Why doesn't my pulled pork taste like the Pros/Restaurants?

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oldlinesmoker

Newbie
Original poster
Aug 1, 2017
4
11
Hi all,

I'm new to this forum; I just started smoking pork shoulders/brisket/ribs/chicken a couple years back and wanted to try to get some answers to a question I have had for a long while now regarding pulled pork...and that is:

Why doesn't it ever taste like I get from professional BBQ joints/restaurants/stands?

Now it's not just a single BBQ place I'm referring to here, it's nearly every place that serves pulled pork; the kind of pulled pork I always get from professional joints always has a very similar taste and appearance:

1. It looks very similar to natural cooked color, not smothered in sauce (this part I can replicate just fine).

2. There is a nice good smoke ring (this I have no problem attaining as well).

3. It is always a good texture, not to dry, not to mushy (after some tinkering, I've solved this problem as well).

4. The pork has a nice, salty, smoky, barely sweet at all, taste. 

#4 is where I am having the trouble; I just can't seem to get a nice salty, smoky flavor from my pork. It definitely looks like the real thing in almost all aspects, but somewhere the taste is just not lining up how I want it to. I have even tried some vinegar based finishing sauces, but nothing is really nailing it down. Is there some trick I don't know about for flavor that the professional places are using: brining? MSG? I just can't seem to figure it out and would love to get some answers from you all.

Just a very brief rundown of my methods/equipment to see if anyone can see any errors there:

1. I'm using a cheap offset smoker, but have been able to maintain the temperatures fairly well within the 225-250 F range.

2. I'm using a combination of lump hardwood charcoal, with some hickory chunks every 30 minutes or so for flavoring (not soaked).

3. I always pull the shoulder/butts off at an internal temperature of around 200F or a tad above, then rest for an hour or two and pull.

FYI: also as a side note.. many times when I cook shoulder, I notice that there is almost a slightly 'burnt' or 'grilled' flavor coming from the meat when it is pulled off. I try to keep the meat on the middle rack or further from the flame to prevent 'charring' the meat, but that flavor seems to be there more often than not.

Thanks!
 
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