2nd pork butt in my MES 130B (+1st time pics)

[FishInTheDesert]

Hoping that my post might be able to help someone out whos just starting out smoking like me. This is going to be my 2nd pork butt (Pics of the 1st one at the end of this thread).

I will be keeping this SUPER simple....as simple as I can get away with. Following Bearcarver's step by step again (https://www.smokingmeatforums.com/threads/boston-butt-pulled-pork-step-by-step.140055/). Using a basic/general brown sugar rub on a Smithfield brand bone-in Pork Butt; 8.46 pounds. Running an AMNPS with Cabelas Brand Hickory Pellets. I also will be doing the SoFlaQuer Finishing sauce again and toss that in when i pull and chop for sandwiches (https://www.smokingmeatforums.com/threads/soflaquers-finishing-sauce-for-pulled-pork.51933/).

This is my first cook with an AMNPS, so hopefully the learning curve is nice to me! lol

Hit my butt with a nice coat of mustard, and then liberally sprinkled sea salt and my rub on it. Todays rub recipe is:

1 cup Brown Sugar
1/8 cup Paprika
2 heaping TSP of Pepper
1/2 TSP Cayenne
1/2 TSP Chili Powder
1 TSP Garlic Powder
1 TSP Onion Powder------I think I couldve gone a bit heavier on both the onion and garlic. Ill adjust it next time if its lacking.

Very heavy on the brown sugar, but I like that subtle sweetness and letting the pork bring its own flavor. I also DO NOT (and dont recommend you do either, especially as a noob like me) add salt to my rub now. I just used table salt before, and its now my understanding different salts have different weights....but I dont like how it settles at the bottom of mixes. Its hard to get an even distribution....and in my opinion you want salt to be evenly covering your meat, even more so than all the other spices in a rub. That salt is the backbone to the rub imo. I used McCormicks Sea Salt, the one you can grind up and gave it a medium ground, and made sure to evenly cover the butt...then liberally sprinkled the rub on the rest of the butt.




Ill update tomorrow. I might do a 4 am wake up just so i can eat it around 5 instead of 7pm like last time. I will try to update and be as detailed as possible...and take plenty of pics! Hopefully you all dont mind me posting my little journey in here...and feel free to chime in with any tips, hints....or any words really! Thanks!


My 1st butt, basically the same as what im doing this time...trying to replicate the goodness! lol
The pics dont do it justice....but that sandwich was YUUUUUGE!

 

[oldsmokerdude]

Nice looking butt!!! I'll bet it tastes as good as it looks. Doesn't it feel great to produce something so scrumptious and beautiful at the same time?

Thanks for sharing.

 

[FishInTheDesert]

Nice looking butt!!! I'll bet it tastes as good as it looks. Doesn't it feel great to produce something so scrumptious and beautiful at the same time?

Thanks for sharing.

Thank you! TASTED AMAZING! Posted those pics on facebook at 8pm on Saturday.....a few family members "happened to be in the neighborhood" and just so happened to have some beers too....at 845pm....and all that butt got eaten! so much for leftovers!!! LOL

It does feel great to make something that nice looking...and tasty! Im nowhere....NOWHERE near some of you all on here....but I felt like a full fledged pitmaster when I pulled that bad boy out and saw that healthy looking bark!!! I think its safe to invite the family now so they dont have to facebook stalk me for a good BBQ meal! LMAO

 

[SonnyE]

Sure looks good to me!:D

 

[FishInTheDesert]

Sure looks good to me!:D

Thank you! Reading up on this site and following some advice from some of you pitmasters on here makes it easy for me! I get to brag about the taste and look....when Im just doing what I learned on here! EPIC FORUM! Im lightyears ahead of where I was even a month ago, just from surfing, reading, and picking some brains on here!

 

[SonnyE]

Thank you! Reading up on this site and following some advice from some of you pitmasters on here makes it easy for me! I get to brag about the taste and look....when Im just doing what I learned on here! EPIC FORUM! Im lightyears ahead of where I was even a month ago, just from surfing, reading, and picking some brains on here!

Every cook is an adventure, to me. Even if you have a patented seasoning regimen, the meat can vary.
So never get discouraged if last week was better than this weeks. It's all good, and the next will be better.

