[0:00] - What's up?
[0:00] It's Susie from Heygrillhey.com,
[0:02] and today we are tackling Brisket 101.
[0:04] Now, if you've never
cooked a brisket before,
[0:06] at the end of this video,
you'll have everything you need
[0:09] to successfully knock out
a brisket your first try.
[0:11] We're gonna talk about picking
a brisket, what a brisket is,
[0:15] how to trim it, how to
season it, how to smoke it,
[0:18] and we're doing basics,
simplest way possible
[0:21] so that you can achieve a
brisket without worrying about
[0:24] all of the overwhelm and intimidation
[0:25] that sometimes comes from cooking
a piece of meat like this.
[0:29] Brisket is an American barbecue staple,
[0:31] and it really gained
a lot of its notoriety
[0:33] through this central Texas
style of cooking brisket,
[0:36] which is what we're gonna imitate today.
[0:38] A brisket comes from the
pectoral muscle of the cow.
[0:41] A whole packer brisket like this,
[0:43] which is what you're gonna wanna buy,
[0:45] consists of two overlapping muscles.
[0:48] Typically in the Cryovac
package like this,
[0:50] they'll run anywhere
between 11 to 18 pounds.
[0:53] When picking out a brisket from the store,
[0:55] I like to pick either choice or prime.
[0:58] Those higher fat content
briskets are gonna leave you
[1:00] a better finished product.
[1:02] Another thing I like to
look for in the store
[1:04] when I'm picking it out
is how well does it bend?
[1:07] If it can give me a little U shape,
[1:09] I'm pretty happy with that brisket.
[1:10] It'll come home with me.
[1:12] There is a thick layer
of fat that runs between
[1:15] these two muscles, and if it's too thick,
[1:17] it's really not gonna be very bendy,
[1:19] and that means they're
gonna have a lot of fat
[1:21] inside the brisket itself.
[1:23] It's not gonna render down
all the way sometimes,
[1:24] and I think it can be a
little bit of a waste.
[1:26] A thinner layer of fat in
between the two muscles
[1:28] generally means more even
cooking, a better rendered brisket
[1:32] and better final texture.
[1:33] Once your brisket's home, you can hold it
[1:35] in the refrigerator.
[1:36] I actually like to pop
mine into the freezer
[1:38] for about 30 minutes
before I start trimming.
[1:41] Really, really cold fat,
[1:42] and really, really cold
brisket will make the trimming
[1:44] process so much easier.
[1:46] To trim up your brisket, all you need
[1:48] is a big cutting board, a sharp
knife, and a pair of gloves.
[1:51] Honestly, though, I did not
have a big cutting board
[1:53] the first time I ever trimmed a brisket,
[1:55] I just trimmed it right on my countertop
[1:56] and then sanitized after.
[1:58] Let's get into trimming this brisket down.
[2:00] Now I usually plan about 20 to 30 minutes
[2:03] to trim a full brisket.
[2:04] If it's your first time, it
might take you 45 plus minutes.
[2:08] That's okay, you can rewind
and watch this section
[2:11] as many times as you need to
to make sure you get it right,
[2:13] but I'm gonna give it to you
as simple as I possibly can.
[2:16] Now, there are a lot of videos
on just trimming a brisket.
[2:19] Competition trims are insane.
[2:20] Some backyard trims are
really over the top.
[2:23] We're going for a super
simple backyard trim,
[2:26] so you can easily do it your first time.
[2:28] Using a filet knife, I just
take off any of the silver skin
[2:31] or stringy fat across the
bottom side of the brisket.
[2:34] I then move on to this
thick half moon shaped piece
[2:38] of fat and trim it down.
[2:39] I don't cut it all the way out.
[2:41] I just trim it down so
that it creates a nice flat
[2:43] even layer across the bottom of a brisket.
[2:46] Next, I turn my attention to the sides.
[2:48] A long straight cut up either
side will take off any excess
[2:52] fat or anything left over from processing.
[2:55] Then I focus on the ends of my flat.
[2:57] The flat is the thinnest
part towards the end
[3:00] of your brisket.
[3:01] You can see it's pretty uneven,
so I like to round the edges
[3:04] and trim it off so it has a
more even thickness throughout.
