 >On another note.  Seems like I heard you say one time your pit keeps a
real
>high humidity level cause of the large amounts of meat you do at once.
>Sorta confirming this after a tour of Dickeys..which uses the large
>commercial pits too..not sure of the brand..but it did seem mighty wet in
>there..and the fella swore he didnt use no water. Now would this moist
>environment be something us shade tree Q'ers need to be trying to duplicate
>on our home pits? Like perhaps introducing a water pan on a log burner?
>Notice some of the high dollar cookoff pits use this feature. For instance
a
>person I know got a pit which holds 50 gallons in some type container under
>the cooking grates.  Now I makeshifted and tried this a time or two on
>Fred..and it sure did add some moisture and moderated the temp way to the
>low sides.. but feel like it cut back on the flavor quite a bit..and the
>bark was non-existent.  Whats a mother to do on a deal like this?
>
>bigwheel


The high humidity levels will be hard to duplicate on pits that don't
naturally cook that way.  True, I did once say that cooking large amounts of
meats in the cooking chamber produces much more natural humidity than just
cooking a few pieces. And this is very true.  Ten 10 lb. briskets will
produce about 40 lbs. of moisture in one form or another.  However, the lay
out design of ones pit and its' efficiency is what holds the natural
moisture and humidity in the pit. I know that lots of folks feel that by
being able to attain a cooking temperature of 225-250 degrees with a two log
fire in an 8 ft long pit is quite a feat.  However, my pit attains this
also...but the cooking chamber is about 2 1/2 to 3 times larger.  Now that's
efficiency, and it makes a big difference in retaining the humidity in the
cooking chamber.  Why?  Because a fire that small in a cooking chamber that
large has a very low air draw (draft) throught the pit and stack, therefore
allowing the humidity and moisture to stay in there and play with the meat a
lot longer.  Plus the draft doesn't just go from one side to the other,
pounding the meat with the hot draft, like most off-set rigs.  In my store
pit, the air draft goes to the top of the pit, then rolls forward to the
front doors, then out the bottom.  It operates on the down-draft principle.
The meat is, in a way, circled in a halo of heat and smoke.  I call it a
soft heat vs. the harsher heat flow of a lot of pits.  One can add a water
pan to their pit, and it certainly doesn't hurt anything.  However, I've
seen it do absolutely no good in most off-set wood burning pits because the
hot air draft travels straight through the pit and up the stack, carrying
the humidity from the water pan with it. It just doesn't have enough time to
hang around long enough to do any good, plus it's path is too direct and
simple.  

Being able to hold onto the natural humidity that is created by the meats is
the real secret, vs. trying to artificially create it.  It's by far the best
way.  That way, you create a naturally beautiful, tasty bark, a great meat
texture, and superb flavor.  

Danny
www.dannysbbq.com
==============================

Brisket tips Danny then a little something by me on CAB Brisket
=

25 Aug 1999
From: dgaulden@caverns.net (Gaulden, Danny)
Subject: Why Brisket Can Kick Your Butt

Have been concerned about all of you that try to take off a brisket,
etc. by temperature alone.  It might work, and then again, it might not.

Here's why.

First of all, you have to imigine a brisket on my pit.  I cook them with
the fat side up, and with the flat towards the front.  Most, but not all
briskets have a nice thick side on one side of  the flat with a 1/4" fat
cap,
then taper down to a  thinner side with very little fat cap.
Sometimes, the butcher almost scoops out all the fat on the tapered side,
and this is bad.   IBP, even though I like their briskets, are bad about
doing this.   On occasion I have gotten briskets that were nice and thick
all the way across the flat, and had a good fat cap the entire duration,
but that is not the norm.

I did an extensive "temperature check" in different parts of the first 4
briskets I pulled off the pit today, and here's how the cards fell...
The thick part of the flat (all of the 4 had a nice fat cap in that area,
and
that is normal for most packer briskets)  when stuck about 2-3" deep
(I went in horizontally into the front of the brisket flat) with an accurate
thermometer, read about 190-193.
Moved the thermometer over 2 to 2-1/2" horizontally into the flat, and took
another reading (getting into the area with little fat cap, if any) and the
thermometer
reading was 183-184.
Moving on, took a reading in the point, and it read about 200, if the fat
cap
was heavy in that area, and the point was well marbled.  These kind of
variations can really confuse a novice bbq cook.  However, these readings
are nothing new to me, but didn't know if I'd written a post in past years
about
this particular area in cooking, or not.  If I have, then maybe some of you
needed a refresher course.

