A novice wanting any and all advice

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micah88

Newbie
Original poster
Mar 26, 2017
1
10
My name is Micah I live in loogootee Indiana I've always had a passion for grilling but never could afford a smoker well I finally got one I bought an Oklahoma Joe offset did a Boston butt a couple weeks ago but didn't get it started early enough to get it pullable but we sliced it and the flavor was good I'm trying another now I put it on at about 4:30 pm yesterday it's 11:30 am now I've kept it around 240°F but it's still only around 145°F how much longer should it take? Is the temp high enough?
 
Welcome to the board, Micah! And welcome to the hobby, I wanted an offset for years before i finally got one. Try experimenting with chicken to get the hang of the smoker, also look up the various modifications you can make to improve its performance. Ask about anything and people here are happy to advise.
 
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 fellow Hoosier.  Something does sound off if after 19 hours the IT is only 145°. By 19 hours the IT of a 9# butt should be over 200 given a temp setting of 240.  Have you verified your grate temp with a known calibrated thermometer? Maybe therm used to get the 145 isn't working? 

Matt
 
I'm with schlotz - I've cooked plenty of butts at the 240 range and there's no reason why, if you keep your temps consistent, that after 19 hours - your butt should have been a smoldering pile of char.  One thing most newbs don't know about is what's called the "Plateau" - whereby after a few hours cooking thick meats like pork shoulder (boston butt) and brisket - the meat will seem to hit a wall with internal temps and it will "hold" for a while ... usually 45 minutes to 2 hours depending on your meat ... and you'll want to make sure you keep smoking it through that temp.  For pork shoulder it seems to happen between 140 - 155 degrees.  Most of my boston butts ( around 10 lbs ) should cook entirely (cooking at 275) - in about 8 hours as long as the cook chamber stays at that temp.  Keep us posted if you keep having issues.
 
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