Questions on buying brisket

[Cuajinais]

Hey there everyone! I bought a R-340 right before the pandemic. It served me well but I had not used it for like 10 months because I installed a mesh router at home and not having the Wifi available muted my enthusiasm. I was finally able to get it working 3 weeks ago. I’m back to grilling and finally I worked up the courage to buy my very first brisket. I got it at Costco since I hear good things about Costco briskets online. Today I will receive some Cutluxe slicing and carving knives from Amazon so I’m excited!

Anyway last night at my local WalMart I saw they had a brisket at $3.96/lb. I paid a little more than twice as much for the brisket at Costco! And here is the thing, the Costco brisket is clearly marked “choice”, but the WalMart one although it does not have the word “choice” on any sticker, the plastic bag it is in does have “choice” printed. I will say that the Walmart one has a crazy amount of fat that would need to be trimmed off anyway. My questions are:

1. Is the Costco choice brisket at $8/lb. crazy expensive even by August 2022 prices? I’m in Greenville, SC.

2. Is the Walmart brisket truly choice or does the marking included in the plastic not count for determining the grade? I ask because the label does not say choice, and I read online that WalMart mostly sells “select”. (See pictures)

3. Does the amount of visible fat factor into the price per pound set at the stores? I know it will matter for my own pocket of course, but do stores take the unusable fat into consideration when setting price per pound? For example even if the Walmart brisket is choice grade like the Costco, I will probably need to need to trim so much of it compared to the Costco one that in the end the price of USABLE brisket ends up being $9/lb for the Costco and $7.50/lb for the Walmart.

Thanks and looking forward to learning from this community.

 

[FF Cory]

Hey there everyone! I bought a R-340 right before the pandemic. It served me well but I had not used it for like 10 months because I installed a mesh router at home and not having the Wifi available muted my enthusiasm. I was finally able to get it working 3 weeks ago. I’m back to grilling and finally I worked up the courage to buy my very first brisket. I got it at Costco since I hear good things about Costco briskets online. Today I will receive some Cutluxe slicing and carving knives from Amazon so I’m excited!

Anyway last night at my local WalMart I saw they had a brisket at $3.96/lb. I paid a little more than twice as much for the brisket at Costco! And here is the thing, the Costco brisket is clearly marked “choice”, but the WalMart one although it does not have the word “choice” on any sticker, the plastic bag it is in does have “choice” printed. I will say that the Walmart one has a crazy amount of fat that would need to be trimmed off anyway. My questions are:

1. Is the Costco choice brisket at $8/lb. crazy expensive even by August 2022 prices? I’m in Greenville, SC.

2. Is the Walmart brisket truly choice or does the marking included in the plastic not count for determining the grade? I ask because the label does not say choice, and I read online that WalMart mostly sells “select”. (See pictures)

3. Does the amount of visible fat factor into the price per pound set at the stores? I know it will matter for my own pocket of course, but do stores take the unusable fat into consideration when setting price per pound? For example even if the Walmart brisket is choice grade like the Costco, I will probably need to need to trim so much of it compared to the Costco one that in the end the price of USABLE brisket ends up being $9/lb for the Costco and $7.50/lb for the Walmart.
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Thanks and looking forward to learning from this community.View attachment 17224

That’s a great question!

 

[SmokeOCD]

$8/lb should be for the flat. It's been almost a month since I bought a brisket, but I haven't paid more than $5/lb for a whole brisket. Useable is not the right word. Some grind the fat into sausage, burgers, etc. Some throw all the trimmings into a pan to render for tallow. There is very little that is not useable.
I've had good luck in just picking the piece where I see the most meat through the package. Feel the fat cap and if it's hard as a rock and big as a nerf football - that's not my brisket. If it's stiff as a board, I keep searching through the pile. Maybe it's like picking a watermelon - everyone will tell you to thump, squeeze, smell, hug - whatever happens to have worked for them. Others just trust their butcher or v-butcher(online).

 

[FF Cory]

When I tried my first brisket, I had no idea how to trim it up. There is a chef on YouTube that represents Weber grills. It’s a good 10min watch for the newbie to the world of brisket prep. Easy to follow and great instruction through video. I’ll try and find the link and post it.

 

[FF Cory]

I apologize, It was Char-Broil. Here is the link:

Good luck!

 

[Waterboy]

When the package has the USDA Choice on it like that you can count on it being choice grade. The USDA takes their grading seriously and neither Walmart nor the meat packer would be in business very long if they tried mismarking the grade on beef.

 

[chadinsc]

hey neighbor. $8 is high for our area unless its just the flat. i usually pay $3.99 for choice and $4.99 prime at sams/costco. but also you should look up or just call tate meat works in spartanburg sc. they typically have a ton of black angus brisket for $5 a lb and is a great place to get high end meat if your budget allows. mine doesn’t but man that A5 wagyu looks amazing. they typically have alot of imported meat flown in fresh from australia and other places also. nice small butcher shop run bye a group of guys that compete in bbq competitions. they also have butts and stuff. they will cut the meat to the pound you want also. if they have the briskets they will advertise on facebook and the will sell out a few pallets in a fri/sat so call before you go.

