# brisket membrane



## ScottyDaQ (Sep 4, 2007)

[smilie=a_hrm.gif]  [smilie=a_whyme.gif]


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## Bruce B (Sep 4, 2007)

First I've heard of it.


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## LarryWolfe (Sep 4, 2007)

Jefr,
    Are you referring to the random little streaks of what I would call "silverskin"?  Not necessarily a "membrane"?  If so I have scrapped them off if I feel like it, other times I haven't messed with it.  I've never really noticed a difference one way or the other.  

If that is not what you're referring to, I don't have a clue either.


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## Bbq Bubba (Sep 4, 2007)

Ain't no membrane on any brisket i've ever cooked, better check your butcher!


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## boar_d_laze (Sep 4, 2007)

It's nothing that's going to hurt you.  But, it's a good idea to remove anything of which you don't like the looks or are unsure. The bit of grayish white transparent membrane is, in fact, "silverskin."  It normally cooks and contracts at a slightly different rate than the meat below, detaches from one end, and curls up into a tight ball which falls off in the cooking, or carving, or gets swallowed hole.  

Nevertheless, it does occasionally stay with the meat, and as part of thorough prep, it  can and should be trimmed off.  Use a small sharp blade like a petty (paring knife) or boning knife.  Just grab it as much as possible by the end with your off hand, and cut under its entire length, pulling it back as you do so.  Don't worry about taking a quarter ounce of meat, you can afford it.     

Rich


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## john a (Sep 5, 2007)

Your link takes me to a book authored by Jamie Purviance, not Jim Minion. Nor can I find a brisket recipe? Maybe it's me?


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## boar_d_laze (Sep 5, 2007)

Your welcome.  

I'm interested in your take on this recipe.

BRISKET STEP BY STEP

Shop, Trim, Marinate, Inject, Rub, Smoke, Rest, Carve, and Serve.

Shop:

Purchase a "packer cut" whole brisket, Choice or CAB if possible. At the very least try to get better than Select grade. If you've got a selection available to you try to buy between 9 and 11 lbs, with white fat, as marbled and pliable as possible. (After cooking, anticipate 40% waste of untrimmed weight.) 

Trim:
(10 minutes)

If you've got a butcher you trust have him trim the fat cap to 1/8" to 1/4", but tell him not to trim down to red meat. If you're reasonably proficient with a large knife go ahead and trim yourself. Try and leave the thinnest possible, but fully intact fat cap. If that sounds like it might be too difficult, forget trimming the fat.  Turn the brisket over, so the lean side is up.  Check for large flecks of fat, or pieces of thin, gray-white membrane.  Use a small knife to remove them completely.  

Marinate:
(30 minutes - 24 hours)

In a pan just large enough to hold the brisket, make a marinade of 3 tbs each of red wine, Worcestershire sauce and extra virgin olive oil. Slosh the brisket around in the marinade, making sure all surfaces are moistened. Allow the brisket to marinate at least 1/2 an hour at room temperature, or as long as overnight in the refrigerator. During that time the marinade will mix with the beef juices and partially coagulate into a syrup. This is desirable. Turn the brisket over occasionally during the marinade period.  Reserve the marinade while injecting the brisket.

Inject:
(45 minutes)

1 cup beef stock or broth
1 cup wine
2 tbs Worcestershire
6 cloves garlic, peeled and smashed, but not chopped
4 tbs salted butter, very cold, cut into 4 pieces.  Or, substitute flavored oil for some or all of the butter.

Reduce the stock by half. Add the wine, Worcestershire and garlic. Reduce by half again.  Strain through a tea strainer or cheesecloth to remove any solids that might clog your injectorâ€™s needle, return to heat, bring back to a simmer and remove from heat.  Add the butter 1 tbs at a time, whisking each piece in just as the previous piece has melted from the residual heat.   Mixture may thicken as the butter forms an emulsion.  
Fill an injecting syringe with the mixture and inject the brisket. Make many small injections, rather than a few small ones, as large injections will puddle rather than disperse.  No matter how careful you are when you inject, the injecting fluid will squirt out from the meat in totally unexpected places.  Hilarious but messy.  Less clean up, if you clear a large area on your counter and work in a large sheet pan.     

Rub:
(15 minutes)

1/2 cup Morton Kosher salt
1/4 cup sweet paprika
3 tbs coarsely fresh ground black pepper
2 tbs smoked paprika, or mild chili powder, or 1 tbs ground chipotle chili
1 tbs granulated garlic
1 tbs granulated onion
1/2 tsp dried sage
1/2 tsp dried thyme

Mix all thoroughly.  Refresh the surface of the brisket with the reserved marinade.  Cover the brisket generously with rub. If the fat cap is untrimmed, don't bother using rub on that side.


Smoke:
(12 to 20 hours)

Prepare your smoker to run between 225 and 275. I prefer 275, but your realtionship with your smoker is what it is, and it will do what it will do. Don't make yourself nuts by trying to make it do something that's too much trouble for you. If you're using a small offset use water, a water-wine mix, or beer in the water pan. If you're using a WSM, use sand or some other dry material. If you have one, use a digital probe type thermometer, placed as close to where the meat will go to monitor cooking process. 

When the smoker is prepped, place brisket in the cooking chamber, fat side down. If you have one, insert the probe from a digital thermometer to keep track of internal temperatures.

Smoke over red oak if possible, but nearly any of the usual smoke woods will turn out well.

