Camp Brisket, 2017 edition

Davey Griffin leading beef brisket trimming for Camp Brisket

Davey Griffin leading beef brisket trimming for Camp Brisket

The fifth Camp Brisket, a joint venture between Foodways Texas and the Meat Science Section of the Department of Animal Science at Texas A&M University, was held on January 6-7, 2017 at the Rosenthal Meat Center and the Beef Cattle Center at the O.D. Butler Animal Science Complex. About 60 participants from around the U.S. embarked on a journey to learn more about the ultimate challenge preparing that most difficult dish of Texas Barbecue cuisine, the brisket.

Camp Brisket was coordinated by Texas A&M University meat science educators, Davey Griffin, Ray Riley, and Jeff Savell, and who were assisted by graduate students, undergraduate students, staff, and friends and family including Clay Eastwood, Aeriel Belk, Becca Kirkpatrick, Jill Jobe, Spencer Tindel, Baylee Bessire, Jordan Hevner, Adam Murray, Drew Cassens, Courtney Boykin, Crystal Waters, Madalynn Kainer, Katy Jo Nickelson, and Jennifer Willis. These great folks ensured that the needs of the briskets and guests were attended to through the camp.

Greetings and introductions are part of the beginning of each Camp Brisket. Getting to know each other is one way to create community that is so important when we conduct these workshops.

Marvin Bendele, Foodways Texas, giving an introduction to Camp Brisket

Marvin Bendele, Foodways Texas, giving an introduction to Camp Brisket

Participant introduction including Tootsie Tomanetz, Snow's BBQ

Participant introduction including Tootsie Tomanetz, Snow’s BBQ

Brisket trimming and seasoning

Before Camp Brisket starts, work begins on procuring the briskets representing different types and grades, trimming them, and applying the salt/pepper seasoning (we used a half and half mix by volume of Kosher salt and course ground pepper with 3/4 cup applied to each brisket). Davey Griffin worked with the grad students to get the briskets ready to go for the camp.

Boxes of beef briskets

Boxes of beef briskets

Bringing the team together to trim briskets

Bringing the team together to trim briskets

Vacuum packaged packer-style briskets

Vacuum packaged packer-style briskets

Davey Griffin demonstrating brisket trimming to Aeriel Belk and Becca Kirkpatrick

Davey Griffin demonstrating brisket trimming to Aeriel Belk and Becca Kirkpatrick

Trimming briskets

Trimming briskets

Spencer Tindel and Becca Kirkpatrick seasoning brisket

Spencer Tindel and Becca Kirkpatrick seasoning brisket

Seasoning brisket

Seasoning brisket

Salt and pepper seasoned beef briskets

Salt and pepper seasoned beef briskets

Brisket history, background, and anatomy

The first talks were given by Robb Walsh, noted food and cookbook writer, on history of the use of briskets for Texas Barbecue, Jess Pryles, cook, writer, and TV personality, on the difference between restaurant and competition brisket, and Davey Griffin, on the anatomy of a brisket.

Robb Walsh, talking about the history of beef briskets used in Texas barbecue

Robb Walsh, talking about the history of beef briskets used in Texas barbecue

Jess Pryles, discussing the differences between restaurant and competition brisket

Jess Pryles, discussing the differences between restaurant and competition brisket

Davey Griffin discussing the anatomy of a brisket

Davey Griffin discussing the anatomy of a brisket

Davey Griffin dissecting a brisket

Davey Griffin dissecting a brisket

Knife selection, brisket trimming, and cooked brisket slicing

Proper knife use and sharpening was covered by Jeff Savell before a demonstration on trimming raw briskets and slicing cooked briskets was led by Aaron Franklin of Franklin Barbecue in Austin, Texas.

Aaron Franklin, Franklin Barbecue at Camp Brisket

Aaron Franklin, Franklin Barbecue

Aaron Franklin, Franklin Barbecue, talking about how to trim beef briskets

Aaron Franklin, Franklin Barbecue, talking about how to trim beef briskets

Tasting different grades of brisket

The first tasting test we did was for different grades of brisket. We obtained five different grades/types of briskets for use in this demonstration: Prime, Certified Angus Beef, Wagyu, Choice, and Select. These briskets and the remaining ones used for the camp were trimmed to have no more than about 1/4 inch of fat remaining anywhere. Each brisket was seasoned with 3/4-cup of a half and half mixture (by volume) of Kosher salt and coarse-ground black pepper. The briskets for the grade/type demonstration were cooked on Russell Roegel’s of Roegels Barbecue pit with John Brotherton of Brotherton BBQ managing the cooking cycle. Oak logs were the source of heat and smoke.

Each grade/type of brisket was sliced so that each participant received a sample to rate on a ballot. When completed, the ballots were tabulated by the students to determine whether the participants could tell the difference in the grades or types of brisket. The winner? The result of the taste test was a tie for first between Prime and Wagyu with Certified Angus Beef, Choice, and Select receiving similar consumer overall like ratings. Each year, this taste comparison usually results in Prime and Wagyu near the top and Select being near the bottom in ratings. There are perceivable differences in eating quality among different grades and types of briskets, and those interested in producing the best cooked briskets possible need to be aware of this.

