Best Butcher Paper for Smoking: Our Top 5 Picks

Nobody likes their food cold and tough, especially when it comes to your favorite meat. While smoked meat can taste heavenly, cooking it properly requires skill and attention. Using quality butcher paper can make smoking meats a lot easier by allowing the rich, smoky flavor to flow through each cut, while keeping it tender and juicy.

This article will help you select the best butcher papers for smoking no matter what’s on the menu.

Why You Need Butcher Paper

Some backyard chefs use regular parchment paper or aluminum foil to smoke their meat and wonder why it doesn’t turn out well. Butcher paper is specifically designed for smoking meat. It has a unique structure that protects your meat from burning during the smoking process. 

When you wrap meat in butcher paper, it allows the right amount of flavor into the meat and keeps it tender and succulent. Without butcher paper, there’s a good chance your smoked meat will turn out dry, stiff, and disappointing. 

Butcher paper also keeps food fresh and locks in the flavor. That’s why many chefs and restaurant owners use butcher paper to wrap carry out orders and deliveries.

4 Important Qualities to Look For in a Butcher Paper

The butcher paper you choose will come into direct contact with the meat you are cooking, so it is essential to be extra cautious when selecting your brand. Here are the top 4 things that you should consider when buying butcher paper. 

1. Quality Check & Certifications

When butcher paper is wrapped around meat and placed on the grill, the heat leads to a change in its composition. That’s why it’s crucial to choose a paper that is free of toxic chemicals and safe to be in contact with your food. You can confirm the quality of the paper by looking for official approvals and certifications from recognized bodies like the FDA.

2. Resistant to Moisture

Cooking involves exposure to water, oil, and food juices. A butcher paper needs to be strong enough to withstand all that moisture without compromising its quality or strength. If moisture weakens the paper, it will leave holes and tears that can hamper the entire smoking process, and your meat could turn out crispy and dry. To avoid a mishap like this, you should use a butcher paper that is unaffected by moisture.

3. Durable & Smoke Resistant

Moisture isn’t the only thing that can weaken a low-quality butcher paper. Unless you opt for a quality product with high durability, you might end up with tears in the paper that can burn and spoil the meat. 

It’s also essential to select a paper that doesn’t weaken on exposure to heat. Resistance to heat and smoke is crucial for quality performance inside a smoker. 

4. Shouldn’t Interfere With the Original Flavors

Many brands offer waxed and coated butcher papers that are known to be more durable. However, the chemicals used in the wax can seep into your food. Sometimes, they can be toxic or alter the original flavor of the meat. Using all-natural, unwaxed butcher paper will leave your meat tasting the way it should, with no contaminants to worry about.

Types of Butcher Papers

There are five common varieties of butcher paper, and each can be distinguished by its individual features. 

1. White Butcher Paper

White butcher papers are uncoated, FDA approved, and generally used in wrapping meat, sandwiches, and subs. This type of butcher paper is highly effective at locking in the freshness of cooked food and is commonly used in restaurants. 

2. Pink Butcher Paper

Available in multiple shades of pink, these butcher papers are perfect for smoking meat. They are strong enough to withstand heat and protect the food from airborne contaminants while it’s cooking, especially in an outdoor kitchen. Pink butcher paper is resistant to moisture and does not become soggy when wrapped around food. 

3. Peach-Treated Butcher Paper

Peach-treated butcher paper is ideal for meat storage. Although it looks very similar to pink butcher paper, the key difference between the two is their composition and intended use. Peach-treated butcher paper is specifically designed to preserve raw meats. The composition and design of the paper admit just enough oxygen to keep the meat fresh and prevent color loss.

4. Gardenia Paper 

Gardenia paper is normally used for packaging. This high-quality, moisture-resistant butcher paper has a breathable texture that prevents sogginess, and its resistance to moisture makes it the perfect material for leak-proof packaging.

5. Steak Paper

Steak paper is commonly found in butcher shops where it is used to display meat. The paper locks in the color and juices of the cut perfectly, and usually comes in shades of black, green, white, and peach.

Top 5 Butcher Papers for Smoking

Here are the top 5 butcher papers for smoking your meat like a pro:

1.Pink Butcher Paper by Meat Hugger

Last update on 2024-12-18 / Affiliate links / Images from Amazon Product Advertising API

The brand Meat Hugger uses food-grade materials to manufacture this toxin-free, pink butcher paper. It is highly resistant to heat and moisture and does not allow juices flowing from the meat to leak. This feature always comes in handy when you want to serve freshly-cooked meat with the juices still in it.

It is also 100% unwaxed and does not interfere with the original flavor of the food. Also, the smart design of the papers allows the right amount of steam to escape while retaining enough moisture to keep the meat tender.

My favorite feature is the easy-tear dispenser that comes along with the paper roll. It helps me save a lot of time in wrapping the meat. 