Do not open cook chamber door for three hours. After three hours, flip the brisket over fat side up. If your cooker runs uneven temps from side to side, rotate the meat as well. Replenish the water pan. Continue replenishing water pan every three hours. If necessary rotate the brisket at those times.

Figure total cook time according to average chamber temperature and weight of brisket. 225 deg - ~2hrs/lb. 275 deg - 1-1/4 hrs/lb or a bit less. Stop adding smoke wood chunks or chips at one half of estimated time or when meat reaches internal temperature of 145, whichever comes first. If you're buring sticks or logs for heat, don't worry about it. You're cool. 

Some people wrap when the meat hits 150. If not sure whether or not you should, you probably should. If so, wrap in aluminum foil. Before sealing packet add a little bit of the injection mix to the pack plus a rough chopped onion. (I don't wrap, but that's me). Return the brisket to your 'cue.

When the brisket hits an internal temperature of 185, remove the wrap and return the brisket to the smoker, continue cooking until brisket reaches an internal temperature of 195. 

It's likely that during the cooking process, somewhere above 150, continuing until up to 185, the internal temperature increase will slow or stop. This is called "the stall." It's common with whole butts or picnics and almost universal with brisket. It's normal. Don't worry about, be patient. Temperatures will rise. 

Wrap:
(5 minutes)

When brisket reaches 195 (or 190 if it's still stalling) remove it from the cooker, wrap it in saran wrap (not aluminum foil) and set it in an insulated cooler just large enough to hold it. Pack the cooler with wadded newspaper to fill the remaining air space. Cover the cooler and make sure the cover is closed.

Rest:
(2 - 6 hours)

Rest for at least 2 hours, and up to 6. The extended rest is part of the cooking process. Don't shortcut it.

Carve:
(20 minutes)

Separate the point from the flat. If you have a substantial fat cap, trim it. If the flat splits into two pieces with a layer of fat between them, separate the pieces and completely remove the fat. Cut one of the flats in half, cutting against the grain. Carve an interior piece, about 1/4" thick and taste it. If it wants to fall apart or is very, very tender you'll be carving thick slices. If it's tough, you'll be carving thinner slices.  1/4â€


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## wittdog (Sep 6, 2007)

*Re: recipe*



			
				jefr said:
			
		

> The recipe seems awsome.  Very well layed out. The flavors sound great. I will be saving a copy!! One suggestion would be to generally specify the type of wine to use in the injection.(assume red)
> I have never heard anyone be adamant about not using foil for the rest wrap. Can you give the reasoning behind this?(I've always used foil).
> Do you find the marinade step in addition to the inject step to be necessary?


I don't want to speak for boar-d-laze...(No way I could type that much anyway  )..but I'm guess the saran wrap insetead of foil has to do with the reflective properties of the foil...you'd actually cook the brisket more in foil...or for keeping the moisture in...I'm sure he'll chime in..just speculating here.


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## Chiles (Sep 6, 2007)

This is the kind of recipe I like.  Showing timing, and even beverage suggestions.  Way to kick things up a notch.
I'm firing this up on my my WSM this weekend.


-Chiles


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## boar_d_laze (Sep 6, 2007)

Wine suggestion for the marinade:  

There's a California winery called Charles Shaw (really owned by a huge corporate winery, Fronzo).  Shaw makes a series of varietals collectively known as "2 buck Chuck" here in California.  These  wines are made from surplus grapes, some of them bought from growers/vintners who produce more than they choose to bottle.  Shaw blends them in order to keep the varietal flavors as consistent as possible from batch to batch.  In this, they're fairly consistent.  Shaw manufactures in a huge, streamlined facility with much economy of scale, much stainless steel, not much handmade artisan stuff.  They retail their wines for $1.99 all over the State, through Trader Joe's -- hence the name.  FWIW, 2 buck Chuck is the official State wine.  

2 buck Chuck are perfect cooking wines.  Cheap, good enough to drink in the kitchen, and they put clear, varietal tastes in the food.  

Of the reds, I'm not a big fan of Merlot generally.  Too soft.  Too punk.  Ladies' wine.  The Shaw is just as obnoxious as most, and maybe more.  I prefer the Cabernet, the Pinot, but most of all the Shiraz for cooking.  It has the most grape, and the most fruit.  If you're not using Chuck I'd suggest blended "reds," Barolos, Syrahs, Zins, Barbs, Tintos.  

On saran wrap over aluminum foil:  Try it and tell me what _you_ think.   You wouldn't think it makes a difference but it does.  Credit where credit is due:  I learned it at a Paul Kirk class.  One of the few things I still use.   

Rich


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## ScottyDaQ (Sep 6, 2007)

BDL, You mentioned adding different liquids to the water pan.... I've always read that it doesn't make any discernible difference to the meat...only in the aroma coming out of the top. Thoughts behind this please?


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## BBQcure (Sep 6, 2007)

I find that Siran wrap is not thick enough and has a tendancy to melt/tear. I find using extra thick plastic wrap stands up better. jmho

Tim


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## boar_d_laze (Sep 6, 2007)

Scotty -- I think the difference in taste to the meat between using flavored liquids like beer and just plain water is subtle.  And after the first hour or two, there's no benefit.  Like you said though, these liquids make the backyard smell good.  

Tim -- Saran vs ... I haven't had any problems with the plastic wrap I use, which is the stuff that comes on 1,000' rolls from Smart and Final.  I call it "Saran," but it isn't, and yes, it's stronger than Saran.  When I do the book, I'll remember your tip and steal it without attribution.  What a guy, eh?

Rich


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