This time I got a very lean single-muscle piece of brisket. About 5 lb. I used the same rub as before. I started it on Friday morning at 8:45 am.

At 12:15 pm (after 3.5 hours) it was at 145 F.

At 6pm (9 and 1/4 hours) it was at 158 F.

9 am next day it was at 175 F.

11 am next day (after more than 26 hours) it was at 195 F.

It was tender but dry. At a BBQ store it would be classified as "extra-lean". We ate it all, it was good enough to eat.

My second attempt at BBQ brisket was a miserable failure. I bought a very small piece (1.6 lb) of lean brisket and cooked it straight on the griddle. In 4 hours it only reached about 150 F and after 8 hours it reached 175 F. At that point I gave up and took if off. I cut into it and it was dry and chewy like a shoe leather.

My first attempt at BBQ brisket. I wanted to find a very fatty brisket for my first attempt and I found one at The Meat House in Austin. Almost $5 a pound is a bit expensive for brisket, especially considering it's mostly fat, but what wouldn't I do for the science. Sigh.

I used the same rub as I used for my pork ribs. I let it soak into the brisket during the day in the fridge and then smoked the brisket overnight. Final time was 10 hours. It was a bit too long for such a small chunk of meat (just over 5 pounds) and the final temperature was 210 degrees F. The books recommend 195. This did not hurt the brisket, though. It was plenty juicy and tender. I did struggle with cutting off the fat. A big chunk of the brisket was also the part where meat fibers are well covered with fat. I did not eat those parts. I carved out the solid meat pieces. So, while certainly successful, this was not an inexpensive experiment. I maybe got 1.5 pounds of top quality beef out of 5.2 pound chunk of brisket that cost me $23.

To watch the temperature I got this very cool and inexpensive gadget at IKEA. For only $6.99 it doubles as a timer. I liked it so much I got a second one.