Brisket

A short brisket story.

As of 2022 I’ve made brisket 5 times for Thanksgiving. First two times I tried smoking it on the grill, didn’t work out so well as it came out tough both times. The third time I used a Sous Vide. With the Sous Vide I cooked the point for about 8 hours and then finished it on the grill for about 2 hours. It turned out OK, but not as good as I wanted.

In 2021 while visiting Rosie McCaffrey’s for lunch I was lucky enough to know the bar manager and she asked their cook how he makes their Thursday brisket. He gave me a cup of the seasoning he used (a mix of garlic and onion powder, salt and pepper). He cooks their brisket in the gas oven they have. He seasons the brisket Wed. morning and let it rest all day. When they closed the kitchen at night (11pm) he would put it in the oven at 225 until he came in at 11 am.

Followed his process and it came out great. Everyone in the family loved it. I used the same process to make a brisket for an office pot luck and it was another success. Will be using it this year as well, this time I’m changing the seasoning. Purchased some Original seasoning from Kent Rollins.
https://kentrollins.com/product/original/

Process

• 1 packer brisket trimmed (point and flat with hard fat trimmed off, about 10-15 lbs)
• 1 cup or more of your favorite seasoning / rub.
• A pan large enough to hold the brisket
• 4-12 hours before cooking season brisket, let rest in refrigerator.
• 1-2 hours before cooking place brisket on counter and let come to room temperature.
• Warm oven to 225F
• Cover the brisket with foil or another pan, cook for 6 or so hours.
• Remove cover, cook for another 4-6 hours (should be able to pull meat off easily with a fork)
• Remove brisket from pan, wrap in foil and let rest for 1-2 hours (I use a soft sided cooler)
• Pour pan drippings into a large container, place in freezer for about 15 minutes to allow grease to separate.
• Remove grease from drippings, use drippings to make sauce or gravy.