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How long to smoke a 4lb brisket
If you’re wondering how long you can smoke a 4lb brisket for until it is done and ready to be pulled off the smoker, you have come to the right place.
For a 4 lb brisket, expect an average cook time of about 1 lb of meat per hour of cook time.
That is of course assuming that you are smoking it at a low and slow temperature of about 225 degrees Fahrenheit.
That is pretty low, and as you start to increase the ambient temperature at which you smoke a particular 4lb brisket, then you’ll quickly notice that the cooking time starts to decrease substantially.
Specifically, let’s say you were to begin smoking the brisket weighing in at about 4 lb at roughly 300 degrees Fahrenheit in a temperature.
At that point, then the 4-Hour cook time that it normally would have taken at 225 degrees Fahrenheit, is now really only wanted two hours of cook time.
This is a substantial benefit to any Pitmaster because it gives you the grace of time and you don’t always have to be huddling around the smoker for extended periods of time for no reason at all.
Final thoughts
At the end of the day we all want a nice juicy brisket that comes out very tender.
Since we’ve already established that it takes about anywhere from two to four hours to cook through an entire 4 lb brisket, you also have to understand what exactly is he pulling it because that is really the main determining Factor that’s the one a brisket if any side is done.
For a 4 pound brisket, at the four-hour mark try probing all around the meat to test for resistance. If there is no resistance, then you should know that it is done and ready to be pulled off the smoker.
If there is resistance however, then consider cooking a brisket a little bit longer because the connective tissues and collagen within the meat have not completely rendered down.
Just stay through the process and keep reproducing the meat every 30 minutes or so until there is no resistance. That is when a 4 lb brisket should be done.
Robert is a certified Pitmaster, with over a decade of experience in smoking the best meats you’ll ever feast upon. He also has a Bachelor of Business Administration from the University of Texas at San Antonio. When he’s not researching technical topics, he’s most likely barbecuing in his backyard.