Is Foil Or Butcher Paper Better For Smoking? (2024)

FAQs

Is Foil Or Butcher Paper Better For Smoking? ›

It depends on what you're cooking. Butcher paper is better for something like brisket or beef ribs where you want a strong bark. If you're dealing with something like pork ribs or pork shoulder where you don't care about the bark nearly as much, but do care more about succulent meat, tin foil is the way to go.

Wrap the roast tightly with pink butcher paper (aluminum foil works, too), and put it back on the smoker, cooking until it reaches 205 degrees internal temperature. Once meat is cooked, remove from the smoker and place on a large cutting board. Remove your butcher paper and tent with foil.

We've found that covering a turkey in foil yields much moister results than roasting it without foil, and we favor simply covering up the breast to even out cooking time. Some people swear that roasting a turkey breast-side down and flipping it halfway through achieves the same results as a foil covered breast.

Butcher paper is a food-grade kraft paper designed to wrap raw meat and fish from the butcher or market and also popular to use on the smoker when smoking meat. Pink butcher paper is the top pick for many smoking aficionados.

One of the tricks I use for making a brisket with great bark and tenderness is wrapping it in aluminum foil or butcher paper. The wrap helps to keep moisture in the meat, ultimately speeding up the cooking process. This technique is commonly called the "Texas crutch."

It depends on what you're cooking. Butcher paper is better for something like brisket or beef ribs where you want a strong bark. If you're dealing with something like pork ribs or pork shoulder where you don't care about the bark nearly as much, but do care more about succulent meat, tin foil is the way to go.

Butcher paper not only prevents over-steaming but also protects the meat from the full impact of the smoker. Butcher paper will soak up the grease from a brisket as well, and since it's breathable, it allows more smoke to pass through than foil, leaving the meat with even more flavor.

Cooking smoked items wrapped in foil from start to finish will not allow for full penetration of the smoke vapor particles that account for the unique color, texture, and taste to smoked foods. Plus, you likely will increase your risk of health issues with repeated exposure to high aluminum levels.

Butcher paper will protect the bark and helps to keep a lot of the moisture inside the meat. The paper will absorb some moisture but doesn't allow nearly as much liquid to evaporate as aluminum foil does.

What can you substitute for butcher paper? Though you can use butcher paper and parchment paper interchangeably, there are other butcher paper substitutes that you can choose from, like wax paper, freezer paper, and aluminum foil. For wrapping and storing food, use wax or freezer paper.

Can smoke penetrate butcher paper? ›

Butcher Paper is porous, when using butcher paper for smoking, your meat can breath throughout the process. Smoke is then able to still penetrate the paper and meat.

Wrapping meat in foil mid-grill or smoke gives it the chance to continue cooking without getting too much of a bark. When done correctly, the Texas Crutch allows the meat to simmer in its own — and added — juices.

First off, you'd smoke or bake the brisket at 225 degrees for 3 hours; then you'd wrap it in foil and keep cooking it for 2 hours. Finally, uncovered and cook for 1 more hour before letting it rest for a few minutes prior serving.

Wrapping the brisket at this stage also helps keep it moist and tender by trapping the juices and preventing it from drying out. If you wrap a brisket too early, you may end up with a softer, less textured bark. If you wrap the brisket late, it may take a lot longer to cook.

Set your pellet grill to 225℉ and preheat, lid closed, for 15 minutes. Place brisket on the grill grate fat side down, and cook for approximately 6 hours or until the internal temperature reaches 160℉. Remove the brisket from the grill and wrap in butcher paper or foil.

Preheat smoker to 250°F. Place chuck roast in smoker and smoke until it reaches an internal temperature of 165°F to 170°F (4 to 6 hours). Wrap tightly in 2 layers of foil or peach paper and return to smoker until internal temperature reaches 200°F to 205°F (45 minutes to 1 hour).

So, although some aluminum in the diet is inevitable, keep exposure minimal with simple changes such as switching to parchment paper over foil when roasting. Parchment paper can tolerate temperatures up to 420°F.