Blueridger
New member
Friends,
I picked up my first pellet grill, the elx4, about a month ago, and am enjoying it very much. However, I am having trouble slow-cooking a brisket so that it is fall-apart tender. I tried my first, a four pound flat cut, several weeks ago using the flat cut recipe in the app. The app indicated that it would be ready for resting in 4-6 hours at 250, but after about eight hours (and lots of pellets), it wasn't close, measuring by temperature. I cranked the temp just to cook the thing, and about nine hours in I called it. The flavor was great but the texture far from it.
So, two days ago, I went all in on the slow cooking. I seasoned a four pound flat cut with salt, pepper, etc. for several hours in the 'fridge, then put the meat on the grill about 10:30 p.m. at 205 (I was worried about running out of pellets over night, and I almost did; outside temp was 25 degrees). I turned the temp up to 230 about 8:00 a.m. and the internal temp hit 165 about 11:00. The bark also looked great. I removed the meat from the grill, coated the meat with barbque sauce, wrapped the meat in butcher paper, and put it back on the grill. The temp hit 200 about 2:00 p.m. - total cook time was 14-1/2 hours. I removed the meat from the grill and placed the still-wrapped meat in a small, dry cooler until we ate about 6:30. The meat was only warm so we put each serving in the microwave for about 30 seconds - that heated it up nicely. The meat was much more flavorful than the previous version, and moister. Still, it wasn't pull-apart great like I can get in a barbque joint.
So, what could I haver done differently? Start it at a higher temperature? Start it even earlier and keep it at 200? Somethinng else?
Thanks!
Steve
I picked up my first pellet grill, the elx4, about a month ago, and am enjoying it very much. However, I am having trouble slow-cooking a brisket so that it is fall-apart tender. I tried my first, a four pound flat cut, several weeks ago using the flat cut recipe in the app. The app indicated that it would be ready for resting in 4-6 hours at 250, but after about eight hours (and lots of pellets), it wasn't close, measuring by temperature. I cranked the temp just to cook the thing, and about nine hours in I called it. The flavor was great but the texture far from it.
So, two days ago, I went all in on the slow cooking. I seasoned a four pound flat cut with salt, pepper, etc. for several hours in the 'fridge, then put the meat on the grill about 10:30 p.m. at 205 (I was worried about running out of pellets over night, and I almost did; outside temp was 25 degrees). I turned the temp up to 230 about 8:00 a.m. and the internal temp hit 165 about 11:00. The bark also looked great. I removed the meat from the grill, coated the meat with barbque sauce, wrapped the meat in butcher paper, and put it back on the grill. The temp hit 200 about 2:00 p.m. - total cook time was 14-1/2 hours. I removed the meat from the grill and placed the still-wrapped meat in a small, dry cooler until we ate about 6:30. The meat was only warm so we put each serving in the microwave for about 30 seconds - that heated it up nicely. The meat was much more flavorful than the previous version, and moister. Still, it wasn't pull-apart great like I can get in a barbque joint.
So, what could I haver done differently? Start it at a higher temperature? Start it even earlier and keep it at 200? Somethinng else?
Thanks!
Steve
I normally go for 250 as well. I think you'll still get enough smoke flavor at that temp.
