Foiling to Hold until its time to eat


 
Marty W

Marty W

TVWBB Member
Ok guys I have a question. I am going to try my first full packer this weekend. I have cooked a flat one other time and it came out dry so I am hoping for some better results this time around.

The question I have is foiling to hold the brisket after the cook but this could also apply to any meats you foil to hold for a while before eating.

Are you at all concerned about carry over cooking or do you let the meat rest for a little while before wrapping it to hold? If carry over is a concern do you want to pull it a little before the "butter" feeling and let the carry over hopefully give you the "butter" feeling? Finally when you do wrap it to hold it do you wrap it tight in double layer or do you wrap it loosely giving the meat air to breath? :confused:
 
I double wrap my briskies in HD foil with a blanket around it for 2-3 hours after it comes off the pit.
It is still very hot when time to carve and it cuts like butter everytime. All the juices redistribute back into the meat and it is so juicy and tender!! Save the juices in the foil and pour over your meat after carving.
I wrap it tight!!
 
If you are foiling as soon as you pull it then you will have residual cooking so you should pull the meat off a little before it's done.
If you let it rest for 15-20 minutes before foiling then this will cut back on the residual cooking so you can pull the meat from the cooker when it is done.
Foil tightly and wrap in towels then place it in a cooler. If you preheat the cooler with hot water you can hold keep it warm longer.
You say your last brisket was dry but what was the texture? Dry and tough it was underdone, dry and crumbly it was overdone.
 
Bob Sample said:
Dry and tough it was underdone, dry and crumbly it was overdone.
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It can be dry and undercooked? I just assumed if it was dry it was overcooked. Unfortunately mine was dry and crumbly. It I understand it correctly I should pull it foil it tight and if it goes straight from the WSM into the foil I should pull it before it is butter tender or wait until it is butter tender and then give it a rest for 15-20 minutes before wrapping tightly in foil. I think for a newbie it might be easier to pull when it feels like butter and let it rest before foiling. That way I can take the guess work out of "Is it tender enough that the carry over will make it butter tender". I love the idea of pouring the juices from the foil back over the meat. Thanks again.
 
If I'm not going to serve immediately (after an adequate rest), I will double wrap (tight) in HD foil.

I then place it in a cooler wrapped again in towels. It stays piping hot for a couple hours+. Neve had an issue with it becoming overdone or anything like that.
 
I don't think so. Ya got a smaller margin for error with target temps when HH cooking so ya gotta hang around the pit when it is gettin close.........
 
There is a difference between HH and low/slow briskets in terms of foiling after the cook, yes. Residual cooking can be significantly more after a HH cook. It is best to simply tent the brisket with foil, not wrap it tightly, after cooking. If the brisket was taken to tender during cooking tenting will minimize the possibility of overcooking as the heat won't be trapped. If ready to eat, simply slice after it has rested 20-25 min, tented. If needing to hold for a while, wrap tightly after 15-20 min of tenting/resting.

And yes. Meat that is dry can be undercooked - or overcooked. Undercooked meat tends to be dry and tough/chewy. (Insufficient cooking means the meat has not released enough moisture nor rendered much fat and connective tissue, thus lubricating the meat.)

When meat becomes tender moisture and rendering have occurred sufficiently.

When meat overcooks contracting muscle fibers squeeze out too much moisture and rendering and these liquids are lost to drippings and evaporation. Overcooked enough and the meat will once again be dry. Rather than tough/chewy it tends toward stringy or if quite overcooked stringy/tough.
 
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I always foil and hold because I try to have the meat done a couple of hours before serving. That way, even if I'm off a little on time, the meal isn't waiting for the meat to finish. Like others, I double wrap in heavy duty foil, wrap in a towel, and put in a cooler. I've done this for 1 to 5+ hours and the meat is still hot. I'm sure there's residual cooking but I don't worry about it; I just take the meat off when it's done. Never had any problems.
 
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