The BBQ Stall Explained: How to Beat It
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Let me paint a picture for you, one that a lot of pitmasters will be depressingly familiar with.
It’s the weekend. You’ve laid your hands on a pork shoulder or a prime beef brisket, and you’ve invited your friends and family over to enjoy it with you.
You fire up your smoker, using the Minion Method, stabilize the pit temperature and sit back to enjoy a well-earned beer.
The meat temperature climbs for the first few hours, giving you that warm feeling of accomplishment, and then it flatlines. Perhaps, to your horror, the meat even starts to drop in temperature.
Your guests are getting hungry, all eyes are on you, and your promised meat is actually creeping away from that magic 203°F mark.
Welcome to stall town!
The good news is that the BBQ stall is not a divine punishment handed down by the Pit Gods It’s just chemistry and there is a solution to it.
In this article, we’ll cover what causes the BBQ stall and your best options for overcoming it.
What is the barbecue stall, and why does it happen?
The barbecue stall occurs after you place a large piece of meat, such as brisket, on the smoker. After two to three hours, the temperature of the meat reaches approximately 150°F and stops rising.
The stall can last for up to six hours before the temperature begins to rise again.
There are a fair number of different theories floating around about why certain meats stall during cooking.
Thankfully, the teams over at Amazing Ribs and Genuine Ideas decided to conduct a variety of tests to determine precisely what was happening to cause the stall.
Their test showed that the most likely culprit for the stall was evaporative cooling.
To put it simply, while you are sweating because your meat isn’t coming up to temperature, your brisket or shoulder is doing the same thing.
After about three hours of cooking, the rising temperature of your smoker evaporates the moisture in the meat.
This evaporative cooling balances out the heat being produced by your smoker’s fuel, causing the temperature of the meat to plateau, usually at around 150°F.
This is the same process that keeps your body cool by causing you to sweat on a hot day.
The stall may begin at an internal temp that’s anywhere between 150 and 170°F, depending on the particular piece of meat (size, shape, surface texture, moisture content, injection, and/or rub) and the cooker (gas, charcoal, logs, pellets, airflow, water pan and humidity),
Meathead Goldwyn – amazingribs.com
The temperature of the meat will then refuse to climb again until enough moisture has evaporated that evaporative cooling cannot offset your smoker’s heat.
Our smoking times and temps chart has average smoke times for all the best meats to smoke.
Free Chart: Download a free copy of our smoking times and temperatures chart so you can refer to it whenever you need.
Three common stall misconceptions to avoid
The cause of the stall has been debated in pitmaster circles since we first noticed it was happening.
The problem is that many of the theories that emerged, along with their proposed solutions, focused on the wrong culprits.
With multiple experiments showing that evaporative cooling is responsible for the stall, here are a few older misconceptions that have been myth busted.
1. The stall is caused by latent heat lipid phase transition
It’s a bit of a mouthful, right?
In layman’s terms, the latent heat lipid phase transition is when the collagen in your meat combines with water and changes into gelatin.
This transition is an integral part of the cooking process, as the rigid structure of the collagen transforms into soft flavourful gelatin.
The latent heat lipid phase transition also occurs at about 160°F, exactly when the stall normally starts.
This led to pitmasters, understandably, to blame the transition for the stall.
However, collagen only accounts for about 2% of the overall structure of your meat. There just isn’t enough collagen in your brisket or pork butt to offset the heat of your smoker as it transitions to gelatin.
2. The stall is caused by protein denaturation
At between 140°F and 150°F, proteins in the meat start to denature.
Denaturation is a process proteins undergo when exposed to sufficient heat.
The heat energy causes them to unfold from a complex 3D shape into a looser arrangement. This enables them to more easily combine with other substances, such as water, in your meat.
This transition does happen, and at around the same temperature as the stall typically starts. However, there isn’t enough protein in your meat for it to offset the heat energy produced by your smoker.
3. The stall is caused by fat rendering
On the surface, this theory seems more viable than the protein-based methods.
A pork shoulder is about 15% fat.
The team at Genuine Ideas tested this theory by cooking a chunk of pure beef fat and a cellulose sponge soaked in water in the same oven.
