OT: Pork butt
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Salt, smoke, and time.
Salt - I’ve tried different rubs and have found that rubs don’t matter that much. Salt is the only ingredient that matters for taste.
Smoke - Keep good smoke on it until it reaches 145F, then wrap it until it reaches 195F.
Time - When I first started smoking butts, I was cooking for about 8 hours. For some reason, long forgotten, I was forced to cook one for 12 or so hours. There is something that happens to pork at 12 - 14 hours of cooking that is amazing.
Salt - I’ve tried different rubs and have found that rubs don’t matter that much. Salt is the only ingredient that matters for taste.
Smoke - Keep good smoke on it until it reaches 145F, then wrap it until it reaches 195F.
Time - When I first started smoking butts, I was cooking for about 8 hours. For some reason, long forgotten, I was forced to cook one for 12 or so hours. There is something that happens to pork at 12 - 14 hours of cooking that is amazing.
This^^ After going raw dog for the first time, I’ll never go back as long as time allows. Be prepared for a wide window though. I’ve had butts take 1 1/2 per pound I had one take 2 1/2 per pound at 225.
You haven't tried good rubs, then. You want some pepper, garlic, and brown/Turbinado sugar in that rub to bring out and complement the pork flavor along with the salt. There's a reason it's called meat candy when done right.
And do NOT wrap a pork butt. There is no need to do that at all. You need heat to get through the stall and get that inner temperature around 195 to 205.
YOU HAVE TO GO TURBO. DON'T WASTE YOUR TIME AT 225 WITH AN EGG!!!
Look up the turbo butt recipe. Someone on here recommended it and I am never going back. I use a Kamado Joe. Do not waste your time cooking it at 225-250 on an egg... On a pellet grill or stick burner you will get better results low and slow, but not on an egg. 350 and it will have bark, juice and flavor as good as low and slow in nearly half the time.
Read this forum. Everyone who tries it is converted.. Myself included. Low sugar rub and don't wrap it.
https://eggheadforum.com/discussion/1194236/turbo-butt
Look up the turbo butt recipe. Someone on here recommended it and I am never going back. I use a Kamado Joe. Do not waste your time cooking it at 225-250 on an egg... On a pellet grill or stick burner you will get better results low and slow, but not on an egg. 350 and it will have bark, juice and flavor as good as low and slow in nearly half the time.
Read this forum. Everyone who tries it is converted.. Myself included. Low sugar rub and don't wrap it.
https://eggheadforum.com/discussion/1194236/turbo-butt
Fat Cap Down. There I said it.
I used to have a problem with stalls lasting 3-4 hrs when the internal temp would hit 160 - 170. I tried several things to combat the stall and trimming the fat cap down to less than 1/8" and cooking with the cap down has solved my problem. There is enough fat in the meat that I've never had one dry out.
For long smokes always use chunks you can find them where ever you buy your lump charcoal. If chips re all you can get soak them in water for an hour or so before you cook.
Bigger chunks or splits. Don't use the chips. Split a nice piece of seasoned post oak if you can find it. Chips would burn really fast at a higher temp I imagine.
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Is there anywhere that sells splits? I would love to get a hold of some apple and mesquite.
I had a place by my house in Dallas called Lindsey's that sold everything. Now that I live out west hardwood is hard to find. I will probably go make friends with a cabinet shop and get goodies from their scraps. Cause online it's expensive.
I’ve had excellent results using this rub:
https://amazingribs.com/tested-recipes/spice-rubs-and-pastes/meatheads-memphis-dust-rub-recipe
And for that matter, the method used here:
https://amazingribs.com/tested-recipes/pork-recipes/perfect-pulled-pork-recipe
I'll add more. Salt it a few days beforehand to make sure the salt can penetrate all the way into the meat. But then use a no or low salt rub.
It's not the fat that makes it juicy. It's the collagen breaking down in the meat to gelatin. And you get more bark by trimming the cap.
And the meat stalls due to evaporation.
IMO, you have to smoke for 12 - 14 hours to get it right, but I use a pellet grill so it's easier to keep it going that long.
Light rub, heavy salt, smoke then put in an aluminum pan at 170 till it hits 200. Cover with aluminum and put a small amount of juice or chicken stock and a stick of butter cut up on the top of the but. The dripping/juicy goodness is great with the pulled pork. I add just a little of the rub and pull in the pan with the juice. It's always the perfect amount to make it wet/moist but not soaked. You can eat it without it going dry and it freezes awesomely.
I've done cap up and down and never had a problem either way so I usually go up.
If I have the time I like to brine it at least one day in kosher salt, brown sugar, ginger, star anise, garlic, Tony C's, and a few other secret ingredients. I've found that ginger either candied or fresh in a brine really adds a nice sharp flavor in the background. I love to take the same brine and add orange juice and peels for my turkey and chicken. Sometimes I go with limes for chicken instead of oranges. Citrus is great for bird brines.
I've done cap up and down and never had a problem either way so I usually go up.
