Technical question about wrapping

[orthodoc]

I love the advice I get here. I have gotten very good with brisket and pastrami with very consistent results.... except for the bark.

I wrap in paper a good way into the stall when the bark looks good. When I unwrap there is a huge amount of pool liquid and the bark is soggy. Meat tastes great.

Any thoughts on poking a drain hole in the bottom after wrapping to let the fluid drain so I don't get such soggy bark?

 

[uncle eddie]

watching for answers...

 

[Thom71gt]

I love the advice I get here. I have gotten very good with brisket and pastrami with very consistent results.... except for the bark.

I wrap in paper a good way into the stall when the bark looks good. When I unwrap there is a huge amount of pool liquid and the bark is soggy. Meat tastes great.

Any thoughts on poking a drain hole in the bottom after wrapping to let the fluid drain so I don't get such soggy bark?

Watching. I wouldn't poke a hole, the fat may start a flare-up and burn your meat to a crisp. But I'd be interested to hear what others say because I have the same problem.

 

[02ebz06]

Maybe trim more fat or wrap later after more has renderd out ???

 

[smokerjim]

Maybe unwrap with a hour or so until done, turn heat up and put brisket back on grate.

 

[SmokinAl]

Obviously you are going to have to experiment with different wrap times & temps. You may even want to try just a no wrap brisket. The thing about bark is, it’s like ribs. Everybody has their own personal taste & texture profile. I hope you find yours!
Al

 

[BigW.]

After you try a no wrap as Al suggested, you could also try the foil boat. This is a bit of a compromise between wrap and no wrap. Boat keeps some of the rendered fat for later and leaves the top bark exposed.

 

[JckDanls 07]

The thing with wrapping... even if a hole is poked in the foil (which I don't suggest)... It's still gonna steam/braise the brisket and soften the bark... The juice left in the foil is GOLD... I use it to pour back over the slices after slicing...

As stated above... you can unwrap with about an hour to go and it will set the bark back up...somewhat... OR ... just go nekkid the whole way... obviously this will take longer to cook this way... but.. you get your thick heavy bark...

I would like for you to try it the way your suggesting and see what the results are... But I'm thinking it's still gonna be a soft bark...

 

[edmonds]

You're wrapping in pink butcher paper, right? Wrap tightly and place on rack with fat side down. Usually the paper will absorb most of the liquid. If you have pooling on top of the brisket, slant it so that it runs off. Then unwrap towards end as others suggest.

 

[civilsmoker]

I'm a foil boat person, and then I tent foil the boat with just a little hole to allow some moisture that evaporates leave and not drip back in the rendered fat..... I also render fat and bast with the render liquid gold.

Here is an example:
https://www.smokingmeatforums.com/threads/the-“point”-of-beef……pure-goodness.317974/

 

[tallbm]

I love the advice I get here. I have gotten very good with brisket and pastrami with very consistent results.... except for the bark.

I wrap in paper a good way into the stall when the bark looks good. When I unwrap there is a huge amount of pool liquid and the bark is soggy. Meat tastes great.

Any thoughts on poking a drain hole in the bottom after wrapping to let the fluid drain so I don't get such soggy bark?

I don't wrap my briskets for a number of reasons including things you are running into. I also run an MES so moisture is not an issue, your smoker setup may cause a slightly different method but the idea remains the same.

With that said, I highly recommend you don't wrap until the brisket hits a minimum of 180F Internal Temp (IT) in the thickest yet center most part of the FLAT muscle. The point muscle will always lie to you and will turn out fine no matter what.

I say this because though I don't wrap a brisket, I do wrap a chuck because it will dry out on me. I find that if you wait until 180F you will get great BBQ beef flavor, not roast beef flavor, and you will keep it from drying out. If I did only a brisket flat then I would do it the same way.

Now with that said. I personally go to 190F IT before I foil wrap my chucks and I splash in 1-2 fluid ounces of water so it won't possibly be dry. Always had great bark, not dry, and fantastic!

FOR A BRISKET, I don't wrap at all because I find the bark and flavor to be superior to anything wrapped. Again your smoker will help dictate what works best for you with moisture and how you position the brisket (fat up, fat down, fat toward the heat source, water pan or not, etc.).

Let me know if this makes sense :)

 

[Coreymacc]

In my opinion, if you are getting pooling in the wrap its not tight enough. I use the butcher paper. I soak the inside of the paper with wine vinegar before hand to get a good stick to the brisket. If the paper isn't moist you can get voids where liquid may pool. The wet paper sticks to itself better also. Then as the paper heats up its almost like it glues itself together.

Corey

 

[Colin1230]

Aren't brisket a pita?..........but so worth it in the end!

 

[orthodoc]

Thanks to all.... I have been using Snake River wagyu brisket- perhaps I will try without wrapping at all and see what happens. I am using a Yoder pellet grill. But I would imagine that I can get the benefit of the wrap (faster cooking) with a drain hole- that liquid was coming out anyway if I cooked unwrapped. I will let the group know the outcome.

 

[tallbm]

Thanks to all.... I have been using Snake River wagyu brisket- perhaps I will try without wrapping at all and see what happens. I am using a Yoder pellet grill. But I would imagine that I can get the benefit of the wrap (faster cooking) with a drain hole- that liquid was coming out anyway if I cooked unwrapped. I will let the group know the outcome.

I've been experimenting with doing something I haven't fully posted about yet as I need to do like 1-2 more briskets to really confirm my results.

You can try this as well.
I've laying my brisket fat side towards the heat source (fat side down for me). Then taking the trimmed fat and laying it on top of the MEAT side/upside of the brisket all over the flat muscle.
Especially around the edges of the brisket and then what is left over the middle part of and other areas of the flat. The Point area is usually not an issue.

This is to solve a consistency problem where I never know when I may get an extra barky dry/crusty spot or 2 where the knife doesn't like to cut through easily. So far. Laying this fat over the the meat keeps things lubricated with oil, reduces the randomness of getting any of those extra crusty spots, AND keeps things super juicy since it's basting in beef oil.

One other benefit is that fat can basically turn into beef cracklings. They are rich but a few really crunch pieces is awesome to snack on hahahahaa! :D