They then monitored the temperatures to see if the rendering of the fat cause it to stall. Their results overwhelmingly disproved this theory.
The fat continued to rise in temperature as expected, while the sponge hit a heat plateau at just under 150°F, stalling just like you would expect a cut of meat to do.
This because the fat simply melted, rather than evaporated, a process that uses far less thermal energy.
What types of meat/cuts are most affected by the stall?
Unfortunately, avoiding the stall isn’t as easy as choosing another piece of meat to cook.
Evaporative cooling, the cause of the stall, is down to two things: The fact that most meat is about 65% water and the low and slow cooking process.
The combination of the size of the piece of meat you’ll be cooking, the low temperature and the high water content makes the stall a part of the cooking process.
The stall is especially feared when cooking a brisket or pork butt.
How long can the stall last?
For brisket, the stall normally starts after two to three hours once the internal temperature of the meat is around 150°F. The stall can last for as long as 7 hours before the temperature of the meat starts to rise again.
Once the temperature does start to rise, it can go quickly. It’s common for a brisket to make the final jump from around 170 – 203°F in an hour or two.
Moisture evaporating from the meat will then stall its temperature out, with the stall moving from the outer surface to the center.
This stall will continue until enough moisture has evaporated away that it cannot balance the thermal energy produced by your smoker. The temperature of your meat will then start to climb again.
The length of your stall is hard to predict, as it depends on a large number of variables:
- The size of the cut of meat you are trying to cook – The larger the piece, the more water it will contain and the longer it can stall for. The surface area of the meat also contributes. A large surface area will result in greater evaporation of moisture
- The design of your smoker – Smokers with greater airflow encourages evaporation. Some pellet smokers may even have a fan in them, which can contribute to a shorter stall. Electric smokers also tend to be well sealed, which reduces evaporative cooling
- Using a water pan – Water pans keep the humidity inside your smoker high, preventing some of the moisture loss during cooking. They also allow water to mix with the smoker on the surface of your meat, increasing the smoky flavor. The downside is that they add to the moisture on the surface of the meat, extending that stall time
- Using a wet mop/brush/spritz – A lot of pitmasters add moisture to the surface of their meat while it cooks, using a variety of techniques. This has the same benefits as the water pan but also slows down the cooking time by adding to the stall
With all these variables, it’s hard to put an exact time on how long a stall might take.
According to Murphy’s Law, the stall will probably take about an hour longer than you estimated.
In some really extreme cases, I’ve heard of brisket stalls lasting for over 10 hours!
How do I beat the stall?
The good news is, now we understand why the stall happens, there are ways around it:
Option 1: Start early and rest your meat until ready to serve
This is your best option. Once you know that the stall is part of the cooking process and you know to expect it, you can prepare for it.
Use our smoking times and temp chart as a guideline, and then add an hour or two (or more for things like brisket or pulled pork) as a buffer.
Free Chart: Download a free copy of our smoking times and temperatures chart so you can refer to it whenever you need.
Now when the stall hits, you won’t be stressing out. Although it can feel like nothing is happening and something must be wrong, the stall means everything is going as expected.
Moisture is being evaporated from the surface of your meat, inside it is mixing with rendered fat and denatured proteins, keeping your meat nice and moist.
So how do you make sure your brisket is ready to serve at an exact time?
The key is to start early enough that the meat will definitely be finished at least an hour before you need to eat.
Once your meat hits the correct temperature, take it off the smoker.
You can then wrap the meat (still wrapped in foil or butcher paper) in a few old towels and leave it in a cooler to keep warm for up to 3-4 hours.
The exact amount of time you can store meat safely will depend on how well insulated your cooler is.
The faux cambro method has the added advantage of allowing the meat to rest and relax.
When I started using this method it was a total game-changer. Now I always have the meat ready a few hours before guests want to eat, and that leaves me free to work on sides or to socialize and drink a few beers.
Option 2: Use the Texas Crutch
The Texas Crutch is a way to beat the dreaded stall by wrapping your meat tightly in aluminum foil.
Sometimes you could also add extra moisture in the form of beer or fruit juice.
