Caught a BBQ pitmaster on YouTube using a wet paper towel to fix a stall

Saw Harry Soo explain on a livestream that wrapping in butcher paper costs more and doesn't speed things up nearly as much as spritzing every 45 minutes with apple cider vinegar, and it made me ditch the Texas crutch for good after 6 years of using it, anyone else skip the wrap now?

3 comments

3 Comments

anna9832mo ago

Buddy of mine tried the wet paper towel trick after watching the same video and swore it was the best thing since sliced bread. Next thing I know he's texting me at 2 AM because his smoker caught a grease fire and the whole thing went up in smoke, literally. He still swears by the spritz method though, go figure.

oliviahenderson1mo agoMost Upvoted

Kinda wild how nobody's bringing up the humidity factor though. Like yeah the paper towel adds moisture but in a dry climate that shit evaporates in like 2 minutes tops. I live in a desert area and tried the wet towel trick once, my brisket came out with this weird crust cause the water just steamed off immediately. Your buddy's grease fire might've been bad timing plus the paper towel acting like a little fuel source if it dried out too fast. Just saying maybe the trick works better in humid places where people don't have to worry about the towel turning into a crispy fire hazard mid cook.

nina1472mo ago

Seriously though, is a wet paper towel really that big a deal? I mean, people act like it's the end of the world if their brisket dries out by three percent. Your buddy's smoker fire was his own fault for not watching the grease, not the paper towel's fault. I've used that trick a bunch of times and never had a problem. You just gotta be smart about it and not leave it on there for half an hour. Honestly, I think half these horror stories are just people getting dramatic about a minor mistake. It's a piece of paper, not a bomb.