- To use a mustard binder
or not to use a mustard binder on your brisket.
Whether you use a binder or not,
barbecue circles are split
whether it actually keeps the rub on
and makes a prettier bark or not.
That is part of this bigger question.
So in this video, I'm gonna share my results
of cooking two briskets exactly the same,
except one had a mustard binder and the other one did not.
I'll also be sharing my thoughts on binders
and whether or not I recommend using one after this test.
Now, I have cooked briskets
with and without binders over the years.
Now, I honestly sometimes can't tell that it does
or does not do anything for my brisket
or other barbecued meats.
So the first question we'll ask is,
why use a binder in the first place?
Many cooks feel that using a binder, like mustard,
creates a better bark, helps the rub stick to the meat,
and even enhances the flavor of your brisket,
depending on what you use.
And so, over the years, why has mustard emerged
as the most popular binder?
Well, mustard is pretty inexpensive, first of all.
Second of all, it's been around forever and ever.
I remember my dad using it in the early '70s
on his briskets, even way back then.
And it does a fairly decent job
of keeping the rub on the brisket.
I will say also it also depends
on what kind of rub you're using
and how much rub you're using as well.
In most professional cooks' opinions,
the mustard does not alter the flavor
of the meat in any way, shape, or form.
You really can't even tell it was there, flavor-wise.
What are some of the alternatives to mustard as a binder?
Some cooks like to mix pickle juice with their mustard.
Some people like to use Worcestershire.
Some use a combination of those three.
If you've watched my videos,
you see that I am a fan of using Parkay.
I don't really use the Parkay so much as a binder.
I just feel like it does a little subtle enhancement
to the flavor of the meat due to the oils
and the butter flavor that is in the Parkay.
And, gasp, but there's actually some cooks
that say they use mayonnaise.
We're gonna see if that mustard binder
really makes a difference or not.
Put a little bit of binder on this one tomorrow morning.
No binder on this one.
We're gonna use the exact same rub.
We're gonna cook them in the same pit
at the same temperature till they're both done perfect.
All right, I'd like to do a little more investigation
with a couple of my friends, totally unrehearsed.
They don't even know I'm gonna call them.
First guy I'm gonna call is my good friend Maro Pena,
who cooks briskets quite often,
and find out if he uses a binder
and if he does, why, if he doesn't, why not?
What's going on, Maro, how you doing today?
(Maro speaks in Spanish)
I just used your OG on fajitas toreadors at the house.
- Hee-hee, you're gonna eat good, man.
Real quick question.
I'm making a video about whether or not a binder does
or does not make a difference on a brisket.
I know you cook 'em pretty often.
Do you use binders on your brisket?
- I use like the Worcestershire sauce.
I use Dale's Mustard.
So, yes, I do use binders when I cook brisket,
kind of gives me a head start
especially if I'm gonna cook it on a pellet grill.
- Let's try another friend of mine, Luci, Moya.
He cooks a lot of briskets and actually does pop up.
What are your thoughts?
Do you use a binder on your brisket?
- This is my opinion towards it.
If I'm gonna open up a brisket and it's fresh
out of the pack and I trim it up and I won't use a binder
I'll go just straight with my, with my rub
whatever I'm gonna rub it with.
And, and I'll just throw it
on the pit. And notice when I cook
briskets it comes flaky, my bark.
And that's one of the main reasons why I don't use a binder.
- Yes. I've had that experience too.
Do you think binders work
on brisket or do you use a binder yourself?
- No. No, because you know, whenever I put some seasoning
I mean that seasoning pull a lot
of moisture out of the meat and that
that right there is gonna bind it to me
pulls moisture out that binds it.
I just started using a binder for the catering and briskets.
Yeah. And it helps the, the rough state for sure.
Okay. I noticed that right away.
- Okay. So you see it split right down the middle, swear.
These guys had no clue that I was gonna call them.
They had no idea.
I have a feeling that if I continue to call people
it's gonna be split right down the middle.
And so their end lies the conundrum, you know, does it work?
Does it not work?