If one is using temperature readings to take off a brisket, or any
other cut of meat, it is critical.  Not a hit and miss thing, but critical.
Especially if you are in competition cooking, or wanting to be a hero at
your family get together.  I think a lot of folks think that 5 or so isn't
important,
for maybe they are thinking about how temperature affects THEM....
one really can't tell a lot of difference between a humid 90 day vs. a
humid 95 day...it's just hot.   Well, let me tell you something,
your meat CAN tell the difference.  It can make you, or break you.
5 degrees can make the difference between a nice tender brisket,
and a tough one.  On the reversal...5 degrees over cooked, and you
have a dry, crumbly piece of meat.

A good expample would be if one checked the temperature of a brisket in
the fatty point area, and it was on 190.  Maybe he or she may think,
"oh, that's tender, it's on 190, therefore, it must be about done".
Afraid not Charlie.  The flat may only be reading about 180 at that
point in time, and tough.  Or, on the reversal, one checks the lean part of
the flat and it reads 190, the brisket may be over cooked.

I know this is confusing to a lot of you, but trust me on this.  Always
check for temperature in a brisket in the thick, fat capped, flat area, not
the point.

The point will always get done before the flat, if your pit is cooking
EVEN!!!!

Don't worry about the point getting done too soon.  It won't dry out.
The fat cap and marbling in the point will keep it nice and tender and juicy
till the flat is done.  I personally guarantee it.

The only way to avoid all of this worry on temperatures is to learn the
fork tender method on YOUR pit.  All pits are different and have different
feels when the meat is done.  This simple takes a lot of cooking and
practice.

Hope this post helps some of you on to the road of better Q'ing.
       Danny
www.dannysbbq.com

When he thinks the brisket is done, (we cook ours with the fat side up,
flat to the front), he puts his thumb about 1-1/2 to 2" over the fat side
of the flat, near the center, and his middle finger on the bottom (lean)
side of the flat, directly under his thumb, and presses in.

If his fingers start to penetrate the meat, especially on the lean side of
the flat,
he knows it's done.

He said that if it wasn't done enough, the meat would feel kinda like a
piece of rubber, and not "give way".

All I can tell you is that the brisket is still very sliceable for plate
presentation.
Will have to try this myself tomorrow when we are cooking.
   Danny
www.dannysbbq.com

=x=x=x=x

 Doug,

 Great price on CAB brisket, I am of the opinion that there is a noticeable
 difference between select and choice brisket, and a smaller, but still
 noticeable, difference between choice and CAB. The place where I buy
brisket
 carries choice only, but on the rare, and I do mean rare occasion, gets in
a
 load of CAB, in fact, he called me last week to tell me he had packer cut
 CABs on hand and I bought 4 and froze them. To me, and there has been much
 discussion both pro and con, the CABs turn out just a bit more tender and
 moist than others, as the CAB have a higher degree of internal marbling
than
 standard.

 Now dont get me wrong, it is perfectly possible to smoke a standard grade
 brisket to Cooperific perfection, the CAB is just a bit more fool-proof,
 which is not a bad thing.

 As far as rubs for brisket, I can go a couple of ways depending on my
mood.
 (Not unlike the sex life of a Texan) I often use a somewhat herbal rub
with
 lots of heat, k salt and fresh cracked pepper, or simply go with k salt,
 cracked pepper and a bit of ancho or chipotle or even cayenne for color
and
 heat. If you go the simple route, which I would suggest, especially if you
 have a CAB brisket. You might want to add a bit of garlic and/or onion
 powder, but dont go overboard, especially with the onion powder.

 On a 6-lb brisket you wont need all that much rub, start with a 2/1
ration
 of kosher salt/coarsely cracked black pepper and add a bit of the chile
 powder, garlic and onion, but dont overdo the rub.

 Let the natural brisket goodness shine through.

 On the temp, 195 is a good indicator, but as I said before, only an
 indicator. Poke that brisket, does it WaBa WaBa? How does it smell, is
there
 a slight sheen, does a meat fork go in with little or no resistance?
Though
 dont overdo the fork business, you dont want a brisket that looks like
 Uncle Umberto worked them over with an ice pick. <G

 Just remember, a brisket is done when it is done, you cant rush the
brisket
 and each and every one is different.

 Have a good time, relax, open the WSM dome as little as possible, just let
 the brisket alone, it will be fine without you. <G By the way, be a bit
 more judicious with the mesquite than you were with the hickory, you can
go
 from a subtle tang of mesquite to slightly bitter fairly quickly.

 Regards

 Smoking in Chicago,
 Gary