I'm doing a crab boil this Saturday for us senior silver-backs in the Family. Never done one before, but I'm going to jump in the giant pot with both feet. :eek:
A cousin of mine put on a Crawdad boil at the ranch after the crowd left from his Mama's wake. Hell of a GOOD time! Rippin mud bugs, munchin all the flavors in the boil. Washed it down with Uncle Syrus' Swap Meet Skunky Beer. (I bet some of that shinola was 30 years old. :p )
Only us Seniors have a liking for Crab. The youngsters (in their 40's) don't have the class to like crab. Hopefully the Step-Son and his Family show up. I want to see if I can coax the Grand-Kids into tasting crab.;)
But there will be Tri-Tip as well.:rolleyes:

Every cook is an adventure. You sight see with your tongue. ;):D

 

[FishInTheDesert]

Already calling today a failure. The AMNPS went out on me and my butt got no smoke for prolly 3+ hours. getting ready to wrap in foil....but there is NO bark :(

really bummed out right now. No idea what I did wrong on the AMNPS. Lit it for 10 minutes....and it was smoking the first hour or so of the smoke while I was monitoring it. Guess it went out sometime after I checked.

 

[FishInTheDesert]

I cant keep the AMNPS lit! No idea what im doing wrong. When I probed meat, i restarted both ends....and definitely let it burn 10 minutes...or close to it. the first inch and a half was charred when the fire went out. Just went to check on it....smoke was done...and the AMNPS was out.

Just emptied it and reloaded it. Microwaved these pellets (did that with last ones too) and am starting both ends....hope it stays on! Butt isnt ANYWHERE near as juicy at this point compared to my first....not a lot of juices dripping into the foil.

I think im just on salvage mode now unfortunately. Im gonna give the AMNPS one more shot after today and return it if I cant get it to work. I got a decent enough bark with the chip loader, so id rather stick with that then deal with problems. Really mad AMNPS isnt working for me right now....im pretty, VERY sure im doing things the right way. Just my luck.

 

[gmc2003]

I'm doing a crab boil this Saturday for us senior silver-backs in the Family. Never done one before, but I'm going to jump in the giant pot with both feet. :eek:

Sonny is that senior silver back code for Old Bay seasoning. :rolleyes:

Chris

 

[nnifnairb]

I cant keep the AMNPS lit! No idea what im doing wrong. When I probed meat, i restarted both ends....and definitely let it burn 10 minutes...or close to it. the first inch and a half was charred when the fire went out. Just went to check on it....smoke was done...and the AMNPS was out.

Just emptied it and reloaded it. Microwaved these pellets (did that with last ones too) and am starting both ends....hope it stays on! Butt isnt ANYWHERE near as juicy at this point compared to my first....not a lot of juices dripping into the foil.

I think im just on salvage mode now unfortunately. Im gonna give the AMNPS one more shot after today and return it if I cant get it to work. I got a decent enough bark with the chip loader, so id rather stick with that then deal with problems. Really mad AMNPS isnt working for me right now....im pretty, VERY sure im doing things the right way. Just my luck.

Don't panic, it'll still taste fine, but may just taste like you've done it in the oven. Not all cooks are a win. I have the same setup as you. I've found that to get enough oxygen into the smoker, I pull the chip tray completely out and set it on the ground next to the smoker. I then keep the top vent between 1/2 and 3/4 open. I get at least 6 hours of TBS every time. Also, I've found that opening the door between 30 minutes and an hour after you start the pellets helps give it a rush of oxygen that helps it power through till the end. I also put a foil pan under the meat to help protect the tube from drippings, which can either snuff it out or make it burn to quickly.

I have found, though, that I can't keep the 6" tube going at all. It goes out on my every time. I'm sure it has something to do with where I'm placing it, but I haven't bothered to figure it out yet.

Let us know how it ends up. I think it'll still be good, just not as good as it could be.

 

[tallbm]

If you haven't gotten the bark and want to add more smoke flavor you can always roll unwrapped to finish the cook. I go 275F and unwrapped these days on my pork butt just like my brisket. I don't add mustard or sugar to create any extra bark so you should be ok on bark rolling unwrapped. Here is what an unwrapped 9pound pork but in my MES40 at 275F the whole time looks like:

Also you may not get much in the way of drippings anyhow but that doesn't mean you will have a dry pork butt :)

 

[SmokinLogs]

I hope the butt turned out good. Keep us updated!

 

[crazymoon]

FITD, Nice job on the pork butt,looks delicious!