Some guys believe it does some guys swear it
does some guys say it's not necessary.
- When I went to lay 'em into the barbecue smoker
I was still wondering, is it gonna make a difference?
After about the first two hours, I went ahead
and went in there to do the first spreads.
The only real difference I could tell was that one
of them had a little bit of a yellow hue
to it due to the yellow mustard sitting below the rug.
Now, when I went in for the second spritz, I could see
that the bark and the color was really starting to
look a little more different.
This was now three and a half to four hours into the cook.
However, I did notice that there really wasn't a whole lot
of difference between one and the other, other
than the little yellow hue that still was there
under the rub
of the brisket that had the mustard binder on it.
Now I went ahead and rotated 'em and spritzed them again
just to make sure all things are equal inside the smoker.
And when I went to wrap them
pretty much kind of what I expected.
I didn't see a whole lot
of difference from one to the other.
And I was kind of surprised actually, that the one
without the binder was a little darker in color.
Was it because of the yellow in the mustard?
I'm not real sure.
They literally look identical.
I can't tell which one's the snake river
and which one is the regular prime one.
They look the same.
The bark looks very same to me.
We'll see what they look like when we get 'em unwrapped
Here. We have our two briskets.
Let's get 'em unwrapped.
They've been rushing about an hour
or maybe a little bit more.
We're gonna open 'em up.
See if the binder or no binder makes a difference.
All right, let's see what we got here.
Man it's super soft.
Look at that.
This looks really pretty, super soft.
Oh my goodness.
That is super nice.
This one has a lot of moisture in it too.
Wow. Kind of feels like it
overcooked just a hair.
It's got a little crack here, but man, look at that.
That is nice. They're both super nice.
Now the bark is not real hard here.
Not real set.
This is the one with the mustard.
This bark seems to have set a little bit better.
Look at that.
You know, it doesn't quite print so much when
I put my fingers on it
it was barking up real nice all the way around.
For some reason, this center part
on both briskets did not quite bark up.
I'm not sure if it was the airflow
inside the smoker or what
but either way they both barked up really nice with
and without a binder. This is a wagu brisket.
It was a little smaller by about a pound than the other one.
Let's go ahead and slice it
up and see what we're looking at here.
That sliced really nice.
Wow. That's a beautiful looking brisket right there, folks.
Really nice.
I'm just gonna take one slice here and give it a taste test.
You can see a really nice smoke ring there.
Beautiful smoke ring.
It just melts in your mouth.
That is really good.
All right.
Now this one is the prime.
This one did go up to about 2 0 5, 2 0 6.
To me. It looks just a hair over cook.
Cause I can see a little crack up here on top.
The other one pretty much settled in right at 2 0 3.
Slice is really nice and soft.
Really nice.
Very nice too.
Beautiful brisket.
Wagu brisket was definitely a little bit more moist.
I do think this one, overcooked just the hair.
Nothing wrong with that though.
All right, let's cut this one, take a taste.
I wonder if the meat tastes different.
Hm... that's good too.
Very good.
I can tell a little difference in the meat flavor though.
They're both really good
but the meat has more flavor over there in my opinion.
Very good.
Very good. All right, friends, you saw it with your own eyes.
We have a prime and a Wagu
Both of them seasoned identical.
The prime had a binder.
The Wagu did not. Both barks turned out really nice.
The barks stuck just equally
well without the binders. I'm gonna vote.
that binder is not really necessary.
Now, if you want to put it
on and you'd think it works for you, go right ahead.
Put it in the comments.
Tell me, do you use a binder or not?
I think they both looked great.
They both taste great.
They both cooked perfect. They're both amazing.
Thanks for watching.
Thanks for watching folks.
Keep the smoke light, make it work so
that you can have a wow kind of day. Here come buddy.
Here come my buddy, he wants a slice too.
You only get one that is working right now.
Maybe one of you guys can gimme an answer
or tell me why is it that I can never find a brisket
like this when I'm going
to a competition, only when
I'm cooking them in the backyard.
It's hilarious.
I know, but it's the truth.