Pitmasters have been using the Texas Crutch for years on the understanding that wrapping and extra moisture creates steam which speeds up the cooking process.
While the method does work, the actual reason it works is that the foil prevents the evaporative cooling.
Wrapped in foil, the moisture escaping the meat isn’t carried away. It condenses on the inside of the foil, pooling at the base of the meat.
Without evaporative cooling to reduce the temperature, the stall just doesn’t happen.
Think of it like running in your raincoat, or trying to sleep through a hot night in a cheap plastic tent.
You’ll certainly be sweating, but you sure as hell won’t be getting any cooler.
The downside of the Texas Crutch is the very thing that makes it useful in beating the stall.
By trapping moisture next to the surface of the meat, the Texas Crutch makes it almost impossible to build up that dark crispy bark that a lot of brisket lovers crave.
How to wrap your meat for the Texas Crutch
- Smoke your meat for around two-thirds of its total cooking time, allowing the bark to reach a color that you are happy with.
- When your meat hits the stall, at around 150-160°F and refuses to climb any higher, remove it from the grill.
- Wrap your meat in at least two players of heavy-duty foil. Before you seal it up.
- Make sure the seal on your foil is tight. The idea here is to let as little moisture escape as possible in order to cut down on the evaporative cooling effect.
- Return your tightly wrapped meat to your smoker, and you should see it break out of the stall as the temperature starts to rise again
- If you want to try and get as much bark as possible, remove the foil when the meat reaches your target temperature and put it back on the smoker so the bark can firm up.
Option 3: Use the butcher paper method
Not all pitmasters are going to be happy with putting a foil barrier between their meat and the smoke.
If you want a solution that can help you beat the stall while not entirely sealing off your meat, you can use pink butcher’s paper.
100% FDA-approved food grade butcher paper designed for wrapping barbecue. Made in the USA
Unlike foil, butcher’s paper is porous. This means that the smoke can permeate the paper and get to the meat underneath.
The downside of using butcher’s paper is that it does not create enough of a seal around the meat to completely avoid the stall. You may find your meat still stalls out, but it will be for a much shorter time compared to non-wrapped meat.
Aaron Franklin is famous for using pink butcher paper. You can check out a brisket wrap test he did in the video below where he compares unwrapped, foil wrapped and paper wrapped brisket.
If you are interested in trying the Texas Crutch, or want more info on how exactly to wrap your brisket, we’ve written a whole article on it that you can find here.
Option 4: The Sous-vide method
Another method for beating the stall is to change your cooking method altogether. Instead of covering your chosen meat with aluminum foil or butcher’s paper, smoke it until the meat reaches the stall and then transfer it to a sous-vide.
Since cooking sous-vide involves you vacuum packing the meat, it solves the evaporative cooling issue in the same way a tight covering of foil does. It also gives you the usual sous-vide benefits of precision temperature control, consistent cooking, and the fact that the meat cooks in its own juices.
The downside of using a sous-vide is that it adds one more step to the cooking process, which some pitmasters might not appreciate, and it requires you to have a sous-vide set up.
If you’re skeptical, we have a guide about combining sous vide and barbecue for epic results.
Option 5: Cook it hot and fast
If you want to avoid the stall associated with low and slow cooking, one option is to flip the playbook and cook your meat hot and fast.
This method does not work with a brisket flat, as it will leave denser less fatty meat dry and tough. It will, however, let you cook a brisket point, which is fattier and contains more collagen, in around 6 hours.
How to cook a brisket point hot and fast
- Season a five to six-pound brisket point with salt and pepper
- Place the brisket point into a 400-degree smoker
- Wait till the internal temperature of your beef hits around 165°F. This should take about two and a half hours
- Once the meat is up to temp, transfer it into a roasting tin and put it, uncovered, into an oven preheated to 250°F
- Continue to roast the brisket point until the meat’s internal temperature comes up to 205°F
- Remove your brisket form the oven and let it rest at room temperature until the meat’s internal temperature comes back down to 140°F
- Slice your brisket against the grain and serve to the hungry masses
Bust that stall!
Now you know why the stall happens, you can put in place a plan to overcome it.
