# cooking me a brisket



## resurrected (Aug 19, 2015)

I'm going to cook my first brisket and from all I've read it really needs some fat on.

Has anyone had brisket from Booker?

On the website it looks totally trimmed of fat. A 4.5kg whole rolled brisket is £25.00.













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Or Barrons of Bolton do a packer brisket for £31.50, minimum weight 3.5kg.













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What do you reckon guys?


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## wade (Aug 19, 2015)

Although others like a lot of fat left on, I actually completely trim my briskets before smoking. It smokes open for 3-4 hours before being foiled for the remainder of the smoke. The fact that it has little fat on it should not be a problem. The problem with the meat in that photo though is likely to be its thickness. Before you smoke it you should first unroll it, but that meat does not appear to be very thick. It also looks as if it has a second thinner piece of brisket wrapped around it to make the diameter of the roll bigger.


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## kiska95 (Aug 19, 2015)

My Butcher mate recons he can now buy silverside cheaper than Brisket these days!!!

The Booker trimmed brisket is about right at £5.55 per KG but the Barrons of Bolton is a bit OTT @ £9.12 he is more expensive than the London boys ( T & G  and Hixons) and the guy in Bury, Albert Matthews they are all at £8.10per KG  Mind its a bit small for a packer cut as they are normally around 6KG.


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## resurrected (Aug 19, 2015)

kiska95 said:


> My Butcher mate recons he can now buy silverside cheaper than Brisket these days!!!
> 
> The Booker trimmed brisket is about right at £5.55 per KG but the Barrons of Bolton is a bit OTT @ £9.12 he is more expensive than the London boys ( T & G  and Hixons) and the guy in Bury, Albert Matthews they are all at £8.10per KG  Mind its a bit small for a packer cut as they are normally around 6KG.



Is your butcher mate any closer to deciding if supplying us wonderful people is something he would do?


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## kiska95 (Aug 20, 2015)

Hi Mate,

Yes he is really keen and has already supplied Gav iscon a full brisket and Savaloy's, its just the postage logistics to sort out. Any one in that game of delivering fresh foods?. T & G is just a cardboard box with loose foam liner and 3 Ice packs

Just got some Bookers Belvedere Meaty ribs 4 in the box @ 10KG for £26.99 and they are massive. Now compare T & G single 2.5kg rib for £20.00! now it might be Gloucester Old spot but with a 24 hour rub marinade and BBQ sauce as a glaze would you be able to discern the difference?


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## resurrected (Aug 20, 2015)

I'd have to empty the freezer of all of Lesley's veggie food to get those in :devil:

Your butcher can use Royal Mail 


Should be able to withstand a journey of up to 48 hours. Use 1st Class as the minimum service. Must be suitably sealed to prevent leakage or tainting of other items such as in sealed vacuum packs. Must be packed in a strong corrugated board box or purpose designed polystyrene pack. The sender’s name and return address must be clearly visible on the outer packaging.

But I'd guess the postage would initially be expensive. However if it became a goer he could set up a contract with RM and rates are (or at least were) much better.


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## kiska95 (Aug 20, 2015)

Thanks Paul that's good info.

I know the T & G stuff came to me with the bottom dropping out! The courier had to put in a plastic bag as one of the ice bags had melted and leaked but to honest their packaging was very poor just a brown cardboard box with some expanded foam inside but they were going down the recycling route after all!!!

Stuff I have had from Scotland however, salmon etc. always came in well sealed polystyrene boxes and were never an issue


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## resurrected (Aug 20, 2015)

Also check out Parcel monkey https://www.parcelmonkey.co.uk

I used them a lot when I had my business. Your mate will have to put dummy specs in. It would then give him loads of couriers and prices, by choosing them he'll find out there T&C's.


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## kc5tpy (Aug 20, 2015)

Paul.  This is a difference between U.K. brisket and what the guys back in the States cook.  The 2 CAN NOT be compared!  2 TOTALLY different cuts of beef at point of sale.  Then there are 2 different schools of thought on cooking a brisket.  What are you trying to achieve?  I have to put it this way:  are you looking for the British version or the U.S. version  One has NOTHING to do with the other!  TOTALLY different!  IF you are talking Texas style brisket versus U.K. style brisket.  Texas is KNOWN for brisket as some other States are supposed to be known for ribs.  So what is it you want to do?  Keep Smokin!

Danny


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## kiska95 (Aug 21, 2015)

Hi Paul,

I can see what Danny is trying to say albeit going off point but I agree and disagree somewhat LOL!

From info I have gleaned from my UK butcher pals they buy their briskets in vac packs in 20KG boxes where almost all of the fat has been trimmed. They further trim off any remaining fat plus any connective tissue from the flat and roll it as its very unattractive as a oblong lump of meat. It sells around £6 to £8 per KG and in their eyes and that of the housewife lean neat sells, fat does not!

