Brisket has been a part of many different countries’ cultures, but it has become one of the most popular foods in the United States due to its tenderness and flavor. But what makes brisket taste so good? And why is it so popular?
Most briskets are so tasty as they are smoked to perfection. This allows the brisket to stay juicy and become incredibly tender. Brisket is also generally cheap, can easily feed a crowd, and is pretty easy to cook, which makes the brisket a popular cut of meat.
What should you consider when preparing and cooking a brisket, as these factors help determine the flavor of your brisket? We will cover this question and more in this article, so keep reading!
Why Does Brisket Taste So Good?
Beef brisket is an extremely popular cut of meat. It is generally used for smoking as it makes the meat incredibly tender. Brisket is a lovely cut of meat that comes from the cow’s lower chest or breast region.
The brisket cut of meat includes the cow’s deep and superficial pectoral muscles. This part of the cow supports about 60% of the cow’s body weight while the cow is standing and moving around. This means that the cow’s brisket is a well-used muscle and has a lot of connective tissue.
A well-used muscle is a tough muscle and is generally chewy and not easy to eat. This can confuse many people about how smoked brisket can taste so good as it’s supposed to be an undesirable cut of meat.
Well, brisket tastes as good as it does due to the spices used to marinate it and the method used to cook it. Most briskets are smoked, which breaks down the connective tissues in the meat and makes it so tender it almost falls apart on its own, and it helps the meat stay juicy.
Smoking the brisket also helps deepen the flavor profile of the meat, as the wood you use to smoke it with will help flavor it.
Smoked brisket is also generally flavored with a lovely spice mix that complements the flavors of the brisket and the wood used to smoke it. This further rounds off the meat’s flavors and makes the meat incredibly delicious.
Why Is Brisket So Popular?
So, brisket might taste good when prepared correctly, but that can’t be the only reason why this cut of meat is so popular, right?
Beef brisket is a popular cut of meat-based on more than just its flavor. It is known as the poor man’s cut of meat as this cut tends to be cheaper than most others of its size. Beef brisket is also big enough to food a large number of people.
This makes brisket perfect for big get-togethers with family and friends, as you can fill everyone’s tummies with great-tasting meat for less money. Briskets are also easier to make than most people realize.
Yes, it takes a long time to cook them, but you don’t have to watch the brisket the whole time it’s smoking.
You can get your smoker ready with the wood chips, ensure it’s at the correct temperature, place the brisket in your smoker, set a timer, and leave it to cook. These factors and the fact that brisket tastes delicious are why the cut is so popular.
Factors That Help Determine The Taste Of Brisket
Even though brisket generally tastes good and is lovely and tender, there are a few key factors that will help determine the flavor of the brisket you have.
These factors will change depending on your personal preferences, but you need to be careful as they can greatly impact the brisket’s flavor once it’s cooked. Let’s go through these factors so you can ensure you have the best-tasting brisket possible.
How You Prepare The Brisket
How you prepare your brisket will determine how flavorful it is when cooked. You need to trim your brisket correctly or have it trimmed by your butcher.
This will ensure that there is not too much fat on the meat, making it unpleasant to eat but still leaving enough fat on it to help keep the brisket juicy. The spice mix or the marinade you use will also impact the flavor of your brisket.
Using a spice mix that’s too salty or not made for brisket could cause your briskets flavor to change, and it won’t taste how you expected.
How You Cook The Brisket
The method you use to cook the brisket will determine the flavor of the meat. Most people recommend smoking the brisket, which is the best way to ensure it comes out delicious, tender, and juicy.
Some people cook their brisket in the oven, which can still be a tasty brisket, but this cooking method can cause the brisket to dry out faster. Brisket cooked in the oven is generally served with a BBQ sauce to try and help the brisket seem juicy.
When you smoke a brisket, the type of wood you smoke it with can influence the taste of the meat too. Most people use hickory, red oak, or cherry wood, as these deepen the flavor of the meat well.
The Length Of Time Your Cook The Brisket?
The length of time that your cook the brisket will impact the flavor profile of the brisket and how nice the brisket is to eat. If you don’t cook your brisket for long enough, this will not allow the connective tissues in the meat sufficient time to break down, making the brisket chewy.
If you don’t smoke your brisket for long enough, the smoky flavor won’t penetrate into the brisket, making the flavor less full.
The Quality Of Brisket You Buy
When looking for a brisket to smoke, you need to buy a quality one as this will impact the flavor and overall enjoyment of eating the meat. Additionally, you need to look for a brisket that has good marbling throughout, as this will help keep the meat juicy while it cooks.
You should also opt for the bigger brisket, as the bigger the cut of meat is, the more flavor it will have. So, you should always try to buy a brisket that is 12 or 13 pounds. If you are comfortable trimming the brisket yourself, you should buy a whole packer.
This will provide you with extra control over the trimming of the brisket and help you get the best flavor from your meat.
Final Word
Brisket is a tasty cut of meat due to the way it is prepared and cooked. Smoking a brisket has become a favorite pass time for many people, and it’s easier to do than you might think.
If you are uncomfortable doing it yourself, as many things will help determine the flavor of the brisket, you can have a professional smoke it for you; then, you will always have a delicious cut of meat.
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- Why Is Brisket So Expensive?
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- What To Do With Tough Brisket?
- Can You Rotisserie A Brisket?
Sources
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Brisket
https://www.foodandwine.com/meat-poultry/beef/brief-history-brisket