5 Best Butcher Papers
Best butcher paper
Imagine coming home from the store and unpacking some beautiful cuts of meat from the butcher counter — you can’t wait to cook up that brisket this weekend. Unfortunately, it can take hours of cooking time to attain that perfectly smoky, crispy cut of meat. Luckily, all you need is some butcher paper and your cooking time is cut in half without sacrificing the flavor and tenderness of your meat.
While butcher paper has grown in popularity as a convenient and inexpensive cooking tool, it also serves a variety of other purposes in day-to-day life. Butcher paper is a suitable material for food storage and cooking, packing, and arts and crafts, and it proves its usefulness with its durability.
Butcher paper is a staple in almost every home and has grown to be a favorite tool for perfecting the cooking and grilling of meats. Once you understand its various uses, features, and pricing, you’ll be one step closer to finding the right butcher paper for your weekend brisket or arts and crafts time with the family.
How to buy the best butcher paper
Uses for butcher paper
Food storage & wrapping: Butcher paper is most often used for wrapping and storing cuts of meat, fish, sandwiches, and other food items. It’s highly resistant to moisture and thick enough that it protects meats from overexposure to oxygen, which leads to discoloration and shorter shelf life. Butcher paper is also fairly flexible, so it’s easy to cut and fold.
Baking and smoking meats: Butcher paper is typically very heat-resistant, meaning it’s ideal for use in ovens, grills, and smokers. It’s become a popular choice for roasting and smoking meats, and it’s highly permeable. This means it allows moisture to escape enough that the “bark” or edges of meats can become crispy while the interior stays moist. When preparing your meats, it helps to have a reliable butcher knife and chopping block for trimming off excess fat, which helps to minimize moisture.
Protective table lining: Butcher paper serves as a great table lining for a variety of messy tasks like decorating baked goods or making arts and crafts. It can protect your table from marks, scratches, or sticky materials that are hard to clean up. It’s a cheaper alternative to a single-use tablecloth and is easy to set up — simply grab some masking tape and secure the corners and edges so they stay in place during use.
Gift wrap & packing materials: Butcher paper is an excellent substitute for wrapping and packing paper. You can use it to wrap delicate items like cups or plates, and it can be used as a package filler when shipping boxes or parcels.
Features of butcher paper
Measurements
Butcher paper comes in large rolls, and its size is designated with a measurement in feet and inches. For example, the most common widths of butcher paper rolls are 17, 18, and 24 inches, with popular lengths ranging from 100 to 200 feet. Some bulk butcher paper rolls come in lengths as long as 750 to 1,200 feet.
Another measurement of butcher paper is its “basis weight.” Basis weight refers to the thickness or heaviness of the paper, and the number specifies the weight of one standard-size cut ream of paper. The common basis weight of butcher paper is between 40 and 50 pounds, with less common, heavier weights of 60 to 75 pounds. There isn’t much variance in the thickness of butcher paper.
Colors
Butcher paper is available in a few different colors, the most popular being peach or pink, white, or light brown. The coloring of the butcher paper doesn’t necessarily mean the quality of the butcher paper is any different. Colored butcher paper achieves its natural coloring from the pulped wood it’s made from. White butcher paper has been bleached and sometimes contains a wax coating. Peach or pink butcher paper is most frequently used for barbecuing meats, while white or brown butcher paper is used for wrapping and displaying them.
Sizing or waxing
Despite the misleading wording, “sizing” doesn’t refer to your butcher paper’s measurements. “Sizing” is the term used for the chemical-free treatment added to butcher paper that makes it nonstick and resistant to moisture. This is designed to increase the paper’s durability and keeps it from absorbing natural liquids from the meat it holds, causing it to get soggy. Some butcher papers (like white butcher paper) are waxed on one side.