[3:07] These thin edges are just gonna
burn up if you leave them on
[3:09] the brisket anyway, so it's
better to trim them off
[3:12] before you even start smoking.
[3:13] Next I turn my attention to the point,
[3:15] which is the thicker piece
of the brisket on this end.
[3:18] This is where the two
muscles overlap the most.
[3:20] Similar to the flat, I take off any pieces
[3:23] that are overhanging, hanging loose,
[3:25] and give it a nice round final appearance.
[3:27] Once my underside is done,
I flip my brisket over
[3:30] and turn my attention to the top.
[3:31] Now the goal here is to
simply get this brisket down
[3:34] to about a half inch layer
of fat across the top evenly.
[3:38] There are some places where it's less
[3:40] and some places where
it's much, much thicker.
[3:42] I like to take the thicker
pieces down to, like I said,
[3:45] quarter to a half an inch,
and then leave the rest alone.
[3:48] If you have any large
overhanging pieces of the point,
[3:51] I also trim those down at this time.
[3:53] Now, you might be worried about what to do
[3:55] with all of those trimmings.
[3:56] I separate mine into two
piles, the brisket trimmings
[3:59] where there's a good amount
of meat still on the trimming
[4:02] and the fat pile where it's mostly just
[4:05] that thick white fat.
[4:07] I save the meaty trimmings
in a freezer bag,
[4:10] pop 'em in the freezer, build
'em up until I have enough,
[4:13] and then once I have
enough, I chop or grind it
[4:14] to make my own ground beef.
[4:16] It's great in bolognese, it's
great for brisket burgers.
[4:18] It's absolutely delicious.
[4:20] You paid for it, don't waste it.
[4:22] Now with the fat, I
make my own beef tallow.
[4:24] I like to use this as a cooking fat
[4:26] to roast potatoes, a bunch of other food.
[4:28] I use it on my griddle all of the time.
[4:30] I have a full video for
making beef tallow at home
[4:33] if that's something you
want to tackle as well.
[4:34] Once your brisket is trimmed,
it is time to season.
[4:37] I like to slather mine with yellow mustard
[4:39] before hitting it with
my beef rub seasoning.
[4:42] But you can use equal
parts of coarse kosher salt
[4:45] and coarse black pepper.
[4:46] Salt and pepper is really all you need
[4:48] to season the brisket.
[4:49] The mustard acts as a binder.
[4:51] It also helps create some of
that texture on the outside
[4:54] for the smoke particles to
cling to while it's cooking.
[4:57] I think it gives you a
really nice, dark, beautiful,
[5:00] crunchy bark, but you don't
actually taste the mustard
[5:02] flavor at all.
[5:03] If you are vehemently opposed to mustard,
[5:05] you can skip this entirely
[5:07] and just go straight to seasoning.
[5:08] Now that the brisket is
trimmed, slathered and seasoned,
[5:10] it's time to hit the smoker.
[5:12] I like to run my briskets
at 225 degrees Fahrenheit.
[5:16] Pop my brisket on there.
[5:17] I'm cooking this on a pellet grill.
[5:18] I think it's a great
beginner smoker to use
[5:21] for your first time cooking a brisket.
[5:22] And because the heat from my pellet smoker
[5:24] comes from the bottom, I'm gonna
put this guy on fat side up
[5:28] to start, and then I'll
show you in the next step
[5:31] I'm gonna flip it fat side down to finish.
[5:33] I think it gives me a nice
even cook all the way through.
[5:36] My favorite woods to use
when smoking a brisket
[5:38] are a combination of
oak and cherry pellets,
[5:40] but you can use your
favorite wood at home.
[5:42] It's gonna be smoking
for such a long time,
[5:44] and it's such a low
temperature, you will be able
[5:47] to actually taste the flavor
in the pellets themselves.
[5:49] So choose a wood that compliments beef.
[5:52] Like I said, oak and cherry are my picks.
[5:54] Now, when you're a beginner,
I know it's tempting
[5:57] to want an exact time and
temperature for a brisket cook.
