Aluminum Foil vs. Foil Pans

[rsfite]

I've always wrapped brisket, pulled pork and ribs at some point during cooking but I've been hearing a lot of smokers put their food in foil pans and seal them tight with aluminum foil. What's the opinion on here? Thanks in advance for the feedback.

Rob

[boftx]

I boat my butts in pans, mainly to collect the juice. I suspect that wrapping tightly helps shorten the stall but boating doesn't. I wrap my ribs and still get enough juice to make a sauce with.

[DWCowles]

It's all steaming no matter how you look at it. I do wrap my briskets/butts and have great bark. I also used to wrap my ribs but not no more bc unwrap is way better than wrap. BTW, if I hadn't told you already welcome to the Pit

[boftx]

DWCowles and I will disagree from time to time, but I doubt anyone would taste much difference between our cooks other than spices maybe.

[Nate]

1. Welcome to the pit!
2. I have done both methods.
3. Wrapping / boating is only one factor in the equation.... Heat is the other...
4. Wrapping does seem to get things done a little faster in my opinion.
5. Boating (as some are calling it) will still get things done faster than usual with a higher heat in the cook chamber.
6. Boating seems to yield more juice than straight wrapping... That being said... you don't need that much juice.
7. Whatever juice you get... save it and add it back to the meat after pulling or slicing or whatever....
8. Boating or a Pan helps more with cleanup... least mess and it is the easiest way to handle the meat when moving etc.. .

the views expressed in this post are solely the opinion of the poster and do not reflect that of AR or AR Pitmaster Club and its affiliates, sponsors, or whatever...

[GadjetGriller]

Nate I'm gonna take a stab at what your day job is...

[fuzzydaddy]

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[rat88]

I boat because the pan is tougher than foil and you dont take as big a chance of ripping the foil and losing all the juice (and I always seem to get a pint of 175 degree goodness soaking through leather gloves... you cant get them off fast enough)

[fzxdoc]

I have always Texas Crutched meat in foil, tightly, per Meathead's recommendation. And I don't crutch until the meat hits 180 or more. That said, now that I have a new smoker, I'm going to give "boating" a try because I respect the opinions of those here who use that method.

I read Dr.Blonder's research on the Texas Crutch (it's fascinating reading). These are Dr. Blonder's findings: In a real, foil wrapped piece of meat:

• Foil wrapping reduces cooking time.
• The purpose of adding a bit of liquid before foil wrapping is NOT to create steam, but to increase thermal conductivity through the foil into the meat. Heat conduction from foil through air to meat is much weaker.
• Steam does not immediately form inside a foil pack- the cooler food lowers the internal air temperature, and evaporative cooling slows the heating process.
• Wrapping in foil braises the food for hours, until the liquid nears the boiling point. Again, most of the time, it is not steaming.
• Except where there are pools of fat- which may rise above boiling and are partially frying meat- perhaps overcooking a tender piece of brisket.
• So in a tightly wrapped braising package with lots of fat accumulated in the bottom, eventually some of the air vapor will be steaming or even superheated in localized areas. More likely to occur at 350F, less likely at 250F.
• Loosely wrapped food will hardly ever reach the steaming point. And will take longer to cook.

He also says that braising can affect the flavor. Here's what he says about it: Now that we've revealed the physics of braising, there also is the matter of taste. Which is also a matter of opinion, but here is mine:

• Braising will tenderize meats by supplying additional humidity which helps break down collagen. But too long a braise turns the meat from tender to mushy.
• Braising does not effectively brown meats³, which is unfortunate because many important flavor compounds are generated during browning. So only foil braise after you brown- either in the skillet or by smoking to around 150F. You can brown/grill after braising, but the flavors will not have time to diffuse into the meat, and the meat might fall apart.
• From a flavor perspective, you are better off limiting the volume of braising liquid touching the meat. This can be adjusted by the shape of the foil wrapper, the quantity of added liquids, and the temperature at which you enter the crutch. You can even unwrap and siphon part of the fluids out during the crutch- reduce as your finishing sauce.
• Once the meat's internal temperature exceeds 195F, the juices have carried most of the meat's flavor compounds into the brazing liquid. The meat quickly becomes an almost flavorless sponge (try eating 200F water-braised pork along side 200F oven-baked pork [without sauce], the difference is astounding). Now, if you reduce the braising liquid or slather the meat with a sugary sauce, few people will notice. But the result is sub-standard. This is why some competition cooks wrap at 180F instead of 150F- less time in the braise. And they rest the meat in the braising liquid to reabsorb some of the lost flavor.

Interesting stuff, huh?

Kathryn

[boftx]

FYI, I usually boat my pork at about 175 or so, almost always after the stall. I'm not boating to shorten the cook so much as catch the juices easier and add some butter/molasses/etc to the mix. I wrap ribs whenever it seems right.

[CurlingDog]

Fascinating!