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I stopped trimming briskets before the cook and my yield went up 4 pounds per packer
Everyone on here says trim that fat cap down to a quarter inch before it hits the smoker. I did that for years. Then about 8 months back I did a 40 pound order for a backyard wedding in Modesto and I was running late, so I left two packers untrimmed and just scored the fat in a crosshatch. Those two came off the pit with better bark and I carved maybe 4 more pounds of usable meat off each one than the trimmed ones sitting right next to them. The fat renders down on its own during a long cook, it is not just dead weight like I always heard. Now I only take off the hard deckle fat and the silver skin on the flat, and I score the rest. My trim bin went from full to almost empty and customers get bigger slices. If your smoker runs on the hot side you might get different results, but for me at 250 to 275 this has held up across maybe 30 cooks now. Anyone else quit trimming or am I the odd one out on this?
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brookerobinson1mo ago
I have been "that guy" at 6am hacking away at a fat cap like I was carving a pumpkin, so trust me I feel this. My last few cooks I did the same thing you did, just scored it and let the heat do the work, and the bark came out way better. The fat does render off, it doesn't just sit there like a wet blanket on your meat. I think people repeat the quarter inch rule because it's easy to say, not because it's true for every setup. My only worry is flare ups on a stick burner, but at 250 to 275 I haven't had a problem. You are not the odd one out, you are just ahead of the curve on this one.
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