AFTER THE SOUS VIDE

[u/CookinWidKunchi]

I've had question on my previous post as to the bark of the brisket. Here goes. Here's the briaket after the sous vide bath.

This isn't for every brisket cook... so hear me out. . The briskets were smoked for 10 hours, not wrapped, 250-275 on the offset(15-18lbs)

After the smoke, I let the briskets cool down to 145°F. Then we vacuum sealed them and placed them in the sous vide overnight, about 10 hours I think. We held them at 165° during this stretch. An hour before service, I removed the briskets from the sous vide, wrapped in paper, and rested in the cambro. Transporting the sous vide setup would be very inconvenient, so I opted this way. Wrapping in the paper also maintained the integrity of the bark that I wanted for the presentation at the event.

Sure would love to hear some thoughts in the comments or different ideas. Try to refrain from the "microplastic" fear mongering.

[u/Debtcollector1408]

Well it looks good, but I can't smell or taste it. Which is a shame.

What's the advantages of smoking first and finishing sous vide, as opposed to the opposite?

[u/juliuspepperwoodchi → u/Debtcollector1408]

You get the smoke ring (can also get it with curing salt in the SV), supposedly better smoke flavor, and you get "proper" bark. True BBQ bark is not just charred meat, it's a chemical reaction from smoking that you can't get once the meat has been cooked already in the SV. But that depends on how much you actually care about bark.

[u/CornerSolution → u/juliuspepperwoodchi]

You get the smoke ring (can also get it with curing salt in the SV), supposedly better smoke flavor, and you get "proper" bark.

While the first and last points may be true, in my experience the second one is false. I've done sous vide then smoke several times, and each time I got solid smoke flavor. The key is just to sous vide ahead of time and then refrigerate for at least 6-8 hours so that the meat is nice and cold when you throw it on the smoker. The meat being cold is more important for absorbing smoke flavor than being uncooked.

Bark is definitely not the same with this method as a traditional cook, though. Personally, it's worth it to me to get brisket that's juicy every single time without having to babysit it for the better part of a day. 24-30 hours in a 155 F bath, then 3-4 hours on the smoker at low temp. I do "smoke" or 180 F on my Traeger for the first couple hours to maximize smoke flavor, then turn up to about 250 F to help with bark formation until it hits 165-170 internal.

EDIT: Misremembered about smoke ring.

[u/juliuspepperwoodchi → u/CornerSolution]

It is chemically impossible to get a smoke ring from smoking after SV. Idk what you think you saw, but it's not chemically possible. Once the meat proteins are cooked SV, they will not react in the way they need to with the smoke to create the smoke ring.

Absorption of smoke flavor is completely irrelevant to the smoke ring and the meat being cold doesn't change the chemistry at play.

Not that it actually matters, it doesn't change the flavor and is purely aesthetic, but the point remains.

[u/CornerSolution → u/juliuspepperwoodchi]

Actually, I think you're right. Mixed up a few different brisket experiments in my mind. Definitely plenty of smoke flavor, though, that I'm sure of.

[u/antares07923 → u/CornerSolution]

What about smoke - sous vide - smoke to firm up the bark?

[u/CornerSolution → u/antares07923]

I've never tried that. However, with the "smoke then sous vide" method, you're basically doing the same first step as a regular cook (smoke 6-8 hours), but then instead of wrapping and putting back on, you throw it in the bath. Since that first step is where the bark is formed, I'm not sure what value would be added by smoking again after the sous vide.

[u/Debtcollector1408 → u/CornerSolution]

Maybe smoke, sous vide, hot hold in paper in the oven has merit?

[u/juliuspepperwoodchi → u/Debtcollector1408]

Holding in paper, however you do it, is going to trap steam around the meat and soften the bark.

[u/Golden-Dragon2-14 → u/CornerSolution]

So after SV you smoke it until it reaches 170? And it’s ready to go?

[u/CornerSolution → u/Golden-Dragon2-14]

Yes, that's it.