Heat resistance
Almost all peach or pink butcher paper is heat-resistant up to 450°F. Not all butcher paper is alike, however, so double-checking the heat resistance before buying is especially important if you plan to use it in the oven or on the grill. Using paper that cannot withstand higher temperatures could lead to burning or catching fire, potentially ruining the food items inside.
Alternatives to butcher paper
You might not always have butcher paper on hand, but there are some acceptable replacements that can be used in a lot of the same ways:
- Aluminum foil is one of the most popular substitutes for butcher paper, mostly because of its high heat resistance. However, aluminum foil isn’t breathable and creates a sealed pocket of moisture. This makes the “bark” of meat cuts like brisket or steaks soggier. If you want your meat crispier on the edges, try unfolding the foil packet in the very last stages of cooking. This allows some moisture to escape and dries out the exterior of your meat.
- Parchment paper is another suitable alternative to butcher paper for baking. The main differences between the two are that parchment paper is thinner and slightly cheaper. While it’s nonstick, parchment paper doesn’t handle moisture as well as butcher paper. It’s best used for baked goods, sticky doughs, and the temporary wrapping of meats or fish.
- Kraft paper is made with the same wood fibers as butcher paper, but it’s more frequently used for packages, shipping, and wrapping delicate items. Kraft paper is a cheaper type of paper and is not always food-safe. If you intend to use kraft paper instead of butcher paper, look for a food-grade label or USDA approval.
Butcher paper can serve as a handy tool during the process of baking pies, cookies, and other baked goods. It can be easily cut and formed into an impromptu funnel or piping bag when you’re in a pinch.
How much does butcher paper cost?
When purchasing butcher paper, the price varies based on the basis weight, length, and width. The price per roll is often cheaper if you buy multiple rolls at a time.
Inexpensive
The most affordable butcher paper costs between $20 and $40. These are standard-width rolls of white or peach butcher paper that are often shorter in length and have basis weights of 40 pounds.
Mid-range
Mid-range butcher paper can be bought for $40 to $75. These rolls are longer, up to 600 or 700 feet in length, and feature widths of 18 to 24 inches. The basis weight of mid-range rolls varies between 40 and 50 pounds.
Expensive
The most expensive butcher paper rolls cost $75 to $175. These rolls have higher basis weights and are usually the largest quantities, with widths up to 48 inches and lengths of 1,000 to 1,200 feet.
Tips
- Oil your butcher paper. Before placing meat on it for cooking, oil your butcher paper. It provides some extra moisture during the baking or grilling process and prevents any meat inside from sticking to the paper.
- Use your butcher paper for quick cleanup when grilling. An added perk of using butcher paper when smoking or grilling is that it prevents any grease or oil drippings from dirtying the grill. This makes for much easier cleanup when you’re finished.
- Use two layers of butcher paper when storing or marinating larger cuts of meat. For heavier cuts of fish or meat, a second sheet of butcher paper can give some added strength in order to support the weight of the cut. If marinating the cut, the second layer provides some resilience to the moisture from oils and marinades, in case the first layer gets extra soggy.
FAQ
Q. How long does meat last in butcher paper?
A. When using butcher paper for meat storage in the refrigerator, you should use, freeze, or consume the cut within three to five days. While butcher paper is an effective tool for food wrapping, it’s not airtight like vacuum-sealing and still allows some oxygen in.
Q. Is butcher paper the same as steak paper?
A. While they’re very similar, butcher paper and steak paper are not the same. Steak paper is denser and more inflexible than butcher paper. It’s frequently used by delis, meat shops, and grocery stores to wrap meat cuts and is designed for short-term use. Steak paper is intended to keep food safe and protected from oxygen or airborne contaminants when transporting it from the store to your home. It has more limited versatility than butcher paper and isn’t made for use in the oven or on the grill.
Q. Should butcher paper be waxed?
A. If you intend to use your butcher paper for baking or grilling, you need to use one that’s unwaxed. The heat from these cooking methods melts any wax coating into the food, which then makes it unsafe for consumption.