Grocery store butcher gave me a tip about brisket trimming

I was at Publix last Tuesday getting stuff for a family dinner. The butcher saw me staring at the brisket and said "you're gonna trim off too much fat, I can tell." He walked me through leaving a quarter inch on top. Tried it for the first time this weekend. The meat came out way juicier than my last 4 attempts. Anyone else get random tips from store employees that actually work?

3 comments

3 Comments

jake63823d ago

Did you leave the fat cap on while you cooked it too? That quarter inch trick works way better than trying to trim it clean.

christopherwilson22d ago

Funny you mention that quarter inch trick, I had a buddy from New Jersey who swore by it and he'd leave it on even when he was smoking brisket. He'd say leaving the fat cap on was like a security blanket for the meat, kept it from drying out no matter what you did. That reminds me of the time I tried to smoke a pork shoulder on a Weber kettle during a snowstorm, ended up having to wrap it in a sleeping bag just to keep the temp steady. Anyway, yeah, I left the fat cap on and it turned out juicy, but I think the real secret was just not overthinking it too much.

ward.jamie11d ago

Hey that sleeping bag trick is wild, I've done some dumb stuff to keep temps stable but never thought of that. So seriously though, did you ever try cooking that brisket with the fat cap completely off? I keep going back and forth, I did a flat once without it and it turned out like shoe leather, but I also had a buddy who trims his packers down to basically nothing and they come out perfect. Makes me wonder if it's more about the quality of the meat or if some people just have better luck with their smokers. What was the fat like on that sleeping bag shoulder, did it render down nice or did you end up with a greasy mess?