12 Brisket Mistakes Everyone Should Avoid

I’m not a hater, but I spent at least 40 yrs cooking on the the 250 gallon tank your standing in front of and been in many cook offs. And now use a pellet grill, and from my experience. I can cook on anything, the process, the wood or the pit isn’t the difference. The experience is what makes it, your all wrong and off. Only the undereducated would give you credit, experience is the teacher in ALL situations.

I have been BBQing for 20+ years. I am talking I do burgers and franks wieners, to pork butt, briskets, spare ribs, short ribs, Tri-Tip, reverse sear steaks, etc. I have cooked on 500 gal smokers to doing jerky in a modified filing cabinet (lol) I’ve used every type of wood imaginable and currently smoking a brisket on a pellet grill as I type this. This guy is more than legit. This guy probably just gave a decades worth of experience in a fluent straight forward video. He covers every single basic of BBQ as well as goes into the depths of knowledge that is usually only learned from screwing up, which is the best way to learn. Doubt anyone will see this comment on a video this old, much less the creator. But if anyone is trying to get into BBQ and is worried they are going to mess up. Don’t worry. You are for SURE going to mess up. But have fun, drink beer, order pizza if it’s that bad, and try it all again the next weekend. Lastly, listen to this guy. Keep it simple stupid.

00:09 - #1 Cooking at the wrong temperature. 01:47 - #2 Using the wrong rub. 03:16 - #3 Not allowing enough time before the food needs to be served. 04:24 - #4 Not allowing brisket to rest long enough. 06:38 - #5 Making changes that are too big between smokes. 08:14 - #6 Looking for the wrong signs in your brisket. 08:54 - #6.1 Color 09:11 - #6.2 Bark 09:36 - #6.3 Evaporation 10:16 - #6.4 Fat Render 10:39 - #6.5 Temperature 12:45 - #7 When spraying a brisket, don't spray the fat. 13:08 - #8 Over or under smoking the meat. 13:54 - #9 Wild temperature spikes 14:57 - #10 Getting low-quality meat. 16:30 - #11 Wrapping improperly. 17:13 - #12 -Improperly trimming your brisket.

I've been smoking meat at home for close to two decades. Before that I was an accomplished grillman. Like most of us I've ruined a lot of product trying different methods to smoke. These videos are informational and entertaining and I never fail to learn something from the Pit Master. One thing about BBQ folk, they'll tell you exactly how to do it but you still have to pay your dues to get the results you want. It's like fly fishing...you can watch all the videos and take lessons but you still have to get out there and do it. You have to pay your dues to get great.

This young man is growing on me. Wasn't sure about his videos at first, but now I've watched about 10 of them and he really does know what he's talking about. Keep it up young fella!

I watched this twice in a row to try and soak it in. This is the most informative and helpful brisket video I've seen yet! Great job and thank you!

This is hands down the most informative and best video on Brisket that I've seen on youtube or any other platform!!! And I've seen a lot of them!!!! Thank you so much for sharing your knowledge with us. You got yourself a new subscriber! Keep up the good work and god bless!!!

I made a brisket for mothers day. Got a 15 lb prime full packer brisket from Costco for 66 bucks. Trimmed 2 lbs off and rendered the tallow; the extra little bit of meat I threw in the freezer to throw in a crock pot next time I make a roast. Salt and pepper (half course half fine, made a great bark). My brisket was planned for about 13 hour cook (my first brisket was 3 hours late. I was not going to repeat that frustrating family situation) Have no idea how, but it was done 6 hours early. I wrapped it and put it in a cooler lined with towels. After about 3 hours, the temp dropped to under 170, so I threw it in my oven on 170 with a water bath below it. Took it out 30 min to rest before serving. This was my second brisket I've ever smoked, and I am happy with the result, although I see many things i could improve. My family loved it. It was tender and juicy, but the flat could've been more tender. I think it couldve went for another hour. A key thing I learned: Next time I will separate the point and flat. My point was at 207 when my flat just hit 170. This is partly why I pulled it so early (got the flat to 195), I was getting worried about that point. I will cook them separately next time to avoid this problem. Also, the corners of my brisket were like beef jerky (very small area); almost a non issue, but I'll probably try and round it into an oval shape rather than a square next time. I didn't have time to dry brine it before smoking, and literally took it out of the vac pac, trimmed it, rubbed it, let it sit for 45 min, and threw it on. I was actually surprised how well the seasoning penetrated in that short amount of time (the cook time not the 45 min lol), but I will probably dry brine it for a day or two next time to see if it makes it more tender. Also, a good tip to not over smoke your meat or have it go bitter is to manage your smoke color. It should be invisible, you should just see the heat waves/mirage effect coming from the pipe. A white or thick smoke is a big no. The color of your smoke depends on your smoker, your, wood, and the oxygen inflow and outflow. You can learn to regulate it pretty easy once you get to know your smoker/grill. I appreciate your interest and attention, and wish you the best in all your future cook!

Great tips! I'm cooking my first brisket tomorrow and this helps immensely.

That was an excellent presentation. Very well presented, informative, covering what really should be taken into consideration if you are going to attempt to make a brisket worthy of the time and effort! This level of preparation is no different than baking a cake. Leave out a couple of steps, or skimp on the ingredients and it's just not going to be right. This should be as much fun to make as it is to eat. Thanks for taking the time to explain so that any level of cook can understand and hopefully apply what you have laid out as a road map to making a great brisket!

Hey Jeremy, just got into the world of smoking. My wife bought a $20 Weber smoker at a garage sale. I cleaned it thoroughly and fixed it up. This weekend, I made pork butt and select brisket (yes, I attempted brisket on my second day of smoking). Both turned out phenomenal. I watched your videos several times over and followed your advice. It turned out great. Would love to send you a pic for your opinion. Again, thanks for the clear, thorough videos. They really helped.

This is one of the best videos I've seen on any topic in a while. Real suggestions, no longer intro, clear but quick speaking voice, covered different smokers, just awesome content!

I’m getting ready to smoke my first brisket. I’m glad I found this video.

Such great tips!! I am about to go for brisket #10 and have for sure made at least 1 of these mistakes on every cook. This is super helpful and I appreciate you pros putting out this advice. Thanks again and happy smoking/bbq to all the rest of you smoking beginners like myself!

really good tips! i especially like the idea of extended rest time and making small, gradual changes. great video. thanks!

I love your channel, everyone else just goes over recipes and don’t show you what to look for. You have taught me a lot and my backyard bbq game has improved greatly because of the way you teach. Keep it up thank you!!!

I was so glad to hear you say a 10 or twelve hour rest is ok! That's been my default for the 3 summers I've been smoking brisket! And real truth about the Therma Pen and Costco briskets!! Great video! Thanks!

Such great content! Your teaching background really shows man...I love watching all your videos and have learned tons. Thank you!!

This was the most helpful bbq/brisket video I have watched yet. Thank you!

This is one of the best and most informative videos I’ve seen on a brisket and smoking in general. As I sat here listening I was thinking of things I’ve done, should of done and things I should definitely have not done. Less than a year experience smoking on my end so this was very helpful. Looking forward to smoking my first brisket this weekend.