 

[askmrhp]

Hoping that my post might be able to help someone out whos just starting out smoking like me. This is going to be my 2nd pork butt (Pics of the 1st one at the end of this thread).

I will be keeping this SUPER simple....as simple as I can get away with. Following Bearcarver's step by step again (https://www.smokingmeatforums.com/threads/boston-butt-pulled-pork-step-by-step.140055/). Using a basic/general brown sugar rub on a Smithfield brand bone-in Pork Butt; 8.46 pounds. Running an AMNPS with Cabelas Brand Hickory Pellets. I also will be doing the SoFlaQuer Finishing sauce again and toss that in when i pull and chop for sandwiches (https://www.smokingmeatforums.com/threads/soflaquers-finishing-sauce-for-pulled-pork.51933/).

This is my first cook with an AMNPS, so hopefully the learning curve is nice to me! lol

Hit my butt with a nice coat of mustard, and then liberally sprinkled sea salt and my rub on it. Todays rub recipe is:

1 cup Brown Sugar
1/8 cup Paprika
2 heaping TSP of Pepper
1/2 TSP Cayenne
1/2 TSP Chili Powder
1 TSP Garlic Powder
1 TSP Onion Powder------I think I couldve gone a bit heavier on both the onion and garlic. Ill adjust it next time if its lacking.

Very heavy on the brown sugar, but I like that subtle sweetness and letting the pork bring its own flavor. I also DO NOT (and dont recommend you do either, especially as a noob like me) add salt to my rub now. I just used table salt before, and its now my understanding different salts have different weights....but I dont like how it settles at the bottom of mixes. Its hard to get an even distribution....and in my opinion you want salt to be evenly covering your meat, even more so than all the other spices in a rub. That salt is the backbone to the rub imo. I used McCormicks Sea Salt, the one you can grind up and gave it a medium ground, and made sure to evenly cover the butt...then liberally sprinkled the rub on the rest of the butt.




Ill update tomorrow. I might do a 4 am wake up just so i can eat it around 5 instead of 7pm like last time. I will try to update and be as detailed as possible...and take plenty of pics! Hopefully you all dont mind me posting my little journey in here...and feel free to chime in with any tips, hints....or any words really! Thanks!


My 1st butt, basically the same as what im doing this time...trying to replicate the goodness! lol
The pics dont do it justice....but that sandwich was YUUUUUGE!

Your First pork but came out soooo much better than mine.

 

[FishInTheDesert]

Don't panic, it'll still taste fine, but may just taste like you've done it in the oven. Not all cooks are a win. I have the same setup as you. I've found that to get enough oxygen into the smoker, I pull the chip tray completely out and set it on the ground next to the smoker. I then keep the top vent between 1/2 and 3/4 open. I get at least 6 hours of TBS every time. Also, I've found that opening the door between 30 minutes and an hour after you start the pellets helps give it a rush of oxygen that helps it power through till the end. I also put a foil pan under the meat to help protect the tube from drippings, which can either snuff it out or make it burn to quickly.

I have found, though, that I can't keep the 6" tube going at all. It goes out on my every time. I'm sure it has something to do with where I'm placing it, but I haven't bothered to figure it out yet.

Let us know how it ends up. I think it'll still be good, just not as good as it could be.

I think you put it well....it was just like an oven roasted butt. still tasty, just not as photogenic! lol Ended up figuring out the smoke prolly halfway through and just kept it going till the cook was finished.

So ive gone chip tray, and loader fully out. I know airflow is going to be a problem in this porch that I have the smoker in. Its great that its a covered patio....so that helps with my temps problem I had before when direct sun was hitting the smoker. But with that said....the porch faces east, and just gets no wind. My bedroom window looks out into the porch...and I know how stuffy it gets from the lack of air movement....so just something I gotta compensate for.....maybe I will buy a tiny fan to blow into the loader hole.

If you haven't gotten the bark and want to add more smoke flavor you can always roll unwrapped to finish the cook. I go 275F and unwrapped these days on my pork butt just like my brisket. I don't add mustard or sugar to create any extra bark so you should be ok on bark rolling unwrapped. Here is what an unwrapped 9pound pork but in my MES40 at 275F the whole time looks like:
View attachment 374398 View attachment 374399
Also you may not get much in the way of drippings anyhow but that doesn't mean you will have a dry pork butt :)

Youre right, wasnt dry! MAN that looks good....i think my next experiment will be unfoiled pork butt....not sure I can get to 275 the whole time....especially at the earlier stages when the meats below 135. but lets see where I can get it

I hope the butt turned out good. Keep us updated!

still tasty. not as tasty as my first...that extra smoke flavor was missing.

