This is my first brisket on my traegar I got last fall. Rubbed the night before with meat church holy cow, heath riles Garlic butter and black pepper. Smoked at 225 til it hit 185f then wrapped and smoked til 205. Rested for 6 hours in a cooler wrapped in towels.
The meat is insanely tender, pulls apart so easy. A tad drier than I hoped but not enough to make it an issue.
I think I may have left it on a bit too long, or maybe trimmed it too much? Didn't wrap it tight enough? Some combination? Definitely not upset with thr result but any advice is appreciated.
by smiles20110
11 Comments
Hey! It looks like you posted an image!
If this is a photo of one of your cooks, maybe share the recipe and techniques
used, as it’s almost guaranteed one of the first questions you will be asked!
*What seasoning did you use?
*How long did you cook it, and at what temperature?
*Did you use any special tricks or techniques?
Traeger on!
*I am a bot, and this action was performed automatically. Please [contact the moderators of this subreddit](/message/compose/?to=/r/Traeger) if you have any questions or concerns.*
Trim trim trim.
IMO the most important part of brisket cooking is how you trim it. Leave too much fat will take longer to cook and be greasy. Too little and it’s dry. My hot take is you probably trimmed a scoche too much fat off.
That said for a first brisket that’s a very solid job and you should zero percent be disappointed in yourself. Well done chef. You’ll get it nailed down in no time.
I would try wrapping at 165 instead of wrapping at 185. You have a great smoke ring and color for your brisket.
Honestly looks pretty good for your first one. Brisket is one of the hardest meats to perfect because it’s just a huge chunk of beef. Try a couple of different tweaks for your next one like not letting it run too long before you wrap it and maybe try spritzing
Instead of going to a certain temperature, you should be going for probe tenderness in the flat. It should slide in like warm butter with no resistance. Was this a select, choice, or prime brisket?
Looks quite dry.. maybe leaving some fat on top or around where available might help.
Did you do fat side up, or fat side down while it smoked?
I just did one recently that came out really similar and I did fat side down, so I may switch it up next time.
Nice bark and smoke ring. Needed a spritz and if wrapped earlier and would have been sopping wet.
If its tender thats still a W in my book. 🫡
Did you cook this fat up or fat down? I always cook any meat with the fat facing the fire. So on my Traeger & kamado it’s fat side down & fat up on my offset.
My results improved immensely.
Much more tender and a lot more moist.
Did you take it off the smoker and immediately wrap in towels and put in the cooler? If so, the brisket continued to cook at 205. Make sure to rest on the counter first. The cooler is to keep it from dropping to room temp if you plan on eating it 6 hours later.
Brisket chili is really good to make if you’re not happy with it. Best chili you’ll ever make. Lol
Shorten the rest and pull two degrees earlier at 203(make sure it’s probe tender, that’s what really matters). I like to wrap around 193 as well and it comes out perfect