Need Holiday Brisket Smoking Advice

[BillF]

Hey everyone,
I know it's a long shot that I'll get a response on Christmas Day, but here's to hoping for a Xmas Miracle.
I'm currently in the process of smoking a 5lb brisket in a vertical style propane smoker. I was planning on smoking for around 8 hours at about 225 degrees Fahrenheit. Unfortunately, I am not able to get the smoker to get over 190 degrees, even with the propane on full blast. It's an older smoker so I don't think it's sealed really well and we're getting about a constant 20 mile per hour wind and below freezing here in Pennsylvania which I think is really cooling off the whole unit. I can't find a good place to move it where it would be out of the wind. I was considering putting in some charcoal to get it warmed up but I do not currently have any and unfortunately everything around is closed.
So, my plan at this point is to smoke it for as long as possible to get a good flavoring and complete the cooking in the oven (everything I'm reading is calling for an internal temp of around 190). Dinner is planned for 4pm, so that only leaves me another 4 hours at this point to get this done (I can push it back a bit if need be). Just wondering if anyone has done this before. If so, any advice on how long I would need to put it in the oven for and what temperature to set it at. Thanks for any and all advice that you can give me! Happy Holidays!

 

[Rings Я Us]

good luck!

MERRY CHRISTMAS!

 

[tallbm]

Hi there and welcome!

Get as much smoke on it as you think you can then pull it, wrap in foil, and throw it in the oven at 275F oven temp or higher. Don't worry the brisket won't be hurt by higher temps. Crank it up higher if you are pressed for time.

When the brisket gets to 198-200F internal temp (IT) start poking it with a toothpick and if it slides in all over with no resistance it is done. Cook until it tells you it is tender NOT to a specific temp.

Also if you want to throw a little liquid of some kind in the foil with the brisket as you wrap it then that may help braise/tender it up. I always have old leftover wine in my fridge I use for cooking (white wine at the moment). I throw a good couple of liberal splashes and let it rock and roll. Broth or even a little water will be fine as well.

When it is done letting it set for a couple of hours or more is great if you can do so. Resting is a step that many people skip and I think their brisket suffers from it.

Just get on all this ASAP as you don't have much time. If it doesn't come out perfect you can always chip it and serve with BBQ sauce... this is actually my favorite way to have brisket :) Best of luck!

 

[BillF]

Awesome! Thank you for your quick response and advice. I think I'll get at least another 2 hours of smoking done and then swap it to the oven. This cold windy weather here is just killing me. I see you're from Texas, I just moved from Austin about a year ago. Weather is much better down there for smoking, I'm missing it this time of year. Have a happy holiday!

 

[mike5051]

Merry Christmas! Good advice from tallbm.

Mike

 

[Rings Я Us]

Merry Christmas! Good advice from tallbm.

Mike

Yes.. I erased all my advice.. pretty much what Tallbm said. No sense in 2 people with any conflicting information confusing people.

 

[tbrtt1]

+1 on tallbm’s advice.

 

[tallbm]

Awesome! Thank you for your quick response and advice. I think I'll get at least another 2 hours of smoking done and then swap it to the oven. This cold windy weather here is just killing me. I see you're from Texas, I just moved from Austin about a year ago. Weather is much better down there for smoking, I'm missing it this time of year. Have a happy holiday!

No problem :)
I hope it all turned out well and yeah weather in TX in the winter is a bit easier to deal with than many other places so I see how you would be missing it this time of year :)