Foiling....Yes or No?

[fagesbp]

I love that accent, yah.

 

[talan64]

I foil Butts, brisket and ribs. I keep 4 - 5 of the large foil pans from the dollar store on hand, and just foil over the top.  Works great.  Sure I lose some bark, but taste and moisture are there!

 

[helljack6]

I see foiling as a technique, when used properly it can decrease your overall cook time but at a price of another characteristic of the meat that you're cooking. An alternative to foiling, simply increasing temp. Now before anyone jumps in and says that's not BBQ or that's not normal, I'll have you know I've done large packer briskets from start to finish in 4.5 hours high heat, with no bark. Can it be done, sure. But the signature bark that's built up over the period of a slow cook is forever lost within the first hour. But, there's no stall period either. A forum member from another site I still frequent is a stone cold believer in 270-325 heat range for such cuts as ribs and brisket and has done enough of them to back his claim with no foil whatsoever.

My point here, foiling like smoking, is a technique. Some use it with great success, others just don't use it. Regardless if you like it or not or understand it or not, it's a good technique to have in your playbook for when time suddenly becomes of the essence.

 

[cliffcarter]

I see foiling as a technique, when used properly it can decrease your overall cook time but at a price of another characteristic of the meat that you're cooking. An alternative to foiling, simply increasing temp. Now before anyone jumps in and says that's not BBQ or that's not normal, I'll have you know I've done large packer briskets from start to finish in 4.5 hours high heat, with no bark. Can it be done, sure. But the signature bark that's built up over the period of a slow cook is forever lost within the first hour. But, there's no stall period either. A forum member from another site I still frequent is a stone cold believer in 270-325 heat range for such cuts as ribs and brisket and has done enough of them to back his claim with no foil whatsoever.

My point here, foiling like smoking, is a technique. Some use it with great success, others just don't use it. Regardless if you like it or not or understand it or not, it's a good technique to have in your playbook for when time suddenly becomes of the essence.

Does this mean you've abandoned the 210° low and slow naked ribs and joined us on the otherside?

 

[damon555]

It seems the majority on the board use foil. I'm wondering whether it has anything to do with the type of smoker being used or if it's just more of a timing thing. My WSM pretty much cooks any type of BBQ from start to finish with no real interaction from me at all during the smoke. It's downright boring until it's time to eat. It might take a little longer but in the end it's so much easier to just let the smoker work its magic.

I also tend to lean towards simple rubs. When I learned to cook as a child simplicity was the name of the game....We were pretty poor and mom had limited resources but did a fantastic job. That is now really starting to reflect in my BBQ. The meat alone is delicious. Adding a bunch of other flavors to the mix seems to detract from what I'm setting out to do....

But in the end it's all about what makes you comfortable and appeals to your tastes. You really owe it to yourself to try all the different techniques. You might be surprised.

 

[vetmp]

I'm going to smoke a beef tip roast tonight overnight. I plan on staying up with it and I was going to foil it at around the 4 hour mark. It'll be the first time that I have foiled and I figure, what do I have to lose? Nothing I think so I am going to give it a shot and see what happens.

 

[cromag]

I only foil at the end when they are headed to rest in the cooler and that's on all meat

 

[helljack6]

Does this mean you've abandoned the 210° low and slow naked ribs and joined us on the otherside?

Nope, still do the ribs at 210, 5.5 hours, no foil, no flipping, butt arse nekkid, the Mike Mills way. Anything else I cook, is dependent only on the time frame in which I need it done in. I've done brisket in 4.5 hours and I've done them in 18 hours, just a matter of how I feel. As for foil, I tend to not use it as much as I'll plan out the cook based on technique and the need to use or need to not use.

 

[vetmp]

So I am going to be smoking a pork picnic tonight and want to be able to foil it but don't want to be cooking still at noon tomorrow. What temp should I shoot for to know that it is time to foil? 175-180?

 

[goinforbroke]

Not having read all the replies.. here's my take:

Foiling is a cooking tool that helps increase the temperature of meat.   Now, I'm aware of the various reasons that people don't foil - such ask creating more bark, or smoke penetration.  This really has to be prefaced though, because the circumstances (read; equipment) people use is as varied as taste itself.   

Using me and my equipment for example.. I use the humble Brinkmann smoke n pit, albeit modded out somewhat to cook with.  This is not a 'set it and forget it" piece of equipment, in the immortal words of Ron Popeil.  Foil is a useful tool for me to bring big pieces of meat to temp, because this smoker is very "hand's on", requiring a lot of attention to keep temp.  I like that actually; it gives me something to do while working out in the yard or on my car.. whatever.  

This attention has it's limits though.  I don't want to tend this thing for 16 hours, ya know?  So I speed it up with foil for a couple hours.. say hours 4 to 6.  I can transition back to oak and lump charcoal, saving my stash of citrus wood from just making heat.  After a while the foil comes off and we go back to making a crust, which isn't a problem with so much air moving through this smoker.  An oven it isn't.   

If I had an electric or propane smoker I'd leave the foil in the pantry.  I mean, why bother?  Set it and forget it, not much equipment tending is required here and time becomes something I can get flexible with.  This might even apply to some of these really good charcoal deals like a WSM.  

Horses for courses.. 

 

[vetmp]

I've got a propane Smoke Hollow but I keep plateauing at 175 and can't get IT any hotter and I don't want to just crank the dial up and make more heat at

 the risk of burning or drying out the work I have already done...

 

[goinforbroke]

Like a lot of things.. experience counts and there is a learning curve with whatever equipment someone's using.  There's no reason not to try foiling meat for a given period to see how temperature is effected.    There's been some theory discussion of IT stalls involving evaporative cooling, and being a guy who designed HVAC systems in a former life... the concept is not lost on me at all.  Thermodynamics 101.   

If your working with a pork butt I wouldn't worry too much about drying it out, since it's so fatty to begin with.   You might want to experiment with more inexpensive picnic shoulders to see how everything reacts, wrt to time and the end product.   I can't see why something using a propane burner can't bring everything to temp..  might just be a perspective on relative time.

 

[toby bryant]

I only foil ribs. Love me some bark!

 

[vetmp]

So I'll give it a shot with foiling tonight. It is a picnic that I am smoking. Figure I'll foil it at around 175 when it begins to stall...sound about right?

 

[goinforbroke]

the classic stall is around 160 F.  You might want to verify the temp of your smoker itself.. (factory gauges being what they are), and make sure you are actually working with 225 to 275.  Go for it and take mental notes if not paper notes.. and bon appetit.  

 

[ole man dan]

I guess I've always been in the minority. 

I  use a little bit of foil, BUT...  I like to smoke Ribs,Butts, and Brisket somewhere between 275° and 300°.

I've tried the Johnny Trigg method and it makes fantastic Ribs, so I will sometimes do ribs his way.

I'm a love the bark guy, so I try to avoid foil on Butts or Brisket. 

Foil does speed up the cooking process, so if I'm rushed for time...  I drag out the foil.

One thing for sure is the type smoker also should enter into your decision on using foil.

Example:  My UDS is a wet enough environment, that it needs no water pan, needs no foil.

BUT... the stall time on my UDS is much longer than on my Offset.

My UDS is almost foolproof.

My Offset requires more work on my part, but it does produce better bark.

 

[maple sticks]

So I am going to be smoking a pork picnic tonight and want to be able to foil it but don't want to be cooking still at noon tomorrow. What temp should I shoot for to know that it is time to foil? 175-180?

If I'm going to foil its anywhere over 150*