Foiling a Butt: Time vs Bark?

[Chris Mason]

I've seen a number of posts mentioning foiling a butt during cooking. After doing a search, I think I'm understanding the idea, but I want to make sure.

From what I've read, it sounds like you can reduce cooking time if you foil your butt towards the end of the cook (say, at 170 internal?). But the cost of doing so is that the bark suffers. Is that basically the idea?

A couple of questions:

1) Is 170 the right temp to foil?

2) How much time does this typically save?

3) How does the bark suffer? Does it just get soft or does the flavor change, too? Does less bark form? Is the effect any different or worse than if I foil it after cooking and hold it in my cooler for 3 or 4 hours?

 

[Derek Yoder]

Chris,
Every time that I have smoked Butts I have had them on the smoker for 6-8 hours then finish them in the oven, tented with pineapple juice. However, the last time I wanted to see the difference between smoking them the whole time on the WSM (then wrapping in foil and putting in a cooler for an hour vs tenting them in the oven, so I did one of each. Here is what I found.

1) They both had great smokey flavor that wasn't different at all.

2) The one that was tented in the oven was much more moist throughout, pulled much easier (it actually fell apart as I trasfered from the roasting pan to the pan that I pulled it in, and the marbling broke down better than the one that was on the WSM the entire time.

3) The one on the WSM the whole time was dryer, but the bark was crisper which I liked, but if I didn't add juice from the one from the oven I think that it would have been really dry.

I think that what I'm going to try next is to leave it on the WSM for an hour or two longer to try and get that crispier bark, but still tent with the pineapple juice to finish.

Now let me say though, the one in the oven still had bark, and very tasty bark at that, but it wasn't as crisp. I guess you could also remove the foil and place back in the WSM (you will have to keep it in the roasting pan though as it will fall apart if you try to transfer it).

 

[Larry Wolfe]

If you need to speed up a butt cook, just increase your temps. I do not like the finished texture of the meat of a butt that has been foiled during the cooking process. Seems to mush it up in my opinion.

 

[Phil Perrin]

Chris,PP is the one thing I've mastered on the WSM in the year and a half I've had it. I never foil and the bark is always crispy and delicious! HTH PS-if you insist on using pineapple juice,you could pour it over the butt while it rests.

 

[Chris Mason]

Thanks for the feedback, guys.

I'm mainly asking out of curiosity. I haven't foiled so far and PP has been one of my best cooks, too. At some point, I will probably try something like Derek's technique just to see the differences. But for now, I realize I'm in no rush to mess with what has been a good thing.

 

[Mike R. (Heyworth)]

I never foil my butts either. I've always had nice moist meat, but with excellent bark. I don't do any juice either when finished. Pretty simple PP, smoke, throw in a cooler, pull, eat.