If I have the time I like to brine it at least one day in kosher salt, brown sugar, ginger, star anise, garlic, Tony C's, and a few other secret ingredients. I've found that ginger either candied or fresh in a brine really adds a nice sharp flavor in the background. I love to take the same brine and add orange juice and peels for my turkey and chicken. Sometimes I go with limes for chicken instead of oranges. Citrus is great for bird brines.
If having trouble keeping your smoker going that long, you can always finish it in the oven. Just put it in there at 225 until your desired temp is reached. By that time, you’re probably not adding any smoke to the meat anyway.
Don't listen to anything but what I tell you
Trim the fat cap. People say fat cap up. Fat cap down. Score it. Whatever. Trim that thing off. The fat doesn't "melt" like people say or "make it jucier". The only thing it can do is protect the meat from overcooking, but if you cook like you are supposed to (225-250), it doesn't need protection. If you season the fat cap and smoke it, you will be wasting all that potential for delicious bark on your shoulder. You don't wants to eat jobs of fat. Some people mix it up in their meat, but they don't know what a good shoulder is really like. Trim the thing off, season it tonight if you can. You'll have a great, 100% barked butt without any nasty fat globs.
As for cooking, sometimes I just mustard, sometimes I don't. I feel like the bark turns out better if I use mustard. Don't wrap. Don't inject. Unless you want to your meat to taste like whatever you inject it with, don't inject. The only thing I would even consider injecting with is broth mixed with your rub.
Hold your temp. Don't let it fluctuate too much. Temp fluctuations will cause the meat to toughen. Cook at 225-250. Plan for 1.5hrs per pound if it's over 8lbs. Don't wrap. Don't be afraid it the temp doesn't move when it hits 160-170.
Don't waste wood. Once your bark is formed, which it will be around 150, it can't take anymore smoke. And sometimes, even before it's formed, you can oversmoke it. I add wood up to 4hrs. Hickory and apple. More hickory than apple.
Everything I said is important, but the most important thing I will say is if you're watching it then you ain't cookin it. Let it do it's thing. Monitor the temps for flairups, if the temps hold, don't peek at it.
I would like to add that I'm putting a small one on when I wake up in the morning. If you ever went to Grumpy's and had the nachos, try this out. Get white flour tortillas and cut them into chips. Fry chips. Layer with smoked shoulder. Drizzle bbq sauce and white queso cheese. Add jalapenos. Make a post on here to thank me for telling you how to make the most amazing meal ever. You'll be invited to everyone's get-togethers to serve this once your friends try it.
Trim the fat cap. People say fat cap up. Fat cap down. Score it. Whatever. Trim that thing off. The fat doesn't "melt" like people say or "make it jucier". The only thing it can do is protect the meat from overcooking, but if you cook like you are supposed to (225-250), it doesn't need protection. If you season the fat cap and smoke it, you will be wasting all that potential for delicious bark on your shoulder. You don't wants to eat jobs of fat. Some people mix it up in their meat, but they don't know what a good shoulder is really like. Trim the thing off, season it tonight if you can. You'll have a great, 100% barked butt without any nasty fat globs.
As for cooking, sometimes I just mustard, sometimes I don't. I feel like the bark turns out better if I use mustard. Don't wrap. Don't inject. Unless you want to your meat to taste like whatever you inject it with, don't inject. The only thing I would even consider injecting with is broth mixed with your rub.
Hold your temp. Don't let it fluctuate too much. Temp fluctuations will cause the meat to toughen. Cook at 225-250. Plan for 1.5hrs per pound if it's over 8lbs. Don't wrap. Don't be afraid it the temp doesn't move when it hits 160-170.
Don't waste wood. Once your bark is formed, which it will be around 150, it can't take anymore smoke. And sometimes, even before it's formed, you can oversmoke it. I add wood up to 4hrs. Hickory and apple. More hickory than apple.
Everything I said is important, but the most important thing I will say is if you're watching it then you ain't cookin it. Let it do it's thing. Monitor the temps for flairups, if the temps hold, don't peek at it.
I would like to add that I'm putting a small one on when I wake up in the morning. If you ever went to Grumpy's and had the nachos, try this out. Get white flour tortillas and cut them into chips. Fry chips. Layer with smoked shoulder. Drizzle bbq sauce and white queso cheese. Add jalapenos. Make a post on here to thank me for telling you how to make the most amazing meal ever. You'll be invited to everyone's get-togethers to serve this once your friends try it.
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^^^^this guy knows. Don't user kosher or sea salt if you dry brine. It's a waste of money. Use plain old table salt.
I haven’t seen it mentioned, so get a probe thermometer. A cheap one will do fine to start. It is the best investment a home chef can make. Time is not the best way to tell if meat is done, it’s temperature.
Butts are the easiest thing to smoke and hard to screw up. I put dry rub on the night before and put it on the smoker the next morning. Insert the probe and let that baby go. Once it hits 190-195 internal I take it off and pull it after it cools a bit. Remove the fat and the super hard bark. Sprinkle a bit more dry rub and it’s ready to serve. It takes around 18 hours normally.