Serving sliced briskets to participants

Serving sliced briskets to participants

Beef grading/certification discussion

Davey Griffin and Ray Riley led a discussion and demonstration of beef grading.

Ray Riley showing marbling card used in USDA beef quality grading

Participants viewing a beef carcass

Ray Riley showing marbling card used in USDA beef quality grading

Ray Riley showing marbling card used in USDA beef quality grading

Wood and Smoke panel

There was a Wood and Smoke panel at the end of the afternoon featuring Daniel Vaughn, Texas Monthly barbecue editor, as the moderator, Lance Kirkpatrick, Stiles Switch BBQ and Brew; Aaron Franklin; Kevin Kolman, Weber Grills; Tom Perini, Perini Ranch Steakhouse; Joe Riscky, Riscky’s Barbecue; Homer Robertson, World Champion Chuck Wagon competitor and Fort Worth Fire Department leader; and Nick Nickelson. Post oak is the featured wood for Texas Barbecue based on its abundance and how the smoke complements beef. Nick Nickelson discussed the topic of using properly seasoned wood to smoke with and how important it was to getting a clean fire that imparts the good aspects of the smoke onto the product. The positives and negatives of the other woods most commonly used in smoking — hickory, mesquite, and pecan — were discussed.

Daniel Vaughn, Barbecue editor, Texas Monthly Magazine, and moderator, Fire and Smoke panel at Camp Brisket

Daniel Vaughn, Barbecue editor, Texas Monthly Magazine, and moderator, Fire and Smoke panel at Camp Brisket

Tom Perini, Perini Ranch Steakhouse

Tom Perini, Perini Ranch Steakhouse

Fire and Smoke panel at Camp Brisket

Fire and Smoke panel at Camp Brisket

Daniel Vaughn, Barbecue editor, Texas Monthly Magazine, and moderator, Fire and Smoke panel at Camp Brisket

Homer Robertson

Friday night dinner

We moved to the Beef Center for the rest of the program. We were blessed to have two great people involved with dinner that night. Evan LeRoy from Austin provided the main meal with brisket and beef short ribs from 44 Farms. Homer Robertson, world champion chuck wagon competitor, provided bread pudding and peach cobbler for the crowd. The food was enjoyed by all!

Chuck wagon supper prep @foodwaystexas Camp Brisket.

A photo posted by Robert Jacob Lerma (@robertjacoblerma) on

Overnight smoking at Camp Brisket

The next brisket comparison was to smoke briskets overnight using the four primary woods — oak, hickory, mesquite, and pecan. Multiple pits were used for the overnight cooking. We used Choice briskets, trimmed and seasoned as mentioned before, for the comparison, and briskets were put on the smokers around 8 pm on Friday evening so that they would be ready to serve around lunch time on Saturday. Kevin Kolman from Weber Grills started four Weber Smokey Mountain cookers with chunks from the four woods as part of the demonstration.

The staff, students, and family tended to the pits overnight. Temperatures plunged to the upper teens, which continues the trend where weather is a factor at Camp Brisket.

Chuck wagon breakfast, starting fires, and pit discussion

Saturday morning became a time for a great chuck wagon breakfast of biscuits and gravy and breakfast tacos from Homer Robertson, Ty Robertson, Arthur Garcia, and friends, a primer on starting fires in off-set pits and Weber Smokey Mountain cookers, a review of the different types of pits we used to cook with, and a discussion by Homer Robertson, Tom Perini, and Tootsie Tomenetz, Snow’s BBQ about cooking over direct coals.

Chuck wagon breakfast being served

Chuck wagon breakfast being served

Tom Perini Mike Micallef, and Homer Robertson

Tom Perini Mike Micallef, and Homer Robertson

Pitt's and Spitt's pellet smoker

Pitt’s and Spitt’s pellet smoker

Jambo smoker

Jambo smoker

Offset smoker

Offset smoker

John Brotherton being interviewed by KBTX-TV reporter at Camp Brisket

John Brotherton being interviewed by KBTX-TV reporter at Camp Brisket

Patrick Reardon, discussing cooking on his Jambo, at Camp Brisket

Patrick Reardon, discussing cooking on his Jambo, at Camp Brisket

Davey Griffin describing a smoker

Davey Griffin describing a smoker

John Brotherton, Brotherton BBQ

John Brotherton, Brotherton BBQ

Kevin Kolman, Weber Grills, talking about building a fire in the Weber Smokey Mountain Cooker

Ryan Zboril, Pitt’s and Spitt’s

Russell Roegel's, Roegel's Barbecue

Russell Roegel’s, Roegel’s Barbecue

Kevin Kolman, Weber Grills, talking about building a fire in the Weber Smokey Mountain Cooker

Kevin Kolman, Weber Grills, talking about building a fire in the Weber Smokey Mountain Cooker

Homer Robertson discussing building a fire to make coals to cook over

Homer Robertson discussing building a fire to make coals to cook over

Tom Perini, Perini Ranch Steakhouse, talking about how he cooks with direct coals

