My 1st smoked brisket

[WithoutAClue]

I want to thank all the posters here that have shared their knowledge
and wisdom on the fine art of smoking meat. Through reading this forum I
was encouraged to buy a smoker and learn how to smoke my own dead animals.

I thank you.
My stomach thanks you.
My guinea pigs, err, family thanks you.

Not that it went perfect...I had lousy temperature control and ended
up with smoker temperatures between 160 & 270.

This overcooked
the outside so some of the bark was really tough but most of the
meat was moist and tasted great.

Here is the final product:

Once I make some changes to the smoker I'll try again and hopefully
get a better handle on temperature control.

If any of you Bandera smoker owners have some tips for me, please
chime in. I need all the help I can get...

 

[NCAAFBALLROX]

:16 Starting to type...

When I can get the little one (1 year old tomorrow) off my arm, I'll help you.

:20 fin

:

:

 

[NCAAFBALLROX]

No punches pulled - that's nasty looking. I would have cut off the outsides & discarded before I showed it to anyone. The interior seems to be juicy enough, though, so that makes it edible.

Questions & possible solutions from a Bandera owner / user:

How large (what weight) was this cut? Where did you get your meat?

Was this a Packer Trim, i.e. full chunk of fat on the meat that you left on the brisket?

Did you let the meat sit out of the friedge for @ least 1/2 an hour or more before placing on the heat (in the smoke box)?

If it was a Packer Trim vs. Precut (fat cap removed), did you place it in the smoker fat cap UP or DOWN?

What rack did you put your meat on; i.e. bottom, middle, nearly top, etc.?

How much water (or beer or whatever you were using) did you place in the water pan? Nearly full, 3/4, 1/2, 1/4... ?

Were you in proximity of the meat the entire time? Did you EVER see a swing to a really high temp, i.e. over 400?

Did you EVER open the smokebox to look @ it or did you open it once, twice or more to take a look @ it's condition? If so, @ what time(s) in the process & for about how long?

How often did you go out & check on the temperature?

I will assume you were reading those temp ranges from the door mounted thermometer vs. an internal reading? 'Splain, please.

How long was it on the smoke?

Did you foil wrap & then oven heat it?

OR

Did you foil wrap & let it rest? If so, how long was the cooler based sit & how long was the "ambient air temperature" rest?

Here's a thread I did just after the 4th of July with photos; it shows my Bandera. I've been starting with a chimney as my propane tank is empty & I just haven't made it by to get it refilled.

Give me this info & then I'll possibly be able to help you out from there.

 

[WithoutAClue]

tough crowd..

From the top:

1) 9.75 lb packer from Randall's (Rancher Reserve ie. usda choice)
2) it sat out for 45 minutes before going on the smoker
3) fat cap up
4) middle of the smoker box (same level as the temp gauge)
5) filled the water pan to full, water only
6) highest temp seen was 270, never away for more than 10 minutes
7) never opened the smoker door
8) checked temp at least every 10 minutes
9) temp ranges were from the door mounted gauge (i suppose it could be off...)
10) smoked for 8 hours (internal temp was 185 when taken off)
wrapped in foil & placed in 225 oven for 90 minutes until internal
temp hit 195 (at the big end). rested for 30 minutes before slicing.

The bark was definitely over-done but the rest of the meat was moist and tasty.

Note: The advice I'm looking for is how to maintain a constant temperature
in a Bandera smoker since that is where I'm having the most trouble. I wasn't clear on that in the original post...

 

[Chooky]

While it doesn't look great, it looks much better than my first brisket. I've gotten better with practice, but still have a lot of room for improvement in the brisket department. Keep it up.

 

[NCAAFBALLROX]

W.A.C., your answers said you did pretty much everything right except for what I see are 2 critical areas that go hand in hand:

Brisket too small for that much time (as it is, I usually do a brisket in the 12 lb. range for around 6 hours max, then a 4 hour cooler 'self heat' + 30 minute rest).

As for keeping a consistent temp, we "full factory" Bandera owners are @ a disadvantage compared to a lot of other units due to the grate under the wood... it's too short & ashes build up, thereby stifling the air flow.

I'll post some info in a bit (short on time right now) about how to improve the unit - stuff I haven't done, actually, but should. The most important in my opinion is to raise your wood higher off the firebox floor & get away from the ash buildup for air circulation.

 

[mayberryrfd]

Rox...those pics make me hungry all over again. Looks good.

 

[DieUCLA98]

I thought the general rule of thumb of 90 minutes per pound at 225 degrees? And you are aiming for ~185 - 195 as a final internal temp?

