) temp of 275F (135C) for the first 4 hours then 300F(150C) for another 3.5 hours in the foil boat. Fat side up, with a Kickstarter Meater in the top. Wrapped in wax paper, then towel tight into an Esky for 3.5 hours to rest.
Served perfectly rendered fatty strips in time to see the ABs keep the Eden park record alive vs the pumas.
Learning: Next time won't use the fancy rub. I definitely would just use salt n pepper next time.
I filled the basket with a decent amount of charcoal chunks. It barely used any of that on the cook and cool after, could probably cook two more briskets back to back with what's left.
Gloves to handle the meat is way easier than trying to move a hot 7kg blob of meat.
Anyone considering giving this a go: it was way easier than I thought it would be. But you need enough people to help eat it. We tried with 4 and barely made a dent.
If you managed to cook a 17lbs brisket through in 7.5 hours (even pre-trimmed), you were almost certainly cooking too hot. I usually smoke at 225-250 for ~45-60min/pound. It's not unheard of through and if you're happy that's what matters. I would recommend getting a quality thermometer and cooking to temp to be safe 195-210.
Definitely agree on the salt and pepper rub. If you want to kick it up a notch rub the salt and pepper on 24 hours before your cook and let it set in the fridge.
Edit: I see now that you have one of those Bluetooth thermometers in it.
Thank you! The temp internally was 93C at min at the end of the cook.
I found some of the flat was slightly over at the very end, but the rest was fantastic.
And yes, the rub was applied 24 hours prior to going on the grill. Very happy with the dry brine method
My man!
I’ve done some hot and fast briskets (~30 minutes/pound) with a Texas crutch and have always been pleased by the results.