Brisket Choices

[MINIgrillin]

Thank goodness I know someone with 2500 tree pecan farm

[Jammato]

well then, if you have the resources, I PMed my Ph #

now let us get back to the thread

[Jason]

I don't mind a little tread jack    as you guys are still providing solid info!

I actually still have an offset, barrel smoker that I bought at BBQ Galore about 10 years ago. It seems way more heavy than the ones at Lowe's or HD. I have cooked a lot of ribs, shoulders and chickens on that thing and have it very wired....using lump and only lump. I want to get my, new to me, WSM just as wired. This brisket cook might not be the first on the new smoker, but will happen pretty soon

Another possibility might be to get the whole one, cut apart & do the pieces on different cooks....save a few bucks & get two cooks for one purchase?

Ultimately, this is what I think will happen, thanks! @1buckie

[Jammato]

Jason I know of that smoker, and it is a good smoker, it is a coal burner, a stick burner is set up to burn wood. I actually had that smoker till I got my Lang reverse flow. I think part of the success of that model is the heavy gauge metal what it lacks is a reverse flow (IMHO) which would make it a really great smoker.

I think I learned more about charcoal using that BBQ Galore smoker than anywhere else, mine was temperamental if using cheap charcoal both lump or briquette.
I have loaded that smoker with 60 pounds of meat and the load smoked good, a bit uneven but good. The Lang cooks like a dream as far as even, but it has the one thing that all stick burners have, a big firebox that can consume fuel.

The thing about stick is that unlike charcoal the flavoring resins are still in the fuel, not burnt out during the charcoaling process. (briquettes can have them reintroduced) so you need a good light smoking fuel. mesquite would blow your taste drums out and be way to bitter. A lot of guys use oak over hickory, or even pecan which is lighter than hickory. And use fruit woods also such as apple and cherry.

Living in SoCal I found the cost of hard wood and fruit woods getting more and more prohibitive each year. So I sold the Lang, I never won any big cooks anway. I went back to what I knew, Weber kettles and a Santa Maria style setup for large cooks. I love that setup.

Anyway, that is one reason I stopped trying to do competition cooks, the other was the fact that more and more guys are turning up with computer controlled pellet, or self loading charcoal cookers, which in my mind is taking the MASTER out of pitmaster and putting CYBORG in. I prefer to control my cook.

I started using flats also, unless I wanted to do burnt ends. I love prime, but once again what we used to be able to buy dirt cheap 10 years ago is now very popular as guys buy more and more of it to smoke at home. Choice does good also, the secret is basically being able to pick your brisket, the flop test is a good test. I think some choice will be better than prime when using the flop test to choice them.

Brisket is one of the supreme test of a Grillfellas ability to have patience and do it correct. and choosing the brisket is part of that. Do the flop test.

[1buckie]

the other was the fact that more and more guys are turning up with computer controlled pellet, or self loading charcoal cookers, which in my mind is taking the MASTER out of pitmaster and putting CYBORG in. I prefer to control my cook.

Brisket is one of the supreme test of a Grillfellas ability to have patience and do it correct. and choosing the brisket is part of that. Do the flop test.

^^^^^^^^  THANK YOU for those two things !!!!!

I don't mind a little tread jack    as you guys are still providing solid info!

I actually still have an offset, barrel smoker that I bought at BBQ Galore about 10 years ago. It seems way more heavy than the ones at Lowe's or HD. I have cooked a lot of ribs, shoulders and chickens on that thing and have it very wired....using lump and only lump. I want to get my, new to me, WSM just as wired. This brisket cook might not be the first on the new smoker, but will happen pretty soon

Another possibility might be to get the whole one, cut apart & do the pieces on different cooks....save a few bucks & get two cooks for one purchase?

Ultimately, this is what I think will happen, thanks! @1buckie

How much per pound are they? Each?

....just curious......I can get a Select to sit up & bark, but the extra per # on this could still easily be worth it for the extra marbling......

[Jason]

How much per pound are they? Each?

These are from the Costco in Carlsbad.

Prime -Whole (untrimmed) $4.49lb
Prime-Flat (trimmed) $10.99
Choice-Flat (untrimmed) $7.99lb
Choice-Flat (trimmed) $8.99lb

This is what I remember from the quick look I had.

[1buckie]

Geez.....

Prime -Whole (untrimmed) $4.49lb
Prime-Flat (trimmed) $10.99

More than double........even if a person was independently wealthy, that's a no brainer.....

It's kind of like paying yourself to get practice trimming at that point !!!!

A few years ago, something like this was  $1.09/# as brisket used to be termed a dud piece that most people wouldn't mess with.....as early as last year, still around $2.00.......

[Johnpv]

A choice flat trimmed is like $16lb around here.