We’re in the home stretch. The brisket is finishing in the oven and is almost 205˚F. The house smells incredible! I puled the 1 pound “tip” of the tip from the smoker and chunked it up. It was too moist and tender for true burnt ends, but I placed added some barbecue sauce to a bowl and into the oven it went to braise.

The salmon is on–standard Northwoods seasoning from Penzey’s–and that means it will be ready around 6:45. I tried to cut the pieces into more even sized filets and ended up with a very thin piece from near the bottom of the fish. I doused it in Jerk seasoning and moved it to a cooler place on the top grate. The cooker is cruising along at 275˚F at this point and should make quick work of the fish.

What about the pork? It came off around 2PM and tasted delicious. I trimmed the fat from those cuts and put it and the juice (after they rested) into the baked beans.

Yum!

Here’s some quick notes on the Labor Day smoke I’m running:

* 5 pound brisket with the very tip cut off (1 pound) for burnt ends. It was placed on the smoker at 10AM straight from the refrigerator with all vents open on the cooker, trying to get the temp of the cooker to 240˚F.
* I used the Wet Rub for Brisket from the Virtual Weber Bullet site. The rub went on at 8PM last night to marinate.
* I’ll cook this for 6 to 8 hours and during that time I’ll add thick cut pork chops, baked beans and even salmon to this run.
* I’m using the Minion method of charcoal firing with small wood chips scattered throughout the charcoal. I’d use chunk, but I don’t have any.