Tips and/or Tricks for good Bark?

NightTrainLayne

I've read some, and tried some but so far, my 'Q from the egg is so moist and juicy that it doesn't develop the bark that I'm accustomed to.

Don't get me wrong, this is an excellent problem to have, and I'd trade what I've got so far with anything I got previously with "good" bark.

And maybe that's the answer to my problem. . .there's not really one to begin with.

However, any and all tips/tricks to getting "good" bark would be appreciated.

fishlessman

i get descent bark with a rub, then mustard coating (frenches), then more rub.

AZRP

The bark on butts cooked in the Egg is different than I used to get in my WSM, more of a reddish brown than black. But it is still delicious. -RP

NightTrainLayne

Rub, mustard, rub?

Thanks! I'll try that. I've done the mustard then rub, but not this combination.

Any others?

Knauf

I've had great success getting nice bark on butts with cheap yellow mustard and homemade rub with brown sugar. I got my recipe for rub in the BBQ Bible. Good luck!

fishlessman

the way i cook them might help as well as i do things a little differently. until meat internals are approaching 140 degrees im cooking above 275, then i drop down to about 225 until im past the plataue stage, then im back up too around 300 to get it done. been doing that for years without much thought. i also cook high in the dome which might also be makeing the bark, mine get dark and crunchy

Rascal

I've done a dual cook of butts side-by-side, one with mustard & rub and the other with just rub. My pick was the one with just the rub for what ever it's worth...

1/2 Chicken

I don’t cook many butts but did a couple Sunday. My egg wanted to run at about 300* and since I was fine not staying up nigh/morning I let it go like that. They only took about 8 hours to hit 205 and sizzled the whole way. I wrapped them in foil then in plastic wrap and threw them in the fridge. Opened them up the next day to pull to store for this weekend. Nice redish brown and great bark. Best butt I ever made… and they were cold.

Mahi-Mahi

I have been trying to avoid too much bark since the black stuff is not really healthy for you. I do like it that I can cook the ribs below 250 and get some great ribs with out to much burning of the outside.

KentuckyEggMan

What I noticed about the egg was the bark was there but not crispy...SO, I decided to throw the heat to it a bit before I took them off. Open the daisy wheel to let mositure out about the last 30 minutes or so and it gets crispy, same for poultry. Chicken skin needs to be a little crispy in my opinion. It seems to work. I got the tip about the daisy wheel from someone on here cooking pizza. They commented on the steamy result they got and not crispy crust. Someone told them to open the daisy wheel to let out steam out the top. I tried it on pork loin and chicken and it worked the same way...Good luck!