Am I the only one who thinks wrapping in foil vs butcher paper is just a crutch for bad temp control?

I tried foil on my last brisket cook after swearing by pink butcher paper for years, and the bark came out soggy but the meat was way more tender, so which is actually the right move or are we all just guessing?

2 comments

2 Comments

sam_wood6019h ago

Ha, yeah you hit it. Foil is a crutch for sure. I did the same thing last summer, tried foil for the first time after years of butcher paper, and yeah the bark was basically just steamed off. The meat was stupid tender but the texture was all wrong. I don't think it's just bad temp control though. I think foil traps too much moisture and you end up braising the meat instead of smoking it. Butcher paper let's the bark set while still keeping some moisture in. I went back to paper after that one try and never looked back.

emerychen13h ago

My first foil boat attempt looked like I was trying to smoke a brisket in a Ziploc bag. The bark slid right off like a wet napkin, and I ended up with this sad gray meat that tasted more like boiled beef than barbecue. Felt like I spent six hours steaming dinner instead of actually smoking it. Butcher paper forever now, man. You ever had one of those foil experiments that just made you want to start over with a fresh pack of paper?