Ok OB need some bbq advice. Me and my family are heading to Colorado next week (Friday) to get out of this heat! I had the thought of smoking a brisket before we go and taking it with us.
We are going with a group of people and we all rotate dinners while we are there, so we might not eat the brisket until say Monday or Tuesday.

What is the best way to travel with this thing? Do I vacuum seal it and freeze it? Also any tips on reheating would be great.

I've done it this way several times and it works great.

Smoke as normal. Some background...I always smoke at 275F until the internal temp is 200F. I wrap with butcher paper when it gets the bark color I want, usually about 4-5 hours after putting it on. It is almost always ready about 9 hours after starting.

For this, when you pull it off (at 200F), still in butcher paper, wrap loosely with an old towel and put into a large ziplock bag. I use the ones that are made for packing clothes. Seal getting the air out but vacuum sealed is not important. Immediately pack that sealed brisket in ice in a cooler. This will get the temp down rapidly and stop the cooking process too. I usually leave it over night packed in ice. After that, you can move to a fridge.

Travel with it in a cooler. When you get ready to eat, start up a smoker or a pit (ie, Weber kettle) with coals on one side. Take the brisket out of the ziplock and put on the grill, leaving it in the butcher paper. I've opened it and put in some liquid (water of apple juice) but don't find this does anything different. Smoke/offset grill until the internal temp reaches 140F. Take it off and slice. It'll be like you just smoked it for 9 hours. Note, it'll take about 2-3 hours to get this to 140F. You can also take it out and let it creep to room temp before putting it on and this will shorten the smoking time.

Hope it helps! Keep us posted!

Think I can get away with reheating in the oven? We won't have access to a pit in Colorado.

TxAG-010 said:

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Think I can get away with reheating in the oven? We won't have access to a pit in Colorado.

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Absolutely. All your smoke flavor is from the first few hours so you'll be fine.

Never thought about the clothes packing bags. Pretty good idea. I've done it by cutting the brisket in large chunks and sealing in one gallon vacuum seal bags. Works good for transport and also good for heating the brisket back up in a water bath.

Water bath is a good idea.
Thank y'all for the input!

I'd cook how I regularly do and go straight into fridge. Next day I'd vacuum seal and freeze. If you have a sous vide cooker that's how I'd try and reheat. Otherwise I'd likely wrap in foil and go in a low oven.

If you are reheating in an oven, follow the advice given above. If camping, reheat like cooking a goat in the ground. Place it in an oven bag, wrapped tightly in foil. Have good coals below (covered) and above. Leave for several hour with a thermocouple thermometer ($20) and heat till the internal is at least 135F. Dig up and eat! Have a great and blessed time with the family!

I have reheated brisket with my sous vide with great results. Either water displacement method and ziplocks for your brisket, refrigerate and travel with it, then heat water to 120 and let it heat up for 30 min to an hr and you'll be set

I usually only travel from outside to inside with mine

Try this.
https://www.texasmonthly.com/bbq/faux-vide/

BringJackieBack89 said:

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I've done it this way several times and it works great.

Smoke as normal. Some background...I always smoke at 275F until the internal temp is 200F. I wrap with butcher paper when it gets the bark color I want, usually about 4-5 hours after putting it on. It is almost always ready about 9 hours after starting.

For this, when you pull it off (at 200F), still in butcher paper, wrap loosely with an old towel and put into a large ziplock bag. I use the ones that are made for packing clothes. Seal getting the air out but vacuum sealed is not important. Immediately pack that sealed brisket in ice in a cooler. This will get the temp down rapidly and stop the cooking process too. I usually leave it over night packed in ice. After that, you can move to a fridge.

Travel with it in a cooler. When you get ready to eat, start up a smoker or a pit (ie, Weber kettle) with coals on one side. Take the brisket out of the ziplock and put on the grill, leaving it in the butcher paper. I've opened it and put in some liquid (water of apple juice) but don't find this does anything different. Smoke/offset grill until the internal temp reaches 140F. Take it off and slice. It'll be like you just smoked it for 9 hours. Note, it'll take about 2-3 hours to get this to 140F. You can also take it out and let it creep to room temp before putting it on and this will shorten the smoking time.

Hope it helps! Keep us posted!

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Whelp. Guess I need to print this out. Sounds like there was trial and error that went into this. Thanks.

This looks interesting.
I have a vacuum sealer and will be able to boil water where we are going

Reheats fine in the oven. Wrap in butcher paper at 200F. Or 300F if you're impatient.