Hit 200 briskets on my old offset and the last one was still a fight

I've been running the same smoker for 8 years now, a beat-up Old Country Brazos. This weekend, I pulled off brisket number 200 and it still took me 14 hours, with a 3-hour stall at 160. I thought by now I'd have it down to a science, but it still feels like a gamble every single time. Anyone else have a cut that just never gets easy, no matter how many you do?

2 comments

2 Comments

mia5925d ago

Man, that hits home. My first smoker was a hand-me-down offset and I swear I never got a single easy cook on it. Every brisket felt like a hostage negotiation with the firebox. You'd think muscle memory kicks in, but the weather changes or the meat feels different and you're back to square one. It's weirdly comforting to hear someone else still wrestling with it after all that practice.

noahhall5d ago

Remember my neighbor's smoker that caught fire?