Baby Brisket question..

[fishinchik]

In a moment of weakness, I snatched up the only two pieces of brisket they had at my local supermarket.  I should have held out until tomorrow and went to my butcher and got a normal size.   This will be my first brisket ever,  and I'm going to do the basic salt, garlic, black pepper and chili powder rub as prep.  MES 30 on 225 with Pitmaster's Choice Amzn Pellets.  Plan is to take them to 170 then foil, finish to 190 before toweling/cooler.

Both pieces are under 2 lbs and have very little fat cap left on them.  I figure if nothing else, they will make good sammies so I'm going to use them as a trial run. 

I am on the fence whether to mop with apple juice or not since they are so tiny.  Is it even worth opening the smoker to mop?  Any other suggestions on how to compensate for the small size?

Thanks in advance!

 

[kc5tpy]

Hello.  I would only use salt and pepper.  Thought being if they become sammies will be ok but dry, and if you pull this smoke off will be GREAT brisket.  Size isn't all it's cracked up to be. 

 Your problem as I see it is no fat.  Briskets need fat.  British brisket is probably trimmed even more than yours.  Breaks your heart.    I am tempted to tell ya to forget it and braise that brisket.  But we ain't gonna do that exactly.  I 'm gotta tell ya now I don't follow rules except when they apply to food safety.  I don't know what smoker you use.  Run that smoker as high as you can get it. Have a good TBS flowing.  Salt and pepper that dry brisket and slap it on the smoker with a drip pan under.  Mop it or spray to keep the outside moist.  Get the IT to 140 within 4 hours.  Once 140 IT is reached, pull the brisket,  Cover/wrap in bacon. Double wrap in foil and add the pan drippings and some cooking liquid ( Chef JJ has several good 'uns ).  Stop the smoke and braise the brisket from here.  Keep Smokin!

Danny

 

[skipatc]

I'm going to piggyback onto this thread because I have a similar situation and I was wondering how to cook it. Although a 7-9 pound brisket was available to purchase, there's only me so that makes for a LOT of leftovers. I settled for a small 2 pound brisket with plenty of fat left on. I'll try what KC5PTY recommends and post up my results when I'm finished.
 

 

[fishinchik]

I'm going to piggyback onto this thread because I have a similar situation and I was wondering how to cook it. Although a 7-9 pound brisket was available to purchase, there's only me so that makes for a LOT of leftovers. I settled for a small 2 pound brisket with plenty of fat left on. I'll try what KC5PTY recommends and post up my results when I'm finished.
 

Hi skipatc,  your welcome to share my threads anytime.

I can say from personal experience,  the smaller ones are NOWHERE near as good.   They made nice BE's but the one I tried to slice was not worthy of bragging about.   The most important thing is to make sure it has the fat cap.  That's where mine flopped.. lack of moistness.  Lesson learned for me..

You mentioned left overs... a vacumn sealing food saver is a lifesaver for the smoking population.

Let us know how it turned out for you.