 

[FF Cory]

hey neighbor. $8 is high for our area unless its just the flat. i usually pay $3.99 for choice and $4.99 prime at sams/costco. but also you should look up or just call tate meat works in spartanburg sc. they typically have a ton of black angus brisket for $5 a lb and is a great place to get high end meat if your budget allows. mine doesn’t but man that A5 wagyu looks amazing. they typically have alot of imported meat flown in fresh from australia and other places also. nice small butcher shop run bye a group of guys that compete in bbq competitions. they also have butts and stuff. they will cut the meat to the pound you want also. if they have the briskets they will advertise on facebook and the will sell out a few pallets in a fri/sat so call before you go.

Do they do any shipping? Like to Indiana?

 

[chadinsc]

Do they do any shipping? Like to Indiana?

i highly doubt it lol. i think alot of guys order from wild fork though. maybe other places also

 

[ToeJam]

As I continue to learn all that I can, one thing has stood out - when selecting a brisket, First pick will be Prime, then Choice, then Select (But I wouldn't bother). When choosing your brisket from the store, either a whole packer, or just the flat, look for one that has the thickest end on the flat you can find.

 

[Jim6820]

“Choice” brisket at $8/lb at Costco is really high in my experience. I bought a 12# “Prime” brisket at our local Costco (Bellingham, WA) last week for $4.29/lb. I have seen Prime at $3.99/lb on occasion. As for the possibility that the $8/lb brisket you bought is just the flat, I suppose that could be the case but I rarely see just flats at Costco. What was the weight of the brisket you bought at Costco? That would help determine whether you got just a flat or a whole packer.

My preference in briskets (especially since I, too, have the smaller RT-340) is a smaller full packer in the 12-14 lb range. Whenever possible, I buy Prime rather than Choice. I look for a brisket with the thickest flat possible and one that is flexible when handled. I also look for one with the least amount of fat cap.

That said, unless you find a custom butcher who will pre-trim a brisket for you, plan on losing about 20% of the weight in the trim process. And, it is normal for a custom butcher to charge you the full price of the untrimmed brisket. So, yes, the per-pound price of a trimmed brisket is significantly higher than an untrimmed one. In addition to trimming the fat cap down to about 1/4” thick and removing the silver-skin, I like to trim the gray edges around the perimeter to expose fresh meat.

The “USDA CHOICE” marking on the Walmart brisket is official. In fact, having it imprinted on the plastic wrapper is a better assurance than having it just printed on the paper weight-label. When you see “USDA” plus “PRIME” or “CHOICE,” on the packaging, you know exactly what it is.

 

[Lager1829]

i highly doubt it lol. i think alot of guys order from wild fork though. maybe other places also

I had a great Prime brisket from Wild Fork. recteq promotes Chatel Farms. They sell an American Wagyu.
However, that said with weather related delays, I'm waiting for cooler weather before I order online. We have a local supermarket that raises its own Angus and they generally have reasonably priced whole packers.

 

[Dr.Floyd]

If you cook down the trimmings you get some great beef tallow. You can also use some of the trimmings in making sausage or burger patties. As far as price goes, I have a local meat shop that has whole packers at $4.00 a pound. You can check around for sales a local meat markets if you have any available.

 

[Cuajinais]

Wow so many great replies. Thanks all! You were right, what I bought at Costco was the brisket flat. (photo) I did not realize there were 2 subdivisions within "brisket". I heard "flat" and "point" mentioned many times on brisket videos but never knew they were sold separately. I googled and now have a better understanding of the differences, but now I have another question:

Why such a large price difference between choice full brisket and choice brisket flat??? We are talking more than twice the cost in my example here! If we assume 20% weight loss after trimming the full brisket, and say 5% weight loss only when trimming a flat, you end up with something like 35% of cost saving by buying a full brisket and trimming it yourself. Is this analogous to the large cost increase of buying pre-sliced fruits? Only here it makes even less sense since you still need to trim (but less effort than full brisket) and cook the flat. At least with pre-sliced fruit you can eat them right off the container. Does this sound right or am I missing something?

Also thanks for reminding me the fat can used for tallow; but I would have to hide it from my wife because she is the anti-fatty foods type.

I watched the video linked above and noticed 2 differences compared to one I watched yesterday of Aaron Franklin trimming a brisket. #1 Aaron does not like to have any "bald spots" on the top where you can see the meat. #2 He is slicing at a colder meat temp so that the fat is more rigid and easier to carve.

Thanks again everyone and glad to have a neighbor on this board!

