I’ve done that once but I think I rushed it. That bark is hellacious! I make a really tasty tender brisket but bark is weak. I do wrap wit butcher paper and sometimes foil but even when I’ve skipped the wrap it’s nowhere near what you’re getting. What’s your secret?
Thanks!
I cook at higher temps....225 is too low and takes too long. I try to keep the grate temp for chuckies between 275 - 300 range and wrap when the bark is firmly set. Don't wrap when it hits the stall, unless the the bark is set. By firmly set, it should pass the "scratch test" i.e. if you scratch it with your fingernail and it rubs off, it's not done. A good bark means that it adheres to the meat and wrapping should have no effect on the bark, once it's set. If you inject, pat the meat dry, (bark sets better when it's not damp), don't spritz or anything like that. Just throw it on the smoker and don't peek until it's hits 165-170 and has that great bark.
After it has set, I use butcher paper, on occasion, but my go-to is to stick the meat in a disposable foil pan, (preferably the one that's been sitting under the meat), and cover it tightly with foil. If there's not enough liquid, I'll add a 1/4 cup of warmed beef broth to the pan. At that point I don't use the temp probe anymore. I choke the smoker down to ~ 250 and, 2 hours after wrapping, I'll probe the meat, (through the foil). If it goes in like butter, it's done.
As you can make tender briskets, you probably don't need me to tell you this, but I will anyway. One of the most critical, (and often overlooked), steps is to let the meat rest. By rest, leave it in the wrapped pan for a minimum of one hour. At this point I'll stick a remote thermometer probe in, just to make sure that it stays in the safe food temp zone above 140. Since you have a great bark anyway, it won't have much affect on it. If you need to rest it longer, Google "Faux Cambro" I always start early. It's better to rest the meat for hours, than have a bunch of hungry people sitting around waiting for the food to be done. That, and it's much easier to time the side dishes.
For brisket, I quit doing them low and slow. I do them hot and fast now. Basically, I crank the smoker up to 375 and follow the steps above. Fat side should be place towards the heat source, if possible. It cuts hours off the cook time and, as you can see, I get a great bark and tender brisket. My recommendation is to only use a whole packer
PRIME brisket. I imagine that you don't make it too often, so might as well get a really good one. Most Costco stores have them, and they're reasonably priced. There's no substitute. It's impossible to get the same results with a lesser grade brisket. Trim most of the fat off of it, (which kills me because I end up trimming an average of 3-4 lbs off of a 12lb brisket), but that's okay because you can freeze the fat to lube grill grates, or render it make tallow. That's because a good bark doesn't form on fat. Rub does not penetrate fat. Surface fat does not "baste" the meat.
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