Tom Perini, Perini Ranch Steakhouse, talking about how he cooks with direct coals

Tootsie Tomanetz, Snow's BBQ, discussing cooking over direct coals

Tootsie Tomanetz, Snow’s BBQ, discussing cooking over direct coals

Pit design and maintenance panel

A pit design and maintenance panel was composed of Aaron Franklin; Russell Roegels, Roegels Barbecue; Kerry Bexley, Snow’s BBQ; Wayne Mueller, Louie Mueller Barbecue; Bryan Bracewell, Southside Market and Barbeque; Ryan Zboril, Pitt’s and Spitt’s; Kevin Kolman, with Davey Griffin as the moderator. Each panelist added his own take on what types of pits/cookers they preferred and what they did to make sure they were used to their best ability.

Davey Griffin moderating the Pit Design and Maintenance panel at Camp Brisket

Davey Griffin moderating the Pit Design and Maintenance panel at Camp Brisket

Kevin Kolman, Weber Grills, on the Pit Design and Maintenance panel at Camp Brisket

Kevin Kolman, Weber Grills, on the Pit Design and Maintenance panel at Camp Brisket

Wayne Mueller, Louie Mueller Barbecue

Wayne Mueller, Louie Mueller Barbecue

Kerry Bexley, Snow's BBQ

Kerry Bexley, Snow’s BBQ

Ryan Zboril, Pitt's and Spitt's

Ryan Zboril, Pitt’s and Spitt’s

Aaron Franklin, Frank Barbecue on the Pit Design and Maintenance panel at Camp Brisket

Aaron Franklin, Frank Barbecue on the Pit Design and Maintenance panel at Camp Brisket

Ryan Zboril, Pitt's and Spitt's, on Pit Design and Maintenance panel at Camp Brisket

Russell Roegels, Roegels Barbecue, Aaron Franklin, Franklin Barbecue, and Kerry Bexley, Snow’s BBQ

Camp Brisket participants at the Beef Cattle Center

Camp Brisket participants at the Beef Cattle Center

Seasonings and barbecue science

Brandon Burrows, Kerry Ingredients and Jeff Savell spent some time going over different seasonings outside of the normal use of salt and pepper. Jeff discussed some of the science behind meat and barbecue and fielded questions from the crowd regarding a wide array of topics.

Smoke tasting panel

Lunch that day was the tasting of the briskets prepared using the four different smokes — oak, hickory, mesquite, and pecan. Each participant received a small slice of brisket from each smoke and were asked to rate it on 9-point scales. Students tabulated the results, and there was a three-way tie among mesquite, pecan, and hickory with oak being different from mesquite, but not from pecan or hickory. Most years, either oak or hickory wins this competition.

Life as a pitmaster panel

One of the most highly regarded parts of Camp Brisket is the final panel, moderated by Jeff Savell, which featured Russell Roegels, Bryan Bracewell, Aaron Franklin, Wayne Mueller, Evan LeRoy, John Brotherton, Tootsie Tomanetz, Kerry Bexley. The title of the panel was “Life as a Pitmaster,” and it gave each person a time to reflect on their path to where they are now, the challenges and opportunities they each face, and why in this crazy world of barbecue, they love this business so much.

Aaron Franklin, Wayne Mueller, Evan LeRoy, John Brotherton, Bryan Bracewell, Tootsie Tomanetz, Kerry Bexley, Russell Roegels, and Jeff Savell (photo courtesy of Kelly Yandell)

Aaron Franklin, Wayne Mueller, Evan LeRoy, John Brotherton, Bryan Bracewell, Tootsie Tomanetz, Kerry Bexley, Russell Roegels, and Jeff Savell (photo courtesy of Kelly Yandell)

Send off meal

The final meal is a comparison of wrapped versus unwrapped briskets. At this point, we do not collect ballots any more to see who liked what. Most participants are facing “brisket fatigue” at this point, and are ready for something fairly light as they depart.

Unwrapped and foil-wrapped briskets at Camp Brisket

Unwrapped and foil-wrapped briskets at Camp Brisket

We end Camp Brisket for this year and know that many people from all walks of life have come together to bond over barbecue in general, but with the common goal of how to tackle the challenge that is the brisket! Thanks to Kelly Yandell, Foodways Texas board member, for coming and taking such great photos and being at the camp to support everyone.

Aaron Franklin being interviewed by Blakeley Galbraith, KBTX-TV

Aaron Franklin being interviewed by Blakeley Galbraith, KBTX-TV

John Brotherton placing peach-paper-wrapped brisket in warmer

John Brotherton placing peach-paper-wrapped brisket in warmer

Jeff Savell, Davey Griffin, and Ray Riley (photo courtesy of Kelly Yandell)

Jeff Savell, Davey Griffin, and Ray Riley (photo courtesy of Kelly Yandell)

Clay Eastwood removing vacuum package from brisket

Clay Eastwood removing vacuum package from brisket

Tom Perini and Nick Nicholson

Tom Perini and Nick Nicholson

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