Smoker vs Oven

[springybob]

Do I lose quality or taste by moving my brisket to an oven after I wrap it ? Around 165 F. Then finish in the oven, wrapped in butcher paper until 205 F

 

[RayClem]

If you do not wrap your brisket when it hits the stall temperature, it might pick up a little more smoke. Once you wrap it; there will be little or no additional smoke. Butcher paper MIGHT admit a little smoke, but tightly sealed aluminum foil will block all smoke.

Thus, once the brisket is wrapped, you can safely increase the cook temperature or move it to your kitchen oven with minimal difference to the final product.

 

[midwest]

Friend of mine always puts his pork butts, briskets, etc. in the oven after they reach the 150-160 mark. They always taste great. He swears they don't take in any more smoke at that point in the cook and electricity is cheaper than pellets...

 

[CMTiger]

Friend of mine always puts his pork butts, briskets, etc. in the oven after they reach the 150-160 mark. They always taste great. He swears they don't take in any more smoke at that point in the cook and electricity is cheaper than pellets...

After 12 or so hours I assume the smoke difference is pretty minimal. Has to be, right? Especially if you wrap.

 

[Like Smoke]

I checked out this website on smoke absorption. Just wanting to know whether it is correct or not, from our wide range of great smokers. https://www.lakesidesmokers.com/at-what-temperature-does-meat-stop-absorbing-smoke/

 

[RayClem]

I checked out this website on smoke absorption. Just wanting to know whether it is correct or not, from our wide range of great smokers. https://www.lakesidesmokers.com/at-what-temperature-does-meat-stop-absorbing-smoke/

That website indicates that meat will continue to absorb smoke (not surprising), but the smoke ring won't change significantly after the stall temperature (again not surprising).

The problem is that if you try to achieve an internal temperature of 200-205F a common temperature for brisket and pork butts and the cook temperature is below 225F to provide good smoke generation, it will take a very long time to ever get to the final temp. If you boost the cook temp, let's say 275F for sake of argument, you will speed up the cooking process, but the pellets will burn more efficiently at that temperature, so you won't get much added smoke flavor anyway.

That is why so many people use the "Texas crutch", wrapping their briskets or pork butts once they reach stall temperature. This greatly speeds up the cooking process by preventing moisture evaporation from the surface of the meat. There will be some loss of smoke flavor in doing this, but the difference might not be significant. Cooking generally involves compromises. We sacrifice something (in this case, maximum smoke flavor) for something else (shorter cooking time & less pellet consumption). Each pitmaster has to determine which compromises are acceptable and which are not.

 

[Like Smoke]

Thank you for that. I have been on the fence on whether to wrap or not and your explanation makes more sense than anything else I've read. My next butt I am going with a wrap.

 

[Shedd]

I usually don’t wrap but I’ve been doing it lately and saturating it with sauces for a few folks. I cover with mustard sauce as my binder, cover with rub then I cook them fat cap down until around 160 or so. I put them in a foil pan and put a few pats of butter on top then some sauce over it. Watered down apple cider so it’s not as sweet in bottom of pan , then cook to about 203-205. I shred it and pour hot homemade sauce into it until it’s the consistency I like. I just did two overnight and recently completed them up. Turned out great. I did one with a simi sweet red sauce I make and one with my old family mustard sauce SC style.

 

[Trae Bar IV]

I smoke my meat for about 4 hours at around 200-225. Afterwards, I will probe it and crank the heat to 250-275 once it hits 160. I’ll wrap it in foil or put it in a full sized aluminum throwaway pan and let it cook till 200, Pull it, put it in a cooler and let it rest for at least 2 hours if I can.

I have the timberline XL , so I will do it in the “supersmoke” setting for the first 4 hours.

 

[YYCRed]

If you do not wrap your brisket when it hits the stall temperature, it might pick up a little more smoke. Once you wrap it; there will be little or no additional smoke. Butcher paper MIGHT admit a little smoke, but tightly sealed aluminum foil will block all smoke.

Thus, once the brisket is wrapped, you can safely increase the cook temperature or move it to your kitchen oven with minimal difference to the final product.

The little bit of smoke it *might* get is negligible. Especially when you compare it to the several hours of smoke it got before being wrapped.

 

[Gagroot]

While purists might argue for the authenticity of a smoker, I've found that finishing a brisket in the oven can actually yield some pretty tasty results. The key is to maintain that low and slow cooking vibe, whether it's in the smoker or the oven. Plus, wrapping it in butcher paper helps lock in moisture and flavor, no matter where you finish it. And hey, if you ever need your oven (or smoker!) fine-tuned for optimal performance, I've had great experiences with https://musiccityappliance.services/ . Their expertise might just take your cooking game to the next level!

 

[Tallyman89]

While purists might argue for the authenticity of a smoker, I've found that finishing a brisket in the oven can actually yield some pretty tasty results. The key is to maintain that low and slow cooking vibe, whether it's in the smoker or the oven. Plus, wrapping it in butcher paper helps lock in moisture and flavor, no matter where you finish it.

I have started my brisket in the oven. Rub, wrap in foil, 225 for 4-5 hours. Smoke til tender. Have read, after 4-5 hours of smoke, there is little more penetration. We like the results.

 

[Slimpicker]

I have started my brisket in the oven. Rub, wrap in foil, 225 for 4-5 hours. Smoke til tender. Have read, after 4-5 hours of smoke, there is little more penetration. We like the results.

Accept I like a good BARK, the 'bark' will basically never stop being affected by staying in your smoker.
I don't wrap pork butts until fully cooked because I want that BARK to be so thick and hard that when you pull and mix your meat, all that 'bark goodness' gets into the flavor of everything. And my briskets only get paper wrapped at about 170ish IT, again, I don't wanna ruin any bark goodness.
Bark has all your RUB on it, nothing tastes better to me than a nice rubbed bark.

 

[magoo40]

Do I lose quality or taste by moving my brisket to an oven after I wrap it ? Around 165 F. Then finish in the oven, wrapped in butcher paper until 205 F

I do it all the time now, and have not detected an flavor difference, the bonus is you are not wasting pallets when the meat is wrapped and cant get any additional smoke anyway.

 

[Trae Bar IV]

Do I lose quality or taste by moving my brisket to an oven after I wrap it ? Around 165 F. Then finish in the oven, wrapped in butcher paper until 205 F

I've done this same technique the last two smokes. After 165 deg or six hours your meat has had enough smoke, plus it saves on BBQ space if you're doing other cuts (which I do all the time). Besides, once you wrap it your just burning pellets for no reason.