The Brisket Stall Explained

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If you've ever smoked a brisket, you've probably had a moment where you looked at the thermometer and thought something had gone terribly wrong.

For several hours the internal temperature climbs exactly the way you expect. Then, without warning, it seems to stop. You check the thermometer again fifteen minutes later, then thirty minutes later, and it still hasn't moved.

Welcome to the brisket stall.

The good news is that nothing is wrong with your brisket. In fact, what you're seeing is one of the most normal parts of the entire cook.

This article is part of The Ultimate Guide to Smoking Brisket From Selection to Slicing and explains why the stall happens, what it means, and how to decide what to do when you reach it.

What the Brisket Stall Is

The brisket stall is simply a period during the cook when the internal temperature either stops rising or rises so slowly that it appears to have stalled.

It often happens somewhere around 150°F to 170°F (66°C to 77°C), but don't get hung up on those numbers. Every brisket is different, and some will stall a little earlier or later than others.

The important thing to remember is that the brisket hasn't stopped cooking.

It's simply entered a different stage of the process.

Why the Stall Happens

The stall is caused by evaporation.

As the brisket cooks, moisture is pushed toward the surface of the meat where it begins to evaporate. That evaporation creates a cooling effect, much like perspiration cools your skin on a hot day.

Eventually, the heat entering the brisket from the smoker is almost perfectly balanced by the cooling effect of that evaporation.

When those two forces reach equilibrium, the internal temperature appears to stop climbing even though the brisket is still cooking.

Nothing is broken.

The energy from the fire is simply being used to evaporate moisture instead of raising the internal temperature.

What's Happening Inside the Meat During the Stall

One of the biggest mistakes people make is assuming that nothing is happening because the thermometer isn't moving.

In reality, some of the most important changes of the entire cook are taking place during the stall.

Collagen continues breaking down into gelatin, fat keeps rendering, and the muscle fibers continue relaxing. Those changes are exactly what eventually transform a tough brisket into one that's tender and juicy.

The thermometer may look like it's standing still, but the brisket is still making progress.

Think of the stall as productive time, not wasted time.

How Long the Stall Lasts

One of the reasons the stall frustrates so many people is that there's no reliable way to predict exactly how long it will last.

Some briskets move through it in about an hour.

Others seem content to stay there for several hours.

The size of the brisket, cooking temperature, humidity, airflow, and even the individual characteristics of the meat all influence how long the stall lasts.

That's one reason experienced pitmasters are careful about estimating cook times. Every brisket follows its own schedule.

Why the Stall Causes So Much Panic

The stall has a way of making people question everything.

They've been watching the thermometer climb steadily all day, and suddenly it refuses to move. Before long they're wondering if the thermometer is broken, whether the smoker has lost heat, or if they've somehow ruined an expensive brisket.

That's usually when the overreacting begins.

People crank up the temperature, start opening the smoker every few minutes, spritz constantly, or wrap the brisket before they had planned simply because they're worried something is wrong.

Ironically, those reactions often create more problems than the stall itself.

Waiting Out the Stall

One perfectly good approach is to simply leave the brisket alone.

By maintaining a steady cooking temperature and allowing the meat to remain unwrapped, moisture continues evaporating naturally while the bark develops into a darker, firmer crust.

This approach takes more time, but many pitmasters prefer the texture and appearance of the bark that develops when the brisket works through the stall on its own.

Sometimes patience really is the best tool you have.

Powering Through the Stall by Wrapping

The other common approach is wrapping the brisket.

Wrapping reduces evaporation because moisture can no longer escape the surface as easily. Once that cooling effect is reduced, the internal temperature begins climbing again.

Wrapping generally shortens the stall, speeds up the cook, and helps retain moisture, although it also softens the bark to some degree.

Neither approach is automatically better than the other.

Whether you wrap depends on how much time you have available, the kind of bark you prefer, and the style of brisket you're trying to produce.

If you'd like a closer look at both methods, see my guide to Brisket Wrapping Foil vs Butcher Paper.Whether to wrap depends on your goals, timeline, and bark preference.

Increasing Temperature During the Stall

Another option is making a small adjustment to your smoker temperature.

A modest increase adds more energy to the cooking environment, which can help overcome the cooling effect of evaporation without wrapping the brisket.

The important word is modest.

There's rarely any reason to make a dramatic temperature increase. A small adjustment is usually all that's needed if you decide to go this route.

If you'd like more guidance on cooking temperatures, be sure to read Best Temperature for Smoking Brisket.

What Not to Do During the Stall

The stall isn't the time to start making big decisions based on frustration.

Avoid chasing the internal temperature by constantly adjusting your smoker. Resist the urge to make large temperature swings, and don't assume the brisket is ruined simply because the thermometer has stopped moving.

Most importantly, don't panic.

The stall isn't a sign that something has gone wrong. It's a sign that your brisket is behaving exactly the way brisket has behaved for generations of pitmasters.

The Stall Doesn't Decide When the Brisket Is Done

One thing that's worth remembering is that the stall has nothing to do with when the brisket is finished.

Some briskets spend very little time in the stall, while others seem to camp there for hours. Neither one tells you when it's ready to come off the smoker.

Brisket is finished when it's tender.

That's always the goal, regardless of how long the stall lasted or what number happens to be showing on the thermometer.

If you're not yet comfortable judging tenderness, my guide on How to Tell When a Brisket Is Done walks through exactly what to look for.

Understanding the Stall Changes Everything

Once you understand why the brisket stall happens, it loses its power to make you nervous.

Instead of wondering whether something has gone wrong, you'll recognize it as a completely normal stage of the cook and make your next decision with confidence.

The stall isn't something you have to defeat.

It's simply part of the process.

Learn to work with it instead of fighting it, and brisket becomes a much more predictable and enjoyable cook from beginning to end.

When you are ready to move forward, the next step is learning How to Tell When a Brisket Is Done so you know exactly when to pull it off the smoker.

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• Best Temperature for Smoking Brisket
• How to Smoke a Brisket Step by Step
• Brisket Wrapping Foil vs Butcher Paper
• How to Tell When a Brisket Is Done