victor779•2mo agoProlific Poster

I used to think wrapping brisket was cheating, but a guy at a Kansas City competition changed my mind

I was helping a friend at the American Royal last year and saw this older pitmaster, maybe in his 60s, carefully wrapping his brisket in pink butcher paper. I made some comment about how real barbecue doesn't need a crutch, and he just smiled and said, 'Son, the goal is to serve the best meat, not to win a tough guy contest.' He explained how the paper helps push through the stall without steaming the bark like foil does. I tried his method on my next cook and the bark was perfect. Anyone else have a moment that made them switch up a core belief?

4 comments

4 Comments

charlescraig2mo ago

That line about the paper pushing through the stall without steaming the bark is spot on... but I gotta say, foil doesn't always steam it either. If your wrap is tight and you're careful, foil can give you a really good result too, sometimes even juicier. It's more about how you use it than what you use. I went through a phase of thinking paper was the only way, but now I pick based on the specific brisket and how much time I have.

josephadams2mo ago

Man, that's so true about life in general. We get these hard rules in our head about the "right" way to do things. Like, I used to insist you had to hand wash a cast iron skillet, no soap ever. Then I saw my grandma, who's used the same pan for 50 years, use a tiny bit of soap. The sky didn't fall. The pan was fine. We cling to methods as identity, when really it's just about getting the job done well.

mark4363d ago

Totally had the same rigid mindset about cast iron. Seeing your grandma prove that old rule wrong makes me rethink a lot of the "must do" stuff I've been following.

charles_mitchell2mo ago

So when you pick paper or foil now, @charlescraig, what's the main thing that tips you one way or the other? Is it just the cook time or something else?