" BOB" > wrote in message >...
> salchichon wrote:
> > i q'ed a 6 lb brisket yesterday. the label on the cryovac just said
> > it was a brisket; nothing about it being just the flat or anything
> > like that.
> >
> > i've recently been having trouble correctly slicing brisket after
> > cooking. i read about the different grains and how to seperate the
> > the point from the flat before slicing. this was the article i went
> > by (http://www.cbbqa.com/faq/10-2-1.html scroll down to the Jim
> > McGrath entry about 3/4 of the way down the page).
> >
> > when i started to slice off the point, it became quickly obvious there
> > was no change in the direction of the grain throughout this cut of
> > brisket, and no apearant division between a flat and point section. i
> > mangled the slicing again.
> >
> > so what cut of brisket did i have? was the point already trimmed off
> > and the lable didn't reflect that? did i miss the dividing layer of
> > fat between the point and flat? how can i tell when buying if there's
> > a point and flat in tact?
>
> At only 6 pounds, you had a flat. You can usually go by weight, but the point
> (or deckle) is on one end and makes that end about twice as thick as the flat
> end.
> Oh, and no, they won't (usually) lable them as to whether it is a packer cut.
> Recently around here, they've started putting "Flat" on the labels for the
> flats.
>
> >
> > with this brisket, i should have just strated slicing against the
> > grain at one end and gone all the way to the other end to get nice
> > presentable slices.
>
> Yes.
> >
> > your thoughts please...
> >
> > scott
>
> I'm just now finishing up cooking a 16# packer cut. They flat was done hours
> ago (I'm nibbling on it), but the point is only @ about 180 right now. There
> are 2 pork butts over it, dripping all the good pork drippings on the brisket.
> The pork hasn't even begun to shrink, so I'm not checking the temperature in
> them for several more hours.
>
> Good luck, and experiment more. Remember, practice, practice, practice.
>
> BOB


thanks bob. and another thing...i will never again cook a brisket fat
side down. i don't buy the theory that the underside where the thick
fat layer is keeps the juices inside.