If you don’t have any particular time pressures, you can wait out the stall. This will help you get that good crispy bark.
You can use the Texas Crunch to put a halt to that evaporative cooling, punching right through the stall. If you still want more smoky flavor, simply switch out the foil for butcher’s paper.
You can even change the game altogether, opting to cook your meat hot and fast or use your smoker to flavor it before finishing it in the sous-vide.
The main thing is you no longer have to go into meltdown when you hit the stall, you know what’s happening and you know how to beat it!
Have you got any techniques that helped you beat the stall or any stall horror stories you’d like to share with us? We’d absolutely love it if you posted them in the comments below.
About Your Pitmaster
Joe Clements is the founder and editor-in-chief of Smoked BBQ Source, a leading barbecue resource that has helped tens of millions master grilling and smoking. Growing up in a vegetarian household, his love for barbecue was unexpected. Determined to master the craft, he launched Smoked BBQ Source in 2016 to document his journey from amateur to pitmaster.
Joe leads a team of expert barbecue creators and oversees the largest collection of in-depth grill reviews and a library of tested, foolproof recipes. Whether he’s firing up a pellet grill or charcoal kettle, he’s passionate about making barbecue approachable and enjoyable for all.
Excellent article with some good advise. I would like to offer my method with dealing with the stall. In a word Patience. I do a lot of briskets, my favorited to smoke, so the stall is all too common. My simple solution is to put the meat on plenty early. For me plenty early is to allow for three hours extra time. I have never had a stall last more than 3 hours with whole packer briskets. My smoke time is always includes at least a 30 minute rest time before I even consider touching the meat. Finally there is my secret weapon: https://www.rei.com/media/product/675648
A couple of foil wrapped fire bricks in the bottom that have been heated in the smoker, covered by a layer of towels. Wrap the meat loosely in foil, put it in the cooler cover with more towels and shut the lid. It will stay quite warm for a few hours. The meat is done before serving time and can be sliced and served nice and hot.
I would like to point out that I use a Yoder Pellet smoker and would contest that the fan extends the stall. Quite the opposite I believe is true as the evaporation of surface moisture is accelerated not protracted by the internal fan. Surface moisture be it from a smoked piece of meat or plain old sweat on your arm evaporated more quickly when air blows across the moist surface. That is why we fell cooler on a hot day in a breeze then in still air. The increased evaporation actually cools more rapidly.
Excellent points, I use a similar method to you (although my cooler isn’t as nice!). I’ve added that method to the article.
Cheers.
Just wondering…..,.will a turkey breast stall as other meats do ??!!
Something that small won’t have a significant stall.
I smoked my first brisket about two weeks ago, and needless to say it didn’t go well. My first mistake was asking the butcher for a brisket and not specifying that I wanted both the point and the flat. All I was given was the flat. Now I know to ask for both. It smoked for approx 8 hrs and while it had excellent flavor, it was much too tough for my liking. Needless to say, I have alot to learn. Thanks for all the information…it Will definitely come in handy if I ever get brave enuf to try another brisket lol!
Don’t worry, my first brisket was tough as leather! (also I only had flat as well). I definitely prefer the point and find it more forgiving to smoke.
Next time make sure you cook to temp (aim for around 203-205°F, should feel like sticking a probe into butter), then let it rest for at least an hour before serving.
Very helpful information about “the stall” and the why and how to deal with it. I learned a lot!! “Texas Crutch” explantion is really defines the methods.
I am left wondering why you leave out how to apply this information – to have a predictable solution for the meat to be “ready” to eat at 5:30pm when your guests want to eat! Maybe… smoke to temp, wrap in towels in cooler and serve at dinnertime???
Thanks and I plan to apply this information on my next smoke…
Hey David,
Thanks for the great comment. I can’t believe I left that out of the article as your suggestion is the exact method I use. I’ve added it now.
Thanks again.
Excellent resource! Hit the stall at 170 on my pork shoulder, did the Texas Crutch method and the temperature began to rise, plan on unwrapping at about 190, then leave for an hour to get a good bark, then gonna put in the cooler for an hour.
