using foil w/ butts & briskets

Big Sexy

Knows what a fatty is.
Joined
Aug 7, 2009
Location
Jacksonv...
When smoking some butts & briskets low and slow (225-250) overnight: at what time should I wrap the meat in foil?

AND... when smoking butts and briskets in the same pit, what wood would you recomend?

Thanks in advance!
 
Well IMHO you dont have to foil at all. For me the 2 main reasons to foil are 1) to get a desired color on the bark (foil stops the bark from getting too dark) and 2) to help to get meat through the "stall" if it's giving trouble. Generally I dont foil. And there are downsides to it as well. You lose some of those signature bark characteristics that you get when you dont foil as well as if you foil for too long the meat can run the risk of being too mushy.

However to answer your questions, I generally foil butts at 160 and brisket about the same. As far as wood flavor, beef can take a stonger flavor smoke than pork generally but you dont want to overpower the pork, so a medium bodied smoke like oak or pecan will work great for you. Again it all depends on your tastes and what you like. Experiment my friend, have fun with it.

Cheers
 
Don't do much pork, but for brisket, I generally foil at about 180. I find that at 180 I've got a pretty good bark and foiling helps it finishe quicker and adds to the tenderness. But that's just me, others do it completely different with great results.
 
Well IMHO you dont have to foil at all. For me the 2 main reasons to foil are 1) to get a desired color on the bark (foil stops the bark from getting too dark) and 2) to help to get meat through the "stall" if it's giving trouble. Generally I dont foil. And there are downsides to it as well. You lose some of those signature bark characteristics that you get when you dont foil as well as if you foil for too long the meat can run the risk of being too mushy.

However to answer your questions, I generally foil butts at 160 and brisket about the same. As far as wood flavor, beef can take a stonger flavor smoke than pork generally but you dont want to overpower the pork, so a medium bodied smoke like oak or pecan will work great for you. Again it all depends on your tastes and what you like. Experiment my friend, have fun with it.

Cheers

+1... I also use oak or pecan when doing both brisket and butts.
 
Back
Top