Just realized something about the brisket joints in Lockhart, Texas

I went down to Lockhart last month for a weekend road trip and hit up three different BBQ spots in one day. What really caught my eye was how each pitmaster had their own weird little routine for wrapping their briskets. At one place, the guy used butcher paper with a specific fold he showed me. At another, they wrapped tight in foil almost like a science experiment. Then the third joint, old timer just let it ride unwrapped the whole cook. The texture on that unwrapped one had a bark so crunchy it shattered when I bit into it. But the meat underneath was still tender and juicy, which surprised me because I always thought wrapping was the only way to keep it from drying out. Has anyone else tried cooking a brisket with no wrap at all and gotten good results?

2 comments

2 Comments

tessa_kelly1mo ago

The unwrapped one's bark sounds incredible, but that's not really a Texas style brisket.

abbyc331mo ago

Has anyone actually done a side by side with the exact same cut to see if the unwrapped method changes the fat rendering enough to affect the bark? I think @tessa_kelly is right about Texas style, but that bark sounds worth a test.