To foil wrap or not?


 
S

StephenE

New member
i suspect this has been discussed numerous times but as a relative newbee to my 22" WSM I would like the current thoughts?

I know the smoke is no longer absorbed past 160 degrees so when do you foil wrap? right at the end when approaching 190/195 or once you have hit the 195 perfect temp for great pulled pork?
 
Uh.. I must dis-agree with smoke not being absorbed beyond 160. The MEAT may or may not absorb smoke above 160 but the bark sure will.

Foiling is a trick to either get the internal temperature up real quick or if some form of moisture is involved, to help tenderize the meat.

What temperature you foil (or if you foil at all) is up for debate but just remember once you foil, you may as well be cooking in your kitchen oven. Nothing in the cooker will get to the meat.

My personal opinion would be to NOT foil a butt until AFTER the butt has broken out of the stall. My reasoning is that I want that fat to render down as much as it's going to and the way to do that is to let the butt sit in the stall as long as it wants.

Russ
 
Hi Stephen.

"I know the smoke is no longer absorbed past 160 degrees" - Do you really know?
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I bet i can cook a butt to 160 in the oven and smoke it to 195 with a decent smoke flavour. But that wasent the question.

On we go:

You could foil any meat to speed up the cooking(time wise). But if you are not short of time dont do it. And just foil it when its done to hold it warm for a few hours then thats no problem. Foil--->Towels--->cooler and you could hold that meat hot for up to 6 hours.

The butt can be done from 185-205 check for tenderness and se when the probe goes in with minimum resistance.

If i gonna pull my butt asap i dont foil...Just let it rest for 30 min then pull.
 
Stephen I think your probably confusing smoke absorption with smoke ring formation.

I'll probably get yelled at for saying this but smoke isn't absorbed by the meat, the flavour all sits on the surface of the outer layer or bark of what you are cooking. The reason pulled pork tastes smokey throughout is because when you pull it you are mixing in the bark with the rest of the meat giving it a uniform smokey flavour.

That being said what Daniel(Wolgast) and Russ say pretty much sums it up about foiling.

I don't foil anything unless I really miscalculated my cooking times and need to speed things up.

Butt I am going to try high heat brisket the next time I cook one so I guess foiling does have it's place.
 
Good points above.^^^

The only thing I really prefer to foil is ribs. I don't do it all the time, but it is a way to add some flavors and get a softer rib.

I know I've said this before, but I don't recommend using water in the pan if you're gonna foil anything. Last thing you need is to slow down the bark development before foiling during a cook.
 
Hi Stephen,

I've done three pork shoulders so far, and I've covered all three in a double layer of foil from 170 until I pull it. I do this for two reasons: to speed up the cooking time (I usually cook 10 pounders, so after 15 hours I'm anxious to finish up) and to be able to keep the juices (I'd estimate a 1/3 of a cupful) to pour over the pulled meat. I'd say it takes about 1-1.5 hours to go from 170 to 190 with the foil.

I do notice that I have a lot of unrendered fat, especially in the cap. I don't know if that's a result of foiling, or a result of me removing the meat at only 190F, or if it's just the way it goes.

I'd imagine that smoke still adsorbs on the bark at all temperatures, but if it's covered in foil, I agree Russ that there's no difference between the smoker and the oven.
 
Well, there you go. I learned something new today.

Meat 'adsorbs' smoke, but 'absorbs' moisture or heat. Very subtle but important difference.

Excellent catch Dave!

Russ
 
adsorbs
Click to expand...


"Adsorption is the adhesion of atoms, ions, biomolecules or molecules of gas, liquid, or dissolved solids to a surface.[1] This process creates a film of the adsorbate (the molecules or atoms being accumulated) on the surface of the adsorbent. It differs from absorption, in which a fluid permeates or is dissolved by a liquid or solid.[2] The term sorption encompasses both processes, while desorption is the reverse of adsorption. It is a surface phenomenon."

Like I said it isn't absorbed by meat. It just sticks to the surface.
 
wow, I knew I was on the right forum but did not know how right!
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Never caught the difference of adsorb VS absorb, **** y'all are also smart.

I've done several butts and have only foil wrapped at the very end after it was done so while you guys have given me much to think about I'm still undecided on which way to go this Friday. I've got a 10 lb butt and plan (using the Minion method) to start around 7 pm Friday shooting for 18 hours and 195+ later on Saturday.

Thanks again
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Stephan if you do foil make sure you save the drippings. You can add it to the pulled pork or #5 sauce is great with a little added to it.
 
I love the knowledge on this forum, rather than like other forums, people ONLY spouting opinions. Don't get me wrong, opinions matter too.

Stephen,

I agree with others, if you have to foil pork butts, do it as late as possible. You want the best bark possible.

I usually foil butts when the come off to rest in a cooler, but also will foil after 180 to speed them up if I am in a hurry.
 
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