When is beef brisket done

For pot roast, or for corned beef — which is usually made by salting a brisket — that typically means braising or simmering. You'll cook the brisket in a slow cooker, roast pan or Dutch oven in some kind of liquid, usually broth or wine for a pot roast or well-spiced water for corned beef. In the oven, it'll take 2 to 4 hours for your brisket to become tender, depending on how large a piece you're working with. In a slow cooker, it might be 3 to 4 hours on high, or twice that on low.

If you're smoking your brisket, plan on it taking a lot longer. In a smoker, a large piece of brisket could easily take 8 to 10 hours and sometimes more.

Fred Decker is a trained chef, former restaurateur and prolific freelance writer, with a special interest in all things related to food and nutrition. His work has appeared online on major sites including Livestrong. A Bit of Basic Meat Science One of the fundamental truths about cuts of meat is that the more used a muscle is, the tougher it gets. Your Finished Temperature The connective tissue in your piece of brisket doesn't start to dissolve until it reaches temperatures in the range of F to F and ideally, you need to keep it in that range for a couple of hours to get a seriously tender brisket.

The Fork Test If you don't have a meat thermometer or an instant-read thermometer, or if you want to learn to cook "by eye" instead of by instruments, there's a simple and lower-tech test. Brisket Cooking Methods The total time you invest in cooking your brisket depends on your cooking method. How to Cook Beef in a Convection Oven. Types of Roast Cuts. How to Tenderize Cooked Beef. Once you have achieved your desired Final Cooking Temperature the Brisket should rest so that Carry Over Cooking can redistribute the juices and finish the meat.

Lost password or username? About Us. Print Resource. All rights reserved. Privacy Policy Terms of Use. The USDA recommends cooking fresh beef to an internal temperature of at least degrees Fahrenheit. In the case of beef brisket, though, the number should be significantly higher than that. Brisket is made up of two pectoral muscles located in the front of the steer. The only way to tenderize the beef is to cook it at a low temperature over a long period of time—sometimes an entire day or more, depending on size.

Once the internal temperature of a brisket reaches degrees, the collagen in the connective tissue begins to convert to gelatin. This has the effect of softening and moisturizing the meat. The process intensifies as the temperature climbs, reaching its peak at degrees. For best results, set the smoker to degrees. This will reduce your cooking time to about 30 to 45 minutes per pound and can still deliver good results.

If you have to force the fork to penetrate beneath the surface, return the brisket to the smoker to continue cooking. Testing brisket with a fork requires a bit of practice. Instead, you want the pieces to pull apart under gentle pressure while still retaining their original shape and texture.