19hrs into my 5kg (11lbs) of chuck cook in my Traeger. Been stalled for 9/10hrs now. Wrapped in butcher paper when internal temp hit 73c (165f) at around the 9hr mark. Currently sitting at 77c (170f). This may be a 24hr cook!
I am a fan of the pre-cook. I marinate or rub the brisket the day before. Leave in the refrigerator overnight. Then very early in the morning I put the meat in the oven, covered tightly, on low temp. for up to 3 hours. Take it out and then transfer it to my smoker for 4-5 hours. I have time to let it rest before serving and the oven time gives me the opportunity to prep sides. I also use this method for ribs. I get good smoke flavor, juicy meat and good bark.
In the stall as I’m typing this out. Pork butt has been on for 6 hours and I’m at 167 degrees. I’ve used butcher paper before but I’m trying unwrapped this time.
The bark is the best I’ve had ever and I’m trying not to wrap and not spoil it. See how this goes.
Awesome article! Wish I had read this BEFORE our first attempt. We are now becoming pro’s at this, but still learned a lot from the detailed description of the stall process.
Smoking my first, well, my first anything, even as we speak, seven hours in. Definitely well into the stall, I’ve removed the water pan (oh dear) after reading this article and we’ll see how things go! Thank you for your good help.
Excellent article – thank you.
I am sitting in the sunshine in Derby UK with a large pork butt in the smoker and it is well into the stall.
I was worried when it plateaud out until I found your excellent recipe. I’m going to chill with a beer as I have plenty of time to spare before the guests arrive.
Thanks again ?
Wait! What?!
You get sunshine in the U.K.?
Of course they get sunshine in the UK. Specially imported !!!
Must have been a Tuesday!!
Great article, thank you. I was that guy yesterday afternoon in the opening paragraph. But three hours into it, I had to invoke the Texas Crutch…it saved the day and the Brisket pushed through. Yes, you loose some crispiness in the bark, but it was certainly flavorful, moist, and cooked very well.
Did my first smoke (in a bullet water smoker) on Sunday. Thought a simple brined chicken in a marinade first. Used a MEATER temp probe. Hit the stall, panicked. By now 10pm (resorted to KFC for dinner), and popped it into the oven for ten minutes. Now I’ve read the article, will Texas Crunch when it hits stall until a couple of degrees below cooked. Will try again tomorrow ?
Hey Dave, I wouldn’t expect much of a stall with just a chicken. I would recommend cooking at a hotter temp (around 300-350F) and spatchcocking the chicken first, you should be finished in around an hour depending on the size of the bird.
My son was explaining the stall, the crunch and how evaporative processes can mess with your best intentions on a $900 smoker. After a few questions and skeptical remarks, he handed me your theory (or rather the theory you support). My question is how does the water/moisture in the meat begin evaporating at 160 degree F when liquid only coverts to a gas at a temperature of 212 degree F? Pardon if I missed something obvious.
Think of the Brisket as the muscle it is, as it seizes and forces the moisture to the surface it induces cooling
I have wondered the same thing about 212°. However evaporation certainly is accelerated at temperatures below 212 but above room temperature. The other thing to consider is that the external temperature of the meet is certainly going to be higher than the 160° center temperature and the rapid evaporation will start on the exterior and hijack the heat that would otherwise be headed for the center of the meat.
Water boils at 212, but it starts evaporating at much lower temps, and technically from just above freezing (something called the triple point of water (32.018 °F since 2019) where all three states of water can coexist. Think of it just like sweat which evaporates from your skin with temps nowhere near 212.
It is probably that the 160 degree temp is the internal temp of the meat. The external environment inside the smoker is 225+ and the surface of your meat which is close to if not AT that temperature is where the evaporation occurs.
When you sweat and the wind blows to cool you off the water on your skin transfer’s heat to the air. Heat transfer does not have to happen at boiling temperature. The heat in the meat is removed from liquid on the surface.
Thanks. Just doing my first brisket. None of the 4 or 5 beginner recipes mentioned the stall – which would have been helpful. Oh well, looking forward to my midnight snack. LOL
I started a 3kg brisket off this morning at @ 0600 at 180C on a Traeger
After 7 hours it reached 160C, then duly wrapped in Butchers Paper, then the stall!!! The temp started to increase at around 170C at 2000. At this rate it will be midnight before it reaches 205C. Never mind him sure it will be delicious tomorrow.