Its hard to fathom developing such a tough, dark bark w/ no temp swings into the upper 300's (in my limited experience). What kind of wood did you use for smoke?

 

[flaco]

Yeah, my thinking is he used too much green wood for the smoking.

 

[WithoutAClue]

FBROX: Getting the wood off the bottom of the firebox was my first
plan of action after seeing the ash buildup. That should help a bunch.
I'm also thinking of welding up some of the gaps in the firebox to force
the air to come in though the firebox door openings and hopefully have
more control of how much air comes in.

DieUCLA98: From reading this forum, most people seemed to aim
for an internal temperature of 185-195 so thats what I was shooting for.
I smoked it for 8 hours since everybody here thinks that after 7-8
hours the meat does not take in any more flavor. As it turned out,
after 8 hours the internal temp was 185. I should have quit at that point...

I used seasoned Live Oak only (charcoal to get it started).

It is possible the temperature gauge on the smoker is reading low.
I'll have to figure out a way to check it.

thanks for the help so far guys.

 

[DieUCLA98]

My guess is the thermometer has a nut on the back that you calibrate the thermometer with. Get a mug of ice with some water in it and stick the end of the thermometer in and see what it reads. Or vis versa, use boiling water if the gauge doesn't go down to 32. Adjust the nut accordingly.

I was thinking he used a hardwood like cedar to smoke but apparently that is not the case.

Maybe your camera just takes dark pictures

 

[horn blooded]

That big piece on the left looks like you sliced it with the grain. I think there is a post around about slicing brisket that might help with the finished product.

I would also stay away from ashy woods like pecan. I use 2 parts oak to one part mesquite and the bark is nice even with temp spikes.

 

[NCAAFBALLROX]

I disagree with HornBlooded on the wood choice; typically, any fruitwood or nutwood tree is going to be a good choice & IMO Mesquite is a good direct grilling product but not smoking... There are others on here who say they smoke all the time with Mesquite, so I'll leave that to your own devices.
Using the Bandera, I've smoked up to (3) 12 - 14 lb. briskets exclusively over Pecan with great results & would do it again given the wood (I'm 99% Oak as that's what we have in abundance on the combined 30 acres between my place & my Mom's). I've also done a nice amount of Hickory when my Grandparents had a large tree go down on their place just outside of Shreveport, but that's been well past 2 years now.

One item I overlooked that UCLA touched on...

The THERMOMETER: The Banderas’ FACTORY provided thermometer has been reported by some users to be off by as much as even 75 degrees. DON’T count on that thermometer.

Get a couple of probe type thermometers with the stainless cords & drop the probes down through the stack. Run someting easy l ike a chicken through your unit & compare the digitals to the door unit. To double check the digitals, run them in your oven to make a comparison. I don't think you can run your door unit in the oven as the glass on the dial may not be rated for that kind of heat.

In a perfect world, you could run your door thermometer in the oven & check temps @ 175, 200, 225, 250, 275, etc. to see if the door unit is reading accurately. If your door unit is one of the "off by 75" problem pieces, you might have worked your meat for 2 or even up to 3 hours @ 300 degrees.

You can also use one probe for internal meat temps and the second for the temperature right at the meat level. Obviously, our Banderas are hottest at the bottom and cool up top. Unless your meat is right next to the tip on the door thermometer, the door temp may be 20-30-40 degrees different from the temperature from where the meat really is, although I've never really had much of an issue with this & often will work a single chicken or brisket in the top most rack with the (knowingly) mistaken idea that more smoke will be collecting up in the top vs. just a clean, straight draft right through to the stack.

If you do nvest in probe type thermometers (around $ 20.00 @ Linens & Things), insert one probe through a cork and use it solely for chamber temp readings. The cork allows you to move it around
& it’ll pretty much stay where you put it. Keep the tip of the probe away from the grates because they can translate heat through to the probe. Instead of a cork, some will put it into a potato to keep it in place (then eat the potato when they’re done with it.)

To some folks, the door thermometer, unless you have an accurate one, should be nothing more than a point of reference. I might also try rotating my thermometer so 250 degrees on the door guage puts the needle at the 12 o’clock position & I'll be able to get a decent idea of where it is from all the way across the driveway in the kitchen.

Brinkman makes a replacement door thermometer that some folks think is more dependable & accurate, although my unit has a New Braunfels branded unit (probably made by the same Chinese mfg. co. that makes 90% of the thermostats out there).

 

[WithoutAClue]

On UCLA's advice I tested the door thermometer last night by putting the sensor
in boiling water. It read 210 so the thermometer is pretty close.

I did have a probe thermometer but the probe died the first time I smoked
a chicken...

I guess I'll get another one.