Butts are the easiest thing to smoke and hard to screw up. I put dry rub on the night before and put it on the smoker the next morning. Insert the probe and let that baby go. Once it hits 190-195 internal I take it off and pull it after it cools a bit. Remove the fat and the super hard bark. Sprinkle a bit more dry rub and it’s ready to serve. It takes around 18 hours normally.
Right. I forgot to mention that. Get a thermometer with two probes though. I think the one for the smoker is more important than meet. The little metal thermometer on the outside of your smoker is crab. They all are. There can be 50-100 degree difference and you’d never know. People say pull at 203. I like what he said. 190-195
Be careful with mesquite as it tends to burn hotter than pecan, apple, hickory or oak. Keep an eye on the heat. Academy Sports sells bags of various types of wood for smoking.
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I just upgraded to a 6 probe. Be careful if you walk by my smoker when I’m setting up. I might just check your temperature.
The egg is not a smoker, I have one and love it. It is just not a quality smoker, love it for steaks and pizzas but my Yoder or my backwoods smoker is for smoking purposes. There are a thousand ways to do a pork but. I have injected, seasoned the night before, wrapped, used all kinds of sweet things, and really it comes down to a personal preference as there is really no way to screw one up other than over cooking, which is hard to do. My personal technique is 225 and someone already said time means nothing, temperature means everything. I like to get it to 165 and wrap, in my wrap I love to use butter, brown sugar, honey, and Jonesy Q Booty Rub. Then back on until it hits 200. I will let it rest for a hour in a cooler and then hit it with my glaze, which is a homemade honey based bbq sauce. I prefer to either chop or pull the meat. The time per pound thing is crap, IMO. Temp is where it is at. I have some take way more time that others. I usually cook several over the course of year up to about 40 to 50 I would say. I am sure there are guys on here that cook more.
Heck, I can even use my Webber as a smoker, if I want to, and do often. No problem doing so with an Egg.
I forgot to add, if you really like bark, and can take the time to smoke for 12-14 hours, Make a wet mop sauce and every time you look at it, mop it. The added moisture will lengthen the stall, but it will make the nicest bark you ever had.
I like this wet mop but any Carolina style vinegar recipe will work:
I like this wet mop but any Carolina style vinegar recipe will work:
- 2 cups apple cider vinegar
- 2 tablespoons dark brown sugar
- 1 tablespoon red pepper flakes
- 1 tablespoon cracked black pepper
- 1/2 tablespoon salt
I’ve smoked smaller ones on my Weber. I put a round pie pan in the center under the shoulder and make a charcoal snake around it. I usually have to add a little more charcoal towards the end but it works nice.
I concur with everything Ruckus said. The only thing I'd be leary of is using more hickory than fruit woods for smoke. Hickory is potent. Mesquite is potent and pungent, so be careful.
The absolute best butt I've ever done was with heavy and constant apple wood smoke, and no hickory. But that was also on a weber kettle, and not a kamado. For whatever reason a kamado just needs more smoke in the first 2 hrs and then you can cut the smoke off. I guess it's the efficiency of it's air flow.
The absolute best butt I've ever done was with heavy and constant apple wood smoke, and no hickory. But that was also on a weber kettle, and not a kamado. For whatever reason a kamado just needs more smoke in the first 2 hrs and then you can cut the smoke off. I guess it's the efficiency of it's air flow.
First, you want to buy a quality shoulder. Iberico preferably and treat it with respect. Now soak it in Dale's for 72 hours minimum. If you buy high quality coals, you won't need need much smoke. That's why I highly recommend Matchlight. Now warm up the grill. 600F or higher. You want a blue flame coming out of the top stack. At around hour 9, you'll likely hit the stall. Stay calm. Remove the butt from the BGE and wrap it with butcher paper. Then send it to the microwave for 30-40 minutes. If it look dry, spray it with more Dale's. Once you blow past the stall, get it back on the egg for another half hour. Just enough time to kiss it with some of that sweet smoke. Let it rest for AT LEAST 5 minutes. Don't be too impatient. This step is critical. Now slice it thin and serve it with A-1. You're welcome.
What setting on the microwave do you use. I find the soften/melt button is the sweet spot.
I think you're underselling the egg as a smoker. I don't care for the egg as a grill. If I'm doing direct heat, I can have less hassle and do just as well on any charcoal grill and can come close on a gas grill, except for steak, which I don't like to use a grill for anyway. The egg is basically an oven with smoke to me. Anything I'm not putting on direct heat, which is pretty much anything other than hamburgers or chicken breasts for me at this point, the egg does great with.
I don't think people are intending to imply that you cook for a certain time per pound. But if you are cooking for somebody else, you have to plan ahead, so you need to know roughly how long it's going to take and when to put it on the grill. I've had butts take significantly longer than expected based on guidelines, and other times had to wrap when I didn't intend to in order to have meat ready in time.
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