Why does nobody talk about how fast a brisket can stall in a pellet grill?

I tried a 14-pound prime brisket on my Traeger at 225 degrees, and it hit a stall at 150 that lasted over 5 hours. Has anyone else found a good way to push through without wrapping too early?

3 comments

3 Comments

gavin_burns491mo ago

Honestly, that stall sounds about right for my usual luck. Tbh my last brisket stalled so long I started checking if I'd accidentally turned the smoker off. Ngl, I just wrap in butcher paper when the bark looks good, even if it feels early, because I get too hungry to wait.

the_susan1mo ago

Wrapping early because you're hungry is a mood, but that can actually make the stall last longer. The meat needs time to push through its own internal temp plateau. If you wrap it before that happens, you're just trapping it in the stall phase. Better to wait for the bark AND for the temp to stop climbing for a while, then wrap to power through the rest.

kellymurphy22d ago

Oh man, that's the eternal struggle right there. One thing I don't see people mention is that wrapping early messes with your bark texture way more than people realize. I had a buddy who wrapped at 160 and his bark came out mushy like wet cardboard, totally ruined the crust. @gavin_burns49 I'd rather let the stall run its course and get that good bark set, even if it means dinner at 10 PM. Have you tried a longer rest in a cooler after the cook to soften things up a bit?