Thanks for a great article.
Good question Brian. I believe my engineering background helped me explain the experimental results. Specifically, Newtons law of cooling ( should really be called heat transfer ), basically notes that heat is transferred at a faster rate the larger the difference in temperature. Ignoring evaporative cooling, just imagine a wireless thermometer inside a room temperature brick we have placed in the smoker – at first the temperature will rise fast because room temp is much different than the 225ish ambient temp. Then as the temperature of the brick gets closer and closer to ambient, the rate of heat transferring to the brick slows down. Now make it a super spongy brick with water in it. Near the surface of our spongy brick, the water evaporates heat away just like sweat at stead rate. Eventually, the rate of climb of the intenal temp of the brick will equal that of sweating – thus a stall until there is slower rate of evaporative cooling. But instead a spongy brick its a brisket or a boston butt. This also explains why the stall happens at slightly temps for different meats and setups. Hope this helps.
Thanks for this site as I searched for it when I got to the Stall just in case I need it for times sake. I did.
2nd brisket, on the Traeger. Started at 6 AM and used Holly Cow rub and added pepper 13 lbs. Cook temp was 225 with super smoke and post oak pellets fat side up. Texas Crutch at 159 @ about 1 PM.
By 4 it was 205 in the middle and felt good. Took off and rested in cooler for 2 hours. Nice smoke ring tender and juicy. Problem is It has ZERO smoke flavor. It tasted like a roast. Thought I was a Hero to get a smoke ring with fat side up. Needless to say I’ve purchased a smoke box. Maybe I should put in a stick of post oak in. I have a nice off set stick burner and it works great but I have to stay with it. Wanted set it forget it. Maybe there is more of a learning curve than I thought. Maybe I should have started at 3 am like the stick burner and waited out the stall.
Just “finished” a 14.5hrs cook of beef short ribs on my WSM. Chalk another one up under the “Stall victim” category.
Things were ‘smoking’ along well for the first 5.5 hours. However when the internal temp reached ~170, nothing changed (aside from the bark) for the next 7 hours.
The ribs were quite a large cut as there was 4 ribs and nearly filled the entire 18” rack of my grill.
At midnight I caved and wrapped the ribs in butcher paper (internal temp was about 180). I left them for an hour but no further increase in temperature. In fact, some spots seemed to be a degree or two cooler. I put the ribs into a cooler and left them overnight.
The following morning (9am), the ribs had an internal temp of 105. I reheated them in the oven at 250 for about 45 minutes. Internal temp read about 155.
I cut into the ribs but unfortunately the bark was soft and not crunchy, the meat was tender and full of flavour, but overall I was disappointed in the result.
Now that I understand the stall process, I will anticipate this, be patient, and most importantly, start my cook earlier.
I am open to any and all suggestions or recommendations for next time.
I’ve cooked a few brisket now. I usually give myself a 12 hour window. I start at 180 unwrapped for a few hours for a good smoke ring. I wait till it hits the 150 -160 mark. Take it out and triple wrap it in heavy duty foil. Turn my smoker up to 225 and let it cook till 195. This usually happens kinda quicker then when using butcher paper so keep that in mind. Also the temperature outside can also have a affect. Once it hits the temp I want I pull it out and let rest 30mins before I put it in the small cooler. I don’t unwrapped it or cut it untill I get ready to serve. Usually it will sit in cooler for an average of 3 hours. Comes out hot and juicy everytime. If u want a stiffer bark use butcher paper. It will take a hour or two longer then foil. It won’t be as juicy but won’t be dried out. Your choice. Slight taste difference in the smokey area.
I’m at 14 hours on a 17 lb. Brisket, stalled between 171°F & 176°F in different areas. Is this normal? Started at 8:30am, still cooking at almost 11pm. I’m patient but nervous! Good article – we’ll see how my brisket turns out, but you explain the stall well!!
