Old timer at a local shop taught me something about trimming briskets I still use

I stopped by a place in Kansas City about 2 years ago to grab some steaks. The guy behind the counter must have been 70 years old. He saw me eyeing a brisket and asked if I needed help trimming it up. I said sure. He pointed at the fat cap and said "stop cutting off so much, leave a quarter inch or it'll dry out." Simple thing but I had been taking off way too much for years. Has anyone else had a random tip from someone that just stuck with you?

2 comments

2 Comments

bailey.sam1mo ago

Is it really that big of a deal though? I mean, I get the logic behind leaving some fat on so it doesn't burn up, but I've been scraping briskets down pretty bare for years and they turn out fine... maybe not as juicy as a competition brisket but still pretty good. I think that old timer was just used to doing things the old way where people didn't have good temperature control or whatever. I'm not saying he's wrong, but I wouldn't lose sleep over taking off an extra eighth of an inch or something.

robin_foster11mo ago

Huh, that's a good point but I think there's something else going on here nobody's talking about. In my experience, how you trim a brisket depends a lot on what kind of smoker you're using. That old timer might have been cooking on an offset with direct heat where that fat cap really protects the meat from drying out. But if you're using a pellet smoker or an electric one with indirect heat, you can get away with trimming it closer because the air isn't blasting the meat directly. Your mileage may vary of course, but I've seen folks ruin briskets by taking too much off on the wrong kind of pit. So it's not just about temperature control, it's about knowing the personality of your specific cooker.