When do I wrap what meat with what?
The “Texas Crutch” , butcher paper, aluminum foil , the options are endless and the differing opinions are widespread. In this post we will go over:
The “stall”
Why we wrap proteins - Color or temperature
What to wrap with : Paper vs foil
Which Meats benefit from being wrapped.
The Stall - When you are slow cooking any protein (temps under 300 deg F) , there will come a point when the internal temperature of the meat stops climbing as the melting fat gets rendered will cool the protein at an equal or greater rate than your cooker can raise internal temps. This generally (ROUGH GUIDELINE) happens around 165 degrees farenheit however it could be higher or lower. When you wrap the meat with your favorite tool, you can combat the cooling temps by encapsulating the moisture inside and not letting it escape.
COLOR VS TEMP: As you may know, your bark, and coloration from the smoke will stop forming when you decide to wrap the meat. This is where experimentation comes in. Wrapping the meat just to get it off the cooker faster to keep the wife happy is fine BUT youre working at it , why not make sure you get the most out of your long cooks? Pay just as much attention to your bark and the color of the skin as you do internal temps, as your bark will be just as affected by your cook times if you choose to wrap and vice versa. TIP: if you do “Ride out the stall” without wrapping your protein, pay close attention to your moisture. Misting may be necessary depending on the meat.
WHAT TO USE - jokes on you, this is for you to decide, test both and see what works on your cooker. I prefer paper however there is less protection from high temperatures and a good trim is imperative. If you are on a time crunch foil is the go to , but buyer beware on injected moisture as it will not escape and your bark can suffer. Tootsie doesnt wrap , some ppl use foil , some ppl use paper. Paddle your own Canoe!
Which Meats do i Wrap? - Short answer, “anything that takes to long” , the short list of meats i wont cook without paper handy are “ briskets, pork shoulders and wribs, and of course briskets and plate ribs. Keep in mind the cooking principles applied here can apply to anything you are making. Example: Cooking briskets and Chicken at the same time at low temps? Toss your chicken in a covered hotel pan and you can save the skin from the additional hours it will spend in the cooker at the expense of your lazyness.
