New to smoking meats - Stall problem?

[Eves]

I've had my Masterbuilt 30" electric smoker for 3-4 weeks. Last week I made pork shoulder and this week I made a smoked corned beef (~pastrami). Both times the stall shocked me and I don't know if I am just not getting it or if there is something wrong with the smoker.

The Pork shoulder hit the stall at ~160F so I took it out, wrapped it in foil, and put it back in. Two hours later the shoulder's temp was still sitting at about 160F. Admittedly I had only wrapped the shoulder in a single layer of normal (non-heavy duty) foil. I was running out of time so I put it in the oven at 350F and two hours later it finally hit 195-200F (so a total of 4 hours wrapped: 2 at 225F in the smoker and 2 at 350 in the oven). It turned out great but the stall was really annoying.

Yesterday was the smoked 3.3lbs corned beef (soaked in water over night to remove some salt). Similar this happened. It took about 3 hours to hit 160F (smoker temp at 250F), I let it sit in the smoker a little while and wrapped it in butcher paper (well wrapped this time), and put it back in. After 1 hour the temp finally started going up and I thought I had beaten the stall but then it just stopped at 178F for a while and then started going down. It was 157F when I pulled it out and put it in the oven at 350F (work called, I had deal with an emergency, and could not monitor the smoker any longer) . It was in the oven for over 3 hours before I hit 195F.

As I said I'm new to smoking. I have my suspicions that I'm just simply expecting the stall to end sooner after wrapping than it normally should. After all it still took a while in the oven for both attempts. Is this kind of thing normal? Should I try to stop worrying so much and simply give myself more time? Or is this because of my use of an electric smoker?

 

[thirdeye]

Have you verified the actual temp, at the grate, in your smoker? Getting through the stall takes time, temperature, wrapping, or a combination of.

 

[Steve H]

Perfectly normal. The stall can last a couple hours. Or 6 hours. I've done summer sausage that took 14 hours to finish.

 

[SmokinAl]

Yep, what they all said, if you’re smoking at 225-250 you’re gonna get a stall. If you bump the temp up to 275 it will power right thru the stall. So a higher temp cook could be another option.
Al

 

[Eves]

Have you verified the actual temp, at the grate, in your smoker? Getting through the stall takes time, temperature, wrapping, or a combination of.

I had a probe in the meat as well as one monitoring the temp in the smoker. The temp in the smoker was pretty close to what the smoker itself said it was. And I had used a separate thermometer just to doublecheck the meat. It matched the probe completely.


Looks like I just simply need to have patience. Thanks everyone

 

[Coreymacc]

Ive had cooks where there seems to be 2 stalls or even 3. I've resigned to starting the cook very very early and then just holding if its done early. Doesn't seem to matter if its pork or a brisket they all have a mind of their own.

Corey

 

[KimberlyO]

Welcome to the forum. When it comes to the stall, patience is definitely the key. My first brisket was 17 lbs and took 23 hours to finish. My fingernails were all gone from chewing them by the time it got through the stall. I had no idea it could take THAT long. Leaving it alone did pay off in the end, though my guests were a little hungry! Lesson learned; assume the cook will take an addition 3 - 5 hours longer and wrap and put into cooler if done before needed. This will work out fine for both brisket and pork butt. Then, you don't have to worry and the stress of meeting the dinner deadline is removed.

Good luck and welcome. you will find a wealth of information and knowledge on this forum. The folks here have already helped me a great deal!. Kim.

 

[Brokenhandle]

Another thing... if you're looking you're not cooking. Meaning everytime you open the door you're extending your cook time.

Ryan

 

[normanaj]

Another thing... if you're looking you're not cooking. Meaning everytime you open the door you're extending your cook time.

Yup.The door to my MES generally gets opened twice,when the food goes and when it comes out.Sometimes 4 if I decide to wrap which is something I rarely do these days.

 

[Eves]

When it comes to opening the smoker...I only open it to add/remove something else (like the beans and mac & cheese I made with the pork last week) and to spray the pork with more apple juice every ~2 hours. I'm trying to let the probe thermometer do its thing so I don't open it so much.

 

[JLeonard]

Like KimberlyO said…..plan extra time into the cook for when this happens. You can rest it for several hours foiled and towel wrapped in a cooler and it still be piping hot when you take it out. I have a dedicated Coleman Cooler just for this purpose!
Jim

 

[schlotz]

Patients weed-hopper, all good things come to those who wait.

 

[crazymoon]

E, IMHO, you can only spritz with a stick burner. Electric smokers need to stay shut as much as possible as they don't recover temps very well.

 

[jcam222]

On many things don’t be afraid to cook at a higher temp as well. Butts I now run a minimum 275F. Frankly I smoke very little under that temp anymore. Exceptions would be something like eye of round where I want medium rare result but want to maximize time in the smoke.

 

[tallbm]

I've had my Masterbuilt 30" electric smoker for 3-4 weeks. Last week I made pork shoulder and this week I made a smoked corned beef (~pastrami). Both times the stall shocked me and I don't know if I am just not getting it or if there is something wrong with the smoker.

The Pork shoulder hit the stall at ~160F so I took it out, wrapped it in foil, and put it back in. Two hours later the shoulder's temp was still sitting at about 160F. Admittedly I had only wrapped the shoulder in a single layer of normal (non-heavy duty) foil. I was running out of time so I put it in the oven at 350F and two hours later it finally hit 195-200F (so a total of 4 hours wrapped: 2 at 225F in the smoker and 2 at 350 in the oven). It turned out great but the stall was really annoying.

Yesterday was the smoked 3.3lbs corned beef (soaked in water over night to remove some salt). Similar this happened. It took about 3 hours to hit 160F (smoker temp at 250F), I let it sit in the smoker a little while and wrapped it in butcher paper (well wrapped this time), and put it back in. After 1 hour the temp finally started going up and I thought I had beaten the stall but then it just stopped at 178F for a while and then started going down. It was 157F when I pulled it out and put it in the oven at 350F (work called, I had deal with an emergency, and could not monitor the smoker any longer) . It was in the oven for over 3 hours before I hit 195F.

As I said I'm new to smoking. I have my suspicions that I'm just simply expecting the stall to end sooner after wrapping than it normally should. After all it still took a while in the oven for both attempts. Is this kind of thing normal? Should I try to stop worrying so much and simply give myself more time? Or is this because of my use of an electric smoker?

Hi there and welcome!

I think the guys are giving you some great info!

I agree with not worrying about spritzing. You don't need it with your MES. Also the MES smoker and meat probes are always wrong so keep relying on the secondary probes you are using.

Most meats you can smoke at 275F which will drastically help your situation.
I don't wrap at all and I find at a steady 275F smoker temp I pork butts and briskets take about 1hr 5-10min per pound before they may probe tender. I don't wrap because to me the flavor is far superior when unwrapped vs wrapping. Those meats are never done by time or temp, only when they are tender BUT at a meat internal temp of 200F I start checking for tenderness.
Also my MES smoker is rewired and uses a PID controller so it actually hits and holds right on 275F smoker temp. Your's may not really get to 275F, MES units are notorious for not being able to hit the top temp.

Finally, if you are wrapping to speed up the stall go ahead and stop applying smoke and close your MES vent all the way. That will help.

Let me know if this all makes sense. You will get things whipped into shape in no time, it's al part of learning :)