Great article. Just smoked my >25th brisket. Was always a fan of wait-it-out. A couple of times I raised the temp (pellet smoker) to power through. This time I used the spritz method and my stall was only 30 minutes at 156. Starting at 140, I spritzed every 30 minutes. 2 hours later, it hit 160, I was out of the woods.
Start way earlier . I’ve got a pit boss pellet smoker after years of using a barrel I welding a fire box to. I’m a welder so making stuff isn’t hard. But it’s nice not to have to tend coals all day. Put some rub on the brisket put it on the smoker and wait. If im in a hurry I’ll wrap it. Otherwise let it do its thing. Plan for 1.5 hrs per pound of meat. Rn internal temp is 173 so I wrapped it and turned the temp up. Wanna be ready when kids get home from school. It’s been cooking 11 hours. I thinks it started getting out of the stall but I wanna finish it off soon.honestly start it late the day before if possible. After you cook it enough times you quit fussing so much. Just let it cook. But I understand everyone’s concern. Meats to expensive to mess up. Especially a whole brisket.
Learned so much from you and all of your followers. Did a pork vrrisket kast week and bow a beef roast. Hit the stall both times. Did wrap them both in foil and it worked. Now I know why and Im grateful for site
Thank you for writing this. It has been a great education on ‘the stall’ !
Fixed the stall by putting my 15lbs of pork butt in a foil pan and covering it in heavy duty foil. It stopped the stall immediately-it was so tender and delicious!
Great article. I believe in seeing it through. I always use paper. I unwrap at the stall and let it then get the bark. Sometimes I get nervous and rewrap. Today I won’t. Thanks for the article & all the great comments!
So how do you cook it to 190 ,then “leave it for another hour” for the bark, but it doesn’t keep cooking and dry out?
I don’t understand the question? If you are cooking brisket or pork, it won’t be done until past 205, and it wouldn’t “dry out”, if anything it will go a bit mushy.
I am always reading and learning about better ways to smoke my brisket. I have never witnessed a stall until today when I changed my way of cooking one. I always seared the brisket on both sides for 1 hour then placed it back into the foil pan with the marinade i used over-nite, tented it with tin foil and it usually takes about 6 hours. Always tender, juicy, and very tasty, but I always wished it had more bark. So today I cooked at 250 deg until it reached 160deg and went into a stall, I panicked and reverted back to what worked for me with the tented foil pan with marinade and apple juice in it. Temp has picked up and will be serving on time.
Great article. I’m new to smoking. After wrapping the meat, do you (should you) turn up the temperature of the grill? I smoked a 3 lb corned chuck roast yesterday. Set the smoker to 250F. Wrapped it in butcher paper at 165F. Took 10 1/2 hours to get to 205F internal temp. I was wondering if I turned up the grill temperature to 300F after wrapping, would it speed things up a bit?
The roast came out perfect. The bark still looked good even after being wrapped for about 6 hours. Pull apart tender. I used a pastrami seasoning rub and the flavor is spot on. The roast started out at 3 lbs at the beginning and only weighed about half that at the end. Is that normal?
Hey Steve, turning it up to 300 is totally fine if you’re pushed for time. I’ll often do that. On the other hand, sometimes I don’t want the food done too soon, so I’ll leave it as just the process of wrappihg will speed things up quite a bit.
Great article. This is only my second or third time smoking a chuck roast. If the internal temp of the meat increases only a degree or two over a two hour period, does that constitute a stall? I’m smoking a 3 lb chuck and the internal temp was 145F to 147F over a two hour period. I wrapped it in butcher paper and cranked the grill temp up to 325F. Looks like I broke the stall. Internal temp has gone up two degrees in about 10 minutes.
So how long do you wait to recognize a stall? If I waited until the internal temp completely stopped going up I would probably have waited a couple more hours.
I realize this is an old article and agree with everything and that evaporative cooling is probably the main cause. However, when using a water pan you increase the humidity and evaporative cooling is much much less. Evaporative cooling does not happen in an environment with really high humidity so it does not add to the effect. You cannot evaporate water in air that is already close to 100% saturated.
Using a water pan actually has the opposite effect since hot water transfers heat about 25 times faster than dry air.