Before I talk about brisket- the hummingbirds are here! I’ll have pictures asap! Now onto the story.
The first brisket I cook on the grill in the Spring is a little like Christmas was to me when I was a child. I’m giddy the day before and can’t wait to get started in the morning. In the year 2022 April 1st was this day. To add to the excitement we learned we’d have 8 instead of 5 coming to dinner (more people is more better in my book!). The brisket was a success but there were issues.
The Tool: The morning started off rocky and I’m still having a bit of a love/hate relationship with the Meater thermometer. In the morning, I couldn’t make the connection from the thermometer to the charger. I put the meat on the grill anyway. It took a few minutes of fiddling and I got both the app and the thermometer connected to the charger and put the thermometer into the brisket. I’m still not entirely sure what the problem was (and that’s a problem)
Not straying too far from the charger (which stays near the thermometer) takes some getting used to. You definitely do not have 165 yards as advertised, unless perhaps you are walking in a straight line away from the charger, w/no line of sight impediments. I haven’t tried that. The morning was smooth sailing because I sat inside the house working and the grill (with the charger) was right outside my window. I could glance at the app to see the temperature rising slowly – exactly what you want right? But if I took my phone to the kitchen or the mailbox I lost the connection. The good news is the minute you walk back into range it picks up where you left off. I ended up changing the battery in the charger in the afternoon, picked back up where we were, and my leash got a little longer. Note they offer some tips for extending the range which I haven’t tried.
The Fire: Keeping a charcoal grill at a low steady temperature for hours can be a challenge for a novice like me. I used the Weber Snake method. It wasn’t the first time I tried it and if I try it again, I’ll make some adjustments as I’ve never been completely successful in lighting the whole snake.
After about 3.5 hours (brisket temperature 120 degrees) I took the brisket out to wrap it. About half the snake was ignited and the applewood chunks were smoked. But the temperature in the grill was too low to finish it, so I got more charcoal heated, lit the other end of the snake, put the brisket wrapped in foil back in, and set the app for 195 degrees. It hit 184 and stopped (was it the grill or the thermometer?). I put the brisket in the oven to hit 195.
The Human: I should have tested the Meater more before throwing the meat on the grill. I’ve been testing it everyday this week and so far so good. I sweated the process instead too much instead of focusing on finishing the meat. Next time, depending on the fire, I’ll take the brisket off the grill when the temperature starts dropping, wrap it, finish it in the oven, and not worry about adding more charcoal to the grill.
The flavor was amazing and it was pull apart moist. We fed 8 wonderful people and had the best of times.