It comes in 4 different sizes, which helps you pick the perfect wrap for your meat regardless of type or cut. It also helps the meat reach its optimum cooking temperature faster and allows you to smoke multiple pieces of meat even on a tight schedule. 

2 .Pink Butcher Kraft Paper Roll by Tenderlicious

Last update on 2024-12-18 / Affiliate links / Images from Amazon Product Advertising API

These pink butcher papers are manufactured in the United States under the highest quality and safety standards to produce a safe, durable, and high-quality final product.

The brand uses only the best virgin wood pulps to make these papers without bleach or polymer coating. This ensures that the quality and purity of your meat aren’t compromised. The all-natural, polymer coating-free texture also aids in keeping the taste of the meat intact. 

The makers have paid extra attention to the paper’s internal structure and applied an exclusive formulation that increases the strength of the material. This helps the paper remain strong and unaffected even when it’s soaked in water or oil. 

These butcher paper rolls are perfect for Texas-style brisket smoking. The paper wraps snugly around the meat, allowing steam to escape while retaining enough moisture to leave it tender but not soggy.

You can also use it for multiple purposes other than cooking, which was very convenient the time I ran out of parchment paper for sandwiches, and ended up using these butcher papers. It works equally well in wrapping up cooked food like sandwiches, beef ribs, and pork chops, and keeping them fresh.

3 .YRYM HT Pink Kraft Butcher Paper Roll

Last update on 2024-12-18 / Affiliate links / Images from Amazon Product Advertising API

This butcher paper by YRYM HT uses the highest quality recycled paper, made from natural and virgin wood pulp. The brand avoids waxes, bleaches, and coatings, making it a perfect fit for your food, with its added quality and safety assurance.

It works better than regular aluminum foil due to its higher tensile strength and durability, effectively protecting the meat’s flavor and texture. 

This butcher paper can also help you achieve authentic, Texas-style BBQ quality and allow you to experiment with other styles of cooking, while reducing overall kitchen time. 

What I really like about this paper is that I can use it for smoking my meat and also for wrapping food, gifts, or even as table runners and table covers. The multiple uses I found made these butcher papers all the more valuable.

READ MORE: Best Offset Smokers of 2021 – Review & Buying Guide

4 .Peach Butcher Paper for Smoking Meat by DIY Crew

Last update on 2024-12-18 / Affiliate links / Images from Amazon Product Advertising API

My favorite feature of this peach butcher paper by DIY Crew is its length, which came in very handy on one occasion when I had to make a huge order. These rolls are about 200 feet long, which is more than enough to wrap every type of meat, and the supply lasts for a longer time to boot.

The brand uses the finest red butcher paper fibers to add extra strength. This helps them soak up oil, water, food juices, and other types of cooking liquids without developing holes or tears. 

The brand has taken extra care to enhance the durability of the paper without adding any wax coating that might spoil your food. It is perfect for smoking meat for authentic American-style BBQ dishes. 

Also, the internal structure of the paper provides enough airflow for the moisture to escape and the rich smoky flavors to enter the soft and juicy meat.

5 .Pink Butcher Paper Roll by Bryco Goods

Last update on 2024-12-18 / Affiliate links / Images from Amazon Product Advertising API

This food-grade butcher paper by Bryco Goods is manufactured in the United States and intentionally left uncoated and flavorless to make your recipes tastier and retain natural quality.

The safety standards followed by the brand ensure that the meat you cook using these papers is safe and palatable for everyone, including children. The design and structure of the paper also prevent unnecessary breakage and leaks that could spoil your efforts.

The paper comes in two sizes, catering to different needs and has a non-stick, easy-removal design, making it easier for you to separate the paper from the meat once you are done smoking it.

Also, this paper does not crumble like regular tin foil, which prevents it from suffocating the meat. In fact, it will keep the seasonings and the smoky flavor intact and make the texture remain super soft and juicy.

Final Thoughts: Which One Should You Buy?

All the butcher papers mentioned above are equally capable of delivering a perfectly cooked, flavorful meat with a delectable bark in a reasonable time frame. However, I feel that the YRYM HT Pink Kraft Butcher Paper Roll is the clear winner.

• It has all the qualities that a butcher paper should have and tops it off with a certification from US food safety regulators that authenticates every claim by the brand. 

• It is 100% natural and free of wax coating or harmful chemicals that could turn your meat toxic and alter its flavor. 

• It’s also highly durable and doesn’t leak on exposure to moisture. This prevents your meat from developing a crusty bark and makes it a perfect choice for your kitchen.

What I love about the butcher papers by YRYM HT is the brand’s sustainable approach while maintaining the quality of its product at the same time. They only use quality, recycled paper developed from natural, virgin wood pulp to make these super-efficient pink butcher papers.

You can also use them for wrapping various other food items like subs, fries, and burgers or for a completely different purpose. It’s up to you.

These key benefits, along with the authentication by government food safety regulators, makes it my number one choice. With that being said, you are free to choose any of the above butcher papers as per your needs.

Last Updated on September 26, 2021 by Judith Fertig