Ran into a guy at a Memphis comp who said brisket should never rest more than an hour

I was at the Memphis in May event, and this dude from a Texas team was dead serious. He said, 'If you let it sit in a cooler for three hours, you're just serving warm pot roast.' He pulled his brisket off, wrapped it in towels, and sliced it after 45 minutes flat. Honestly, his bark was insane and the slices held together. Has anyone else tried a shorter rest and gotten good results?

3 comments

3 Comments

dylan2654mo ago

That "warm pot roast" line is brutal, but I've heard some top pitmasters swear by a shorter rest too.

foster.dylan4mo ago

Seriously though, how dry can it really get? I've pulled brisket off after like an hour and it was still crazy juicy. Feels like one of those food rules that gets repeated so much everyone just accepts it. If the meat is good and cooked right, a couple hours versus four isn't making it into jerky. Some folks just overthink the whole process.

leo6031mo ago

Is it just me or did I once rest a brisket for like 45 minutes because I forgot about it and it still came out fine? I swear half of these "rules" are just to make us feel like we're doing something wrong. I've definitely pulled pork shoulder off after a short rest and it was still so juicy I burned my tongue. But yeah, I'm also the guy who's ruined a few briskets by overthinking everything, so what do I know.