The 50 pound half-brisket that taught me about the deckle

Last Tuesday a customer asked me to trim a full packer brisket and I realized I'd been cutting out the deckle wrong for years. I always just hacked it out (you know, the big fat chunk between the point and flat) and wasted like a pound of good meat. A retired butcher named Frank who was waiting for his order showed me how to slide the knife along the natural seam instead. Has anyone else had one of those moments where a total stranger casually shows you a better way to do something you've done a thousand times?

2 comments

2 Comments

gavin69212d agoMost Upvoted

Got shown the same trick by an old timer at a BBQ competition. He just walked up mid-trim, shook his head, and grunted "you're butchering it son, here.

the_hayden12d ago

Frank's tip is solid but the deckle isn't actually a separate chunk of fat between the point and flat - it's the big fatty section that sits right on top of the flat, sort of where those two muscles overlap. Sounds like Frank was showing you how to follow the natural seam to separate the point from the flat, which is different from trimming out the deckle. The deckle is that cap of fat and connective tissue that runs along the top of the flat, and you definitely want to leave some of it on there so the flat doesn't dry out. A full packer has the deckle on the flat side and the point has its own fat cap on top, so you're really separating two muscles that each need their own trim.