[6:01] I'm gonna give you my best estimation
[6:03] and then I'm gonna tell
you, add on two hours
[6:06] just to be safe.
[6:07] I usually plan about 90 minutes per pound,
[6:10] and that's trimmed weight.
[6:11] So if you trim your brisket
from 15 pounds down to about 12,
[6:14] you plan 90 minutes per pound.
[6:17] Your total cook time is gonna
come in around 18 hours.
[6:20] Now, your brisket might or
could possibly or will likely
[6:24] be done before that, but that is okay
[6:26] because we're gonna
build in some rest time
[6:29] at the end of our cook.
[6:29] So the seasoned brisket is
going on the smoker, 225,
[6:33] close the lid, let it go for
at least six to eight hours
[6:36] before you crack open the
lid and take a peek at it.
[6:39] We want our bark at this
point to be dark and crispy
[6:43] and crunchy, starting to develop
a lot of beautiful color,
[6:46] and we want our temperature
anywhere in the range
[6:48] of about 160 to 175.
[6:51] Once we've hit that target
with our temperature
[6:53] and the outside of our brisket
is starting to look the way
[6:55] that we want it to, I like
to wrap it in butcher paper.
[6:59] Butcher paper is untreated
paper that's perfect
[7:02] for finishing out this brisket.
[7:03] It holds in some of the moisture,
[7:05] but still lets that bark
develop on the outside
[7:08] without softening.
[7:08] I've also used unwaxed parchment paper,
[7:11] so not the waxed parchment
paper or wax paper.
[7:14] That would be terrible,
but unwaxed parchment paper
[7:18] has helped me out in a pinch
[7:19] when I didn't have butcher paper on hand.
[7:21] Our wrapped brisket is
going back on the smoker
[7:23] until it is done.
[7:24] Now, the range for finished
here can happen anywhere
[7:27] between 195 and 205 degrees fahrenheit.
[7:29] There's not one perfect
temperature for a finished brisket.
[7:32] What you're really looking for
is for your thermometer probe
[7:35] to slide in and out of that
brisket like it's sliding in
[7:38] and out of softened butter.
[7:39] Also, squish your brisket a
little bit, see how it feels.
[7:42] If it bends and gives
beautifully beneath your hands,
[7:45] your brisket's gonna be nice and tender.
[7:47] At this point, it's time
to pull your brisket
[7:49] off the smoker.
[7:50] I like to pull it off and let
it rest at room temperature
[7:53] for at least an hour before serving.
[7:56] This is where planning ahead
[7:58] and giving yourself a few extra hours
[8:00] of cook time is really valuable
[8:01] because if your brisket cook runs long,
[8:03] you've given yourself a grace period.
[8:05] If your brisket comes in on time
[8:07] or even a little bit short,
[8:08] you can extend the resting
period for many, many hours.
[8:13] It's really forgiving here at the end.
[8:15] If you do have to rest
for more than an hour,
[8:17] what I recommend is wrapping
your brisket in a towel.
[8:19] Don't use your favorite,
you know, bathroom towel.
[8:22] It will smell like brisket
for the rest of its life.
[8:25] Pick up brisket towel, that
is now your barbecue towel.
[8:28] Wrap it up in the towel,
pop it into a cooler
[8:31] or into an oven that has
been heated to about 170
[8:34] and then turned off and
let your brisket hold.
[8:37] It can hold this way for anywhere
[8:39] between four and six hours.
[8:40] I've even held them up to eight hours
[8:42] if it's been a really long rest time.
[8:44] I actually think the longer
the rest, the better.
[8:46] Three to four hours is my
sweet spot for resting brisket.
[8:49] So just a quick general
guide of how we cook briskets
[8:52] is I will trim, slather and
season at night, about 9:30,
[8:56] 10 o'clock, get it onto the
smoker before I go to bed.
[9:00] I do have alarms on my smoker
[9:02] to monitor the temperature
in case the temperature
[9:04] shoots up or down, it will wake me up.
[9:06] When I get up first thing in the morning,
[9:08] I get a good like, seven
to eight hours of sleep
[9:11] and I check my brisket.
[9:12] Typically at this time,
it's ready to wrap.
