Smoking Friday for Sat?

[Malacon]

So my GF's Birthday is in 2 weeks, and we're having her family come over for a Birthday BBQ. We'll be serving standard grilled fair, but I want to smoke a Boston Butt for them as well.

I'm cooking on a highly modified ECB, and while I'm managing to produce some really good Q on it, cook time is still HIGHLY variable, so guaranteeing that I can take the butt off the smoker right on cue for dinner is going to be near impossible (not to mention being so very dirty and smokey smelling for her fam). I've seen many people mention them smoking for events about 24 hours ahead of time, but I never paid close enough attention to the steps taken to overnight the meat, so any advice would be greatly appreciated.

Here's the basic schedule:

 I'm off from work all day Friday. Everyone will be over Sat around 5 or so, and we'll probably eat around 6. I can work in any of that time, but would prefer NOT getting up at 5am, which is why I want to work the day before (and guarantee it's on the table on time).

I know I can finish it in the Oven, and I know I can store it in tin foil and a cooler for 5-6 hours without much issue but there will be more down time than that... should I put it in the fridge? let it sit in the cooler? When I heat it back up in the oven, just leave it at it's lowest setting?

Help!

 

[scarbelly]

Lots of us do a cook one day and heat up the next day with great success. Smoke the meat until done with a pan of this http://www.smokingmeatforums.com/t/110881/foiling-juice-chef-jimmyj  in the smoker at the same time. 

After resting you can chill in the fridge with some of this liquid until the next day and give yourself an hour to slowly reheat the meat in the oven or if you have a sealer in hot but not boiling water. You will be good as gold

Have fun and wish the GF Happy Birthday for us  

 

[Malacon]

So that's it?

Just cook til' done, refrigerate and heat back up in oven?

Huh. For some reason (aside from the recipe) I assumed it would be more involved.

Thanks!

 

[jayj123]

Yea, that's it. I wrap in Foil and heat at 250 for a few hours. Butt's are very forgiving.

If you want to go a step further, cook a couple and vacuum seal and freeze one.

Then you have butt on short notice, just defrost in water and heat in oven at 350 wrapped in tin foil for ~2 hrs. Very hard to tell the difference.

I've got two in the freezer from Christmas but I keep smoking new ones.... What's up with that?

Jay

 

[chef jimmyj]

I take it a step even further, I pull the Pork add the Foiling Juice and Bag it. Let it cool a bit then in the refer until needed. 1-2 hours before service the PP goes in a Crock Pot on High until it hits 165-170*F and then turn it down to Warm and hold or serve it...I don't even get my hands Dirty! You can get similar results in the Oven in a Dutch Oven at 325*F then Low or in the Bag placed in Barely simmering water. Have fun...JJ

BTW...I just pulled, defrosted and re-heated a 3 month old bag of PP last night...Awesome!

 

[smokinn00blet]

;Butt's are very forgiving.

This.

1 butt I did cooked it and when it was close to being done I got caught up in some other things and when I checked on it it was 228 degrees. I let it rest for about a hour and was good to go.


The general rule for a butt is 1 1/2 hours per a pound. But cook to temp not time.

Chopped/sliced 180-190 degrees internal
Pull 200-208 degrees internal.

How many pound butt you getting?

 

[Malacon]

Well, I'm kind of at the mercy of the Pork store around the corner. I'm aiming for something around 8 pound range. It's usually what I end up with.

 

[i is a moose]

Another vote for the next-day reheat.

I've done this with whole briskets, too. Into a pan, whole, with a bottle of Newcastle, foiled, and reheated in a 300 degree oven for a couple hours. When I do this, I don't remove my thermometer probe from the smoke the day before, just plug it back into the thermometer unit, and keep an eye on it. Since you're rehating the meat, it only has to go to 165 degrees instead of the full 200.

Also, off topic, your username reminds me of Mystery Science Theater 3000.