FITD, Nice job on the pork butt,looks delicious!

first one was nice and pretty....second....meh...but still tasty!

Your First pork but came out soooo much better than mine.

My first came out better than my second....so I guess we are still calling that one lucky!

I just snapped 2 pics cuz i was bummed/steamed up. Pic right before foiling. And the other is when pulled from the smoker.

 

[nnifnairb]

I think you put it well....it was just like an oven roasted butt. still tasty, just not as photogenic! lol Ended up figuring out the smoke prolly halfway through and just kept it going till the cook was finished.

So ive gone chip tray, and loader fully out. I know airflow is going to be a problem in this porch that I have the smoker in. Its great that its a covered patio....so that helps with my temps problem I had before when direct sun was hitting the smoker. But with that said....the porch faces east, and just gets no wind. My bedroom window looks out into the porch...and I know how stuffy it gets from the lack of air movement....so just something I gotta compensate for.....maybe I will buy a tiny fan to blow into the loader hole.



Youre right, wasnt dry! MAN that looks good....i think my next experiment will be unfoiled pork butt....not sure I can get to 275 the whole time....especially at the earlier stages when the meats below 135. but lets see where I can get it



still tasty. not as tasty as my first...that extra smoke flavor was missing.


first one was nice and pretty....second....meh...but still tasty!

My first came out better than my second....so I guess we are still calling that one lucky!

I just snapped 2 pics cuz i was bummed/steamed up. Pic right before foiling. And the other is when pulled from the smoker.

I wouldn't worry about the air flow, the pellets will draw in air as they burn. Open the door to check on them about 30 minutes in and you'll let in a rush of oxygen that should help them power through until the end.

Also, I can never get to 275 on mine, but it'll rock along between 260 and 265 when it's set to 275, which is plenty. I would recommend not wrapping or putting in a foil pan if it's bark you're looking for. It'll take longer, but I really think you'll be pleased with the results.

 

[tallbm]

I think you put it well....it was just like an oven roasted butt. still tasty, just not as photogenic! lol Ended up figuring out the smoke prolly halfway through and just kept it going till the cook was finished.

So ive gone chip tray, and loader fully out. I know airflow is going to be a problem in this porch that I have the smoker in. Its great that its a covered patio....so that helps with my temps problem I had before when direct sun was hitting the smoker. But with that said....the porch faces east, and just gets no wind. My bedroom window looks out into the porch...and I know how stuffy it gets from the lack of air movement....so just something I gotta compensate for.....maybe I will buy a tiny fan to blow into the loader hole.



Youre right, wasnt dry! MAN that looks good....i think my next experiment will be unfoiled pork butt....not sure I can get to 275 the whole time....especially at the earlier stages when the meats below 135. but lets see where I can get it



still tasty. not as tasty as my first...that extra smoke flavor was missing.


first one was nice and pretty....second....meh...but still tasty!

My first came out better than my second....so I guess we are still calling that one lucky!

I just snapped 2 pics cuz i was bummed/steamed up. Pic right before foiling. And the other is when pulled from the smoker.

I'm an unwrapped guy all the way.
The only time I ever think about making any concessions is some times there are a few small spots on my briskets where the bark/crust is a little thick and the knife doesn't want to cut through or when cutting a flat piece of meat just pulls off.
I personally would like a perfect slice but there are so many people that LOVE to eat that extra crusty stuff that is sometimes hard to slice, that I just roll with it and those extra crust people are happy with it!
I personally like a bark but I'm not all about it. Heck I throw my extra trimmed good meat into the foil pan I put under my brisket along with a handful of trimmed fat and that stuff gets extra crispy as well and those extra crusty bark people go freakin wild about it! I personally think it is a too crusty but it is edible so I eat it as well when it's the last of the left overs... that or I sprinkle in a few pieces into my sandwiches which is nice for texture and flavor in small doses for me hahaha.

Keep learning your setup and you will have the AMNPS sorted out in no time :)

 

[FishInTheDesert]

BRISKET ON SATURDAY BOYYYYYSSSSSS!...and GALLLLSSS!

Gonna cut it in half though, sadly. Not confident enough....and havent had time to do enough homework on folding the meat instead...and the danger zone! Dont feel like messing with that right now...short on time.