[9:14] So first thing in the morning,
I'm wrapping my brisket.
[9:17] After I wrap my brisket in
the morning, I close the lid,
[9:19] keep an eye on the temperature.
[9:21] It's usually finished somewhere
in the early afternoon,
[9:24] and at that point, I can let
it rest for quite a long time
[9:27] until we're ready to eat dinner.
[9:29] Okay, our brisket has rested.
[9:31] That means it is time to unveil and slice.
[9:34] I'm gonna give you a couple of quick tips
[9:36] for slicing your brisket
[9:37] because with all the time
that you put in to smoke it
[9:39] and get it ready, you wanna
slice it just right at the end.
[9:46] My gosh, look at that.
[9:50] That is a juicy brisket.
[9:54] I'm gonna save these juices.
[9:56] I'm actually gonna drizzle
them on after I'm done slicing.
[9:59] You can see how much this
brisket shrinks down.
[10:02] It is what it is, it's
part of the process.
[10:05] All of that fat has rendered
down to a delicious,
[10:08] gorgeous brisket.
[10:09] So, because we have the point on this end,
[10:12] the flat on this end,
[10:13] and there are two overlapping
muscles with grains
[10:15] that run two different directions.
[10:17] We have to slice them in
two different directions.
[10:19] So I'll typically take my knife
[10:22] and slice into my brisket
right here just to separate
[10:27] kind of those two main
chunks of my brisket.
[10:30] Look at that inside,
no squeezing necessary.
[10:35] That is a gorgeous, juicy looking brisket.
[10:40] So my point gets sliced.
[10:45] It gets turned 90 degrees
[10:47] before it gets sliced into
about pencil thick slices,
[10:51] and then my flat, I'll
just slice straight across.
[10:54] Same with the first cut that I made.
[10:58] This first piece on the end
right here is actually gonna be
[11:02] what I cube up, and these
kind of become my burnt ends.
[11:08] But also being the one
that smokes the brisket
[11:10] means that you get this magical privilege
[11:12] of taking the first bite,
[11:14] and this is always the best
bite, these caramelized,
[11:17] crispy edges of this point.
[11:24] That's money, that's how
you know you figured it out.
[11:28] This was a simple brisket.
[11:31] We didn't overcomplicate anything.
[11:33] Simple trim, simple seasoning,
simple smoking process,
[11:38] couple of tips and tricks,
[11:41] and you end up with a smoked brisket
[11:44] that looks like this.
[11:47] (upbeat music)
[11:49] Dripping juice, bending over the knife.
[11:52] So tender, but not totally falling apart.
[11:57] That is a backyard
brisket worthy of having
[12:02] all of your friends and family over.
[12:04] Now, this was a beautiful brisket.
[12:06] Not every brisket I've ever
cooked in my life has turned out
[12:09] this nice, and I will say,
practice brings improvement.
[12:13] So, hopefully your first
brisket turns out this lovely,
[12:17] maybe your second won't,
maybe your first one won't.
[12:20] What I don't want you
to do is give up, okay?
[12:22] Sometimes good things take
practice and they take time.
[12:26] Brisket is one of those things,
[12:28] but I am fully confident that
you can master the skills.
[12:31] If you wanna go even deeper
than just this quick brisket
[12:34] 101 tutorial, you can check
out the grillsquad.com.
[12:38] I have a full 30 minute
brisket pitmaster class
[12:42] that covers all of this and more.
[12:45] So if you wanna go deeper into the world
[12:47] of barbecue brisket, I've got you covered.
[12:50] If you have any more
questions for me about brisket
[12:54] or if you have any other ways
you cook brisket at home,
[12:56] leave a comment in the
comment section below.
[12:59] I do read all of them.
[13:00] I want to be kind of your
backyard barbecue guru.
[13:04] I wanna help you make
better barbecue at home,
[13:06] give you the tips and tricks
[13:07] and the confidence that you need
[13:09] to make really great barbecue
for your friends and family.
[13:12] So, leave a comment, I
would love to hear from you.
[13:16] I'm gonna enjoy this brisket
with my friends and family.
[13:19] Wow.
[13:21] We'll see you guys next time.
[13:23] That is beautiful.