Fire went out!

[TraegerBrian]

I googled this topic and found a thread on here from several years ago but couldn't find any recent ones, but I'm in a dilemma. I put 2 boneless boston butts on my smoker last night around 8pm at 225 degrees. The last time I checked the fire was around 1130pm and it was 225 (not sure what the internal temp was because I didn't check it). I woke up this morning around 6 and the fire had gone out at some point overnight. I immediately checked the internal temp of the pork and it was right around 140. The smoker was the same temp as the outside air (around 70 degrees), so I can only assume that the meat was warmer than 140, just not sure what temp it ultimately reached. I got the smoker going again and it quickly reached 150 and is continuing to cook.

My fear is not knowing how long the fire was out, but I don't think the meat ever got below 140 since that is about the temp it was when I checked it when I woke up.

Should I toss? All the forum posts I read are split down the middle on yes vs no. Considering continuing to cook and then freeze for future meal but go buy some food to serve tonight. I can already count a few lessons learned from this experience and I'll definitely consider them for future smokes, but that doesn't help me solve my question of whether to serve this food to friends tonight or not!

 

[noboundaries]

Personally, I'd finish the smoke and serve it.

I load butts usually around 6 PM, set my smoker at 225F, and when I check them the next morning after 12-13 hours, they are usually in the 165-175F range, just coming out of the stall.

Your smoker probably shut down during the stall. Since the meat was at 140F, the smoker was probably off less than 2 hours.

 

[TraegerBrian]

Yeah I'm right on the fence about serving vs not. I'm fairly certain the meat got to 140 within the 4 hours but I'm just getting caught up with not knowing how long the fire was out. I immediately threw it in the oven at 225 to keep it warm while I got the smoker going again. The butts have been back on the smoker for about 3 hours now and it is already up to 185. I'll probably serve some with the warning to all of what happened and it is their choice, but also have some other food to offset their decision not to eat it!

Thanks for the input!

 

[gmc2003]

I also feel your probably safe. One of my questions would be - did you inject the butts? That may be the only reason it could have gone bad. It's already hit the 140* mark. The 4 - 140* rule I think applies more towards injected meat or ground meat. One of the safety expert will surely chime in. Don't take my word as gospel. It's just what I remember reading on the forum. If your nervous cook it completely and wait for a more definitive response.

Chris

 

[SmokinAl]

It is perfectly safe to eat.
No worries!
Al