Gotta look up some recipes....anyone wanna point me in a good direction?


Late edit:
Didnt notice it before....but prolly gonna go with one of Bearcarvers step by steps since it hasnt done me wrong yet!

 

[tallbm]

BRISKET ON SATURDAY BOYYYYYSSSSSS!...and GALLLLSSS!

Gonna cut it in half though, sadly. Not confident enough....and havent had time to do enough homework on folding the meat instead...and the danger zone! Dont feel like messing with that right now...short on time.

Gotta look up some recipes....anyone wanna point me in a good direction?

Nice!

Recipe, I recommend going 2X course or cracked Black Pepper, 1X Salt, Onion, and Garlic. Many just go with just Salt and Pepper but to me SPOG can't be beat!

To me beef like a brisket cannot get any better than when smoked PROPERLY with 100% Mesquite wood. I use Lumberjack 100% Mesquite and WOW!!!! I run my pellets the entire smoke and never get close to over powered due to how well the AMNPS burns the Mesquite bellets for perfect TBS (Thin Blue Smoke).

Also when you cut in half try and not leave your cut with corners as the corner tips will possibly burn up. A round cut allows are and heat to flow more evenly rather around the meat. I would suggest more a cut like the following:

BrisketFlatTrimAway

• tallbm
• Oct 7, 2017

Even if you have to basically cut it in half, doing so this way will get you some practice for when the day comes that you get a bigger smoker and you only want to trim what needs to be trimmed :)
Also if you cut according to that image you will keep most of the thinnest portion of the flat together so that it cooks more uniformly itself and it will likely finish a bit earlier than the piece that is both Point + Flat.

Also remember to always probe in the thickest yet center most portion of the Flat on both halves and understand that the meat is ready when it is TENDER. You only use the temp to check on tenderness. Finally I would really consider foiling the Flat half of the meat that you cut away and cook separately. I would foil around 170F so it gets good smoke and some bark. The flat is the problem child where the combo piece won't need foiling unless you just want to.

Any how that is my 2 cents and I hope it helps you learn from my mistakes and improvements. Let us know how it turns out!!! :)

 

[FishInTheDesert]

Nice!

Recipe, I recommend going 2X course or cracked Black Pepper, 1X Salt, Onion, and Garlic. Many just go with just Salt and Pepper but to me SPOG can't be beat!

To me beef like a brisket cannot get any better than when smoked PROPERLY with 100% Mesquite wood. I use Lumberjack 100% Mesquite and WOW!!!! I run my pellets the entire smoke and never get close to over powered due to how well the AMNPS burns the Mesquite bellets for perfect TBS (Thin Blue Smoke).

Also when you cut in half try and not leave your cut with corners as the corner tips will possibly burn up. A round cut allows are and heat to flow more evenly rather around the meat. I would suggest more a cut like the following:

BrisketFlatTrimAway

• tallbm
• Oct 7, 2017

Even if you have to basically cut it in half, doing so this way will get you some practice for when the day comes that you get a bigger smoker and you only want to trim what needs to be trimmed :)
Also if you cut according to that image you will keep most of the thinnest portion of the flat together so that it cooks more uniformly itself and it will likely finish a bit earlier than the piece that is both Point + Flat.

Also remember to always probe in the thickest yet center most portion of the Flat on both halves and understand that the meat is ready when it is TENDER. You only use the temp to check on tenderness. Finally I would really consider foiling the Flat half of the meat that you cut away and cook separately. I would foil around 170F so it gets good smoke and some bark. The flat is the problem child where the combo piece won't need foiling unless you just want to.

Any how that is my 2 cents and I hope it helps you learn from my mistakes and improvements. Let us know how it turns out!!! :)

Helpful like always! Already answered my "when do I cut the smoke question" too! LOL

Hers the plan....cut it to fit. Then with the cut off portion....im gonna give it to my mom to cook like we always cook brisket for family get togethers (in the oven, spiced and with Claudes) Comes out great....so its our backup plan in case i totally fuzz it up! lol

Running the Cabelas/Lumberjack mesquite....im still experimenting with keeping it lit, the whole tray! Its cut out on me the last tries (both close to the halfway point)...i see it doesnt burn as easily as hickory already. Just added a small fan blowing toward the pellet loader hole...about 4/5 feet away....just wanna give it a little extra, not to give it fuel to fire up!