 

[RTFfan]

Hey there everyone! I bought a R-340 right before the pandemic. It served me well but I had not used it for like 10 months because I installed a mesh router at home and not having the Wifi available muted my enthusiasm. I was finally able to get it working 3 weeks ago. I’m back to grilling and finally I worked up the courage to buy my very first brisket. I got it at Costco since I hear good things about Costco briskets online. Today I will receive some Cutluxe slicing and carving knives from Amazon so I’m excited!

Anyway last night at my local WalMart I saw they had a brisket at $3.96/lb. I paid a little more than twice as much for the brisket at Costco! And here is the thing, the Costco brisket is clearly marked “choice”, but the WalMart one although it does not have the word “choice” on any sticker, the plastic bag it is in does have “choice” printed. I will say that the Walmart one has a crazy amount of fat that would need to be trimmed off anyway. My questions are:

1. Is the Costco choice brisket at $8/lb. crazy expensive even by August 2022 prices? I’m in Greenville, SC.

2. Is the Walmart brisket truly choice or does the marking included in the plastic not count for determining the grade? I ask because the label does not say choice, and I read online that WalMart mostly sells “select”. (See pictures)

3. Does the amount of visible fat factor into the price per pound set at the stores? I know it will matter for my own pocket of course, but do stores take the unusable fat into consideration when setting price per pound? For example even if the Walmart brisket is choice grade like the Costco, I will probably need to need to trim so much of it compared to the Costco one that in the end the price of USABLE brisket ends up being $9/lb for the Costco and $7.50/lb for the Walmart.
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Thanks and looking forward to learning from this community.View attachment 17224

Might not be very helpful but every brisket I have ever bought from Costco have been prime. They are usually 4.29 per pound here in Missouri. Last time I got a 17 lb prime brisket for $75. Also I would go for the one that is less work. That's just me. Saving time on the trim would be a bonus for me. They always turn out amazing.

 

[Jim6820]

Might not be very helpful but every brisket I have ever bought from Costco have been prime. They are usually 4.29 per pound here in Missouri. Last time I got a 17 lb prime brisket for $75. Also I would go for the one that is less work. That's just me. Saving time on the trim would be a bonus for me. They always turn out amazing.

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That’s interesting because I find mostly USDA CHOICE briskets at my Costco. Sometimes, there will be some USDA PRIME, but the preponderance lately has been Choice. The brisket in your photo is a good looking one; I’d snap it up in a heartbeat.

 

[FF Cory]

“Choice” brisket at $8/lb at Costco is really high in my experience. I bought a 12# “Prime” brisket at our local Costco (Bellingham, WA) last week for $4.29/lb. I have seen Prime at $3.99/lb on occasion. As for the possibility that the $8/lb brisket you bought is just the flat, I suppose that could be the case but I rarely see just flats at Costco. What was the weight of the brisket you bought at Costco? That would help determine whether you got just a flat or a whole packer.

My preference in briskets (especially since I, too, have the smaller RT-340) is a smaller full packer in the 12-14 lb range. Whenever possible, I buy Prime rather than Choice. I look for a brisket with the thickest flat possible and one that is flexible when handled. I also look for one with the least amount of fat cap.

That said, unless you find a custom butcher who will pre-trim a brisket for you, plan on losing about 20% of the weight in the trim process. And, it is normal for a custom butcher to charge you the full price of the untrimmed brisket. So, yes, the per-pound price of a trimmed brisket is significantly higher than an untrimmed one. In addition to trimming the fat cap down to about 1/4” thick and removing the silver-skin, I like to trim the gray edges around the perimeter to expose fresh meat.

The “USDA CHOICE” marking on the Walmart brisket is official. In fact, having it imprinted on the plastic wrapper is a better assurance than having it just printed on the paper weight-label. When you see “USDA” plus “PRIME” or “CHOICE,” on the packaging, you know exactly what it is.

Since I’m new to this smoking addiction, what does the flexibility of the brisket represent? I’ve never heard that when picking out brisket. Thanks!

 

[Mozekian]

Only Prime at my Costcos in Dallas. $4.29/lb. Used to be as low as $3 before the inflation issues. They also usually have American Wagyu for $6-$7 a pound. The Prime always has great marbling and it’s a perfect grade of meat for such a painstakingly long cook. I won’t invest 15 hours on Choice, if I can buy prime for an extra $20 or so.

 

[SmokeOCD]

I admit I may be wrong about this; but in my mind starting with a softer meat - it's just going to get even softer. Cooking a stiff piece of meat for the same amount of time will probably not end up as tender.

 

[Jim6820]

Since I’m new to this smoking addiction, what does the flexibility of the brisket represent? I’ve never heard that when picking out brisket. Thanks!

From my perspective, the flexibility issue is related to (a) a soft fat cap rather than hardened fat and (2) meat with better fat marbling that makes it softer and more flexible. Basically, it is just the result of my experience with brisket. YMMV