Smoked Brisket Flat on the Meadow Creek PG25 Patio Grill
The PG25 patio grill isn't one of our best-sellers, but I love this grill for direct heat grilling of cuts, such as burgers and pork chops. Many of our models are highly versatile, and this one is no exception. I thought it would be interesting to demo a low and slow cook on the PG25, so in this story, I'm smoking a brisket flat.
The Meadow Creek PG25 Patio Grill
A slice to hold you over
The PG25 patio grill is a handsome grill that complements any modern deck or patio. It's also portable enough to roll out of the garage for dinner. These handmade grills feature heavy duty construction and a simple design. Direct heat grilling is their strong point, but they also do a great job of low and slow.
Firing the PG25 Patio Grill
For this cook, I'm using the drip pan in its raised position as a heat diffuser with the fire in the bottom of the grill. My target temperature is 225–250 degrees.
To fire the grill, I opened all of the vents and dumped in about 18 pounds of Chef's Select charcoal briquettes and added two small chunks of smoking wood as shown below. At the end of the cook, nearly half of the charcoal was still unused, so 10 pounds would have been a better amount.
I used my propane blow torch to light a few coals in the one end of the grill. If you're using a torch, remove the torch after a few minutes or when about a dozen of the coals have white edges. It's important to only light a few coals and let the fire burn across the grill during the 6+ hours it will take to cook the meat.
Next, I replaced the drip pan over the charcoal and shut the lid. Once the grill reached 200 degrees, I adjusted the vents to regulate the airflow and fine-tune the temperature. I was able to get it settled in at 225 with the bottom and top vents halfway open.
Adding the charcoal briquettes
Charcoal ready to light
Torching the charcoal
Charcoal lit and wood chunks
Drip pan added
Settling into temperature
Prepping the Meat
I purchased this choice grade brisket flat from Sam's Club, and it weighed 6 pounds. To prep it for the smoker, I simply unwrapped it and seasoned it with Meat Church Holy Cow, then set it on the grill, fat side down.
Nice looking brisket flat
Fat side of brisket flat
Meat side of brisket flat
Seasoning the brisket flat
Meat Church Holy Cow BBQ Rub is perfect for beef cuts, such as brisket!
Ready for the smoker
Disposable gloves make it easy to handle meat without constantly having to wash your hands.
The Cook
I put the brisket flat on the smoker at 12:30 pm with the grill running at 225 degrees. As you may recall, the top and bottom vents were open halfway at this point.
This was my first time using the patio grill for a long cook, and I experienced some temperature fluctuation as outlined below.
At 1:20 (within the first hour), the temperature had risen to 275, so I adjusted the vents down to 1/4" open (the widest part of the vent).
At 4:20 (three hours later) I checked on it and the temperature had dropped to 200, so I adjusted the vents a little further open, and the temperature rose to 225.
By now the internal temperature of the brisket was at 170 degrees F and I wrapped it in unwaxed butcher paper and put it back on the grill.
At 5:30 the grill was running at 245 and at 6:00, it had climbed to 285. I don't remember if I adjusted the vents further, but at this point, it would be fine to either let it cruise at this temperature or adjust the vents to lower the temperature.
I am not certain but it seems that the spike in temperature might have been from the brisket heating up and the fire burning hotter as it moved across the firebox and more coals were burning at once. I may have had the lid open too long to take photos too. If you have trouble getting the temperature down, just pour a quart or two of water into the drip pan and watch to see how the temperature responds.
At 7:00 the brisket was probe tender and reading 203 degrees in the thickest part. I moved it to a foil pan in an empty ice chest for about half an hour before slicing and serving it. Dinner was a bit late, but very delicious!
Brisket flat on PG25
Cooking away!
The brisket at 4:15 pm, just before wrapping
A close-up photo
Meat Church Holy Cow and my trusty Thermapen
The Wrap
As I mentioned above, I wrapped the brisket in butcher paper four hours into the cook when the internal temperature of the meat was around 170 degrees. I put it back on the smoker for another 2.5 hours.
Ready to wrap
Back on the smoker
My handsome PG25 smoker
Ready to take off the smoker
Grease drippings from this cook
Ready for a rest
Leftover charcoal after 6.5 hours of cooking
Slicing the Brisket
After about 30 minutes in the empty cooler, we sliced and served it with some sides my wife made for dinner.
Slicing the brisket flat
Are you hungry yet?
End view of the cut
Another delicious peek
Wow, look at that bark!
Even the ends were tender and delicious.
My family and guests loved it.
Conclusion
In summary, I am delighted with my experience of using the PG25 charcoal grill as a smoker. It may take a bit of practice to master airflow, but even on my first long cook, I was able to produce a delightful meal of tender and juicy brisket in spite of distractions and temperature fluctuations.
The downside of using the grill as a smoker is that you have to build the fire directly against the grill body without a pan to contain the ashes and to help protect the paint on the inside and outside of the grill body. It's not a deal-breaker, just less than ideal. You also can't get to the fire without removing the cooking grate and drip pan, but tending the fire wasn't necessary during this cook.
The upside of using this grill as a smoker is its versatility—the ability to grill, smoke, and even bake all with one compact charcoal grill. Of course, the grill also comes with handmade quality and Meadow Creek's reputation of integrity.
Other Recipes Cooked on the PG25 Patio Grill
Where to Buy a PG25
On the product page, click on "Customize" to see a list of available options or "Request a Quote" to send a quote request to your nearest dealer. You can also do a dealer search to find the nearest retail store that carries our equipment.