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A pitmaster in Austin told me to wrap my brisket in butcher paper after the stall, not before.
I was at the Texas Monthly BBQ Fest last year, and this guy from a famous joint saw me checking my meat at the 5-hour mark. He said wrapping too early just steams it and ruins the bark, which was a total lightbulb moment for me. How do you all decide when to wrap, or do you even wrap at all?
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jennifer8336mo ago
My first brisket looked like a sad, gray boot because I wrapped it at the first sign of smoke. Bark was just a word in a book to me. Now I wait for that bark to set like concrete, usually around 170 internal, before the paper even comes out.
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robin5914mo ago
So @kelly385 brings up a good point about reading the meat, but how do you actually tell when that bark is set like concrete vs just looking dark on the outside? Like is there a specific feel test or are you just going by the internal temp?
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henryp406mo ago
Honestly @jennifer833 that "sad, gray boot" phase is a rite of passage we all go through.
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kelly3856mo ago
What if the gray boot stage is actually protecting the meat from drying out too early though? I've seen people rush the bark and end up with a dry brisket even if it looks perfect. Maybe that sad phase is like a necessary ugly duckling moment where the moisture is getting locked in. So waiting for the bark to set is key, but maybe the timing changes based on your smoker and the weather that day. It's not just a set temp, you gotta read the meat and the cook.
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