Foiling?

i personally don't foil ribs,if i'm doing butts or big slabs of meat i will watch after 5 or 6 hours if it looks like it's starting to get  to dark i will foil until maybe an hour before i'm ready to pull it off.some people foil and some don't.they say it will keep the meat moist and stop it from getting burnt crust,i'm sure you'll get some more answers good luck

Hey Steve, are you talking specifically ribs?

You may cook/smoke whichever way you like. What really matters is that it's done in a safe manner (food wise) and cooked to the proper internal temp. Only way to find out differences between foil, no foil, low & slow, hot & fast, etc. is to try it for yourself and then full steam ahead with your preference.

There has been a number of threads concerning wrapping lately.

The big reason is to get past the stall.

At about 150º to 160º internal temp, moisture evaporating from the surface of a butt or brisket will cool it

and create the stall.

If you tightly wrap it the moisture can’t evaporate and you can cook through the stall.

Ribs aren’t thick enough to have a stall. Wrapping ribs helps keep them moist and evenly cooked. I use the Johnny Trig method, 2-2-1.  2 hours bare, 2 hours foiled, 1 hour bare.

Some don’t like to foil ribs, other do. I find I get very consistent results with this method.

It also works well if your cooking for a larger group. You can cook a mess or racks leave them foiled and

put into a cooler. As folks want to eat you can grab racks and finish cooking them (bare) on the smoker.

See here for more details on the stall.

http://amazingribs.com/tips_and_technique/the_stall.html