Technique
The stall
Around 150–170°F the meat sweats, evaporative cooling cancels your fire, and the probe stops moving. This is physics, not failure.
When: Brisket, pork shoulder, beef ribs — any large cut smoked through the 160s.
Steps
- 1
Expect it. A packer can sit in the stall for 2–4 hours.
- 2
Hold cooker temperature steady. Chasing the stall by ramping to 325°F dries the flat.
- 3
Wrap (the Texas crutch) if you need to make time, after the bark is set.
- 4
Or wait it out unwrapped for thicker bark and a slightly longer day.
Common mistakes
- Opening the lid every ten minutes to ‘check.’ You are lengthening the stall.
- Assuming a stuck probe means the thermometer died. Move it an inch and wait.
Swaps
Same method, different tools. The idea does not change.
- Wrap (Texas crutch) if you need to make a serving time.
- Wait it out unwrapped if bark is the priority.
Best practices
- It is evaporative cooling. The meat is sweating, not broken.
- A packer stall can last 2–4 hours. Plan the meal around that, not the other way.