It is probably going to be used as a pot roast for the housewife but I buy that same flat trimmed brisket for making pastrami or salt beef (corned Beef), where fat is unwanted. Now my pal is telling me that he can buy in Silverside cheaper than Brisket now. Its the same with pork, its more expensive for ribs and belly than for other cuts. Makro are selling Australian silverside @ £5.86per KG!

In the US they know fat is flavour therefore the more of it the better (think Kobe Wagu) therefore they are happy to have meat with loads of fat, hence the "packer cut".  This  starts out with the brisket on the bone including the plate. The plate is cut off and the rib bones removed including the curved breast bone. It is then "packed" without much trimming, which is what you buy a "packer cut".

Now I agree with Danny that USDA meat is totally different especially their grading (and taste), Black Angus, Prime, Choice and Select and even standard grades. This grading is all based on "Fat Marbling" with black angus and prime being more abundant and standard devoid of fat. Invariably all that we buy is standard to select as the "UK wants lean Meat".  Where I disagree is to get the better cuts (select and choice) like in the US we have to get local butchers to cut from the bone. Now as most don't, this is why the likes of T & G, Hixons and Matthews thrive with on line supplies as they are big enough to hold meat on the bone in greater quantities than your local butcher.

Now if you think that the "UK Packer cuts" that are now being sold to us with fat intact, the savvy online butchers are now getting paid £8 to £10 per KG for his waste trimmings too.

So the key is buy big, buy on the bone and get it cut to your spec


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## resurrected (Aug 21, 2015)

A great post Kiska :points:

I found the below on wiki. One shows US cuts and one is UK cuts.













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## kiska95 (Aug 21, 2015)

Here is an interesting post from POP's in the US about Brisket

In the US it is illegal to roll non-contiguous muscle groups together to form a roast, they all have to be connected*.  Even in a rump roast, we used to trim off some bottom flap and tie into the 'hole' left from the aitch bone to fill in the roast; inspector saw me doing it and stopped me (didn't get a fine, tho, my dad had taught me that and he understood, as that was the "way it used to be done")..  Amazing how they will try to get money out of a cut; the brisket as a rolled roast would be tougher than nails!


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## kc5tpy (Aug 21, 2015)

Hi kiska.  Great post!  I am glad you caught what Pops said.  That comment came from my thread on U.K. brisket.  He was asking about that "extra" piece of unattached meat in the centre of the rolled brisket I bought at the local supermarket.

I have explained this a few times to our U.S. members.  The fat content.  AND "joint" size.  I have done a LITTLE research.  I am no expert but I THINK this all came about in the U.K. because of the war and rationing.  I have lost the link now but have a look on Google in some way about prize winning black angus pictures from back in the 40's'50's.  During rationing folks could get VERY little beef; if any.  SO! if they "pushed the boat out" for a special occasion they wanted BEEF!!!  NOT FAT!  Understandable.  NOT paying for a bone either!!!  THEN! After the war, folks didn't have much money so they bought smaller joints of beef.  STILL little money and ain't paying for fat or bone!  AGAIN!  Understandable.  If I can't eat it I ain't paying for it!  The producers responded by breeding smaller cattle.  IF you see the picts I did of "Champion" Angus or Hereford; their back was about hip high to a 6 foot man.  Fully grown, market ready cattle!  That is what sold.  NOW! a market ready Angus has gone back to it's roots and his back stands ALMOST shoulder high to a 6 foot man.  As kiska said producers and butchers do what ever sells!  That's a no brainer for them!  Of course they would.  Then the whole "fat is bad for you" thing started ( I am not saying you need to eat it; just cook with it ) and health conscience which backed up the whole idea and HERE WE ARE!  Just my thoughts.

Danny


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## kiska95 (Aug 22, 2015)

Yep Danny you are in a way correct but there was a more definitive reason for fat less meat during the war that lingered on after the war during rationing.

"It turns out that fat is good for more than introducing flavour and moistness, it’s also pretty good for making bombs. During World War II, handing over cooking fat to the government was doing your duty.

In America "The American Fat Salvage Committee" was created to urge housewives to save all the excess fat rendered from cooking and donate it to the army to produce explosives. fats are used to make glycerine, and glycerine is used to make things blow up.

Fats were also needed in higher quantities for industrial and military use. For example, the Navy used lard to grease their guns, so the butchers handed it over.


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## kc5tpy (Aug 22, 2015)

Great info Buddy!  I did not know that!   After reading your post; makes sense!  Of course fat and lard was needed for the war effort!  Never thought of it before.  Thanks for the details and opening my eyes.  Keep Smokin!

Danny


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## jockaneezer (Aug 22, 2015)

...and lard was often required in that other old Navy tradition [emoji]128514[/emoji]


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## red robbo 69 (Aug 22, 2015)

You must mean swimming in cold seas, right


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## kiska95 (Aug 23, 2015)

Stiffening the Main Brace I think he means.


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