First pork butt!!

  • Some of the links on this forum allow SMF, at no cost to you, to earn a small commission when you click through and make a purchase. Let me know if you have any questions about this.
SMF is reader-supported. When you buy through links on our site, we may earn an affiliate commission.

Deer Meat

Smoking Fanatic
Original poster
OTBS Member
SMF Premier Member
Aug 8, 2006
831
15
Southwest Pennsylvania
Hello,

I posted a few weeks ago about doing a brisket for the first time. But I changed my mind and did a butt instead. Man was I pleased with the results, even my wife couldn't get enough of them pulled pork sandwiches. Since it was just the two of us eating it, it lasted for about two days (a 6.5 pounder)

The day I smoked her I got up at 5:00 a.m. to get her going And I realized that I had forgotten the mustard. (I was not at home, we were camping) So I improvised and rubbed the butt down with olive oil and then applied the rub. I was a little worried about how it would work but it didn't seem to hurt anything.

The hardest part of the smoke was regulating the temp. at 220-230 ,It kept climbing to between 300-340 deg. for about the first hour.
(by the way I am using an electric brinkmann). But after playing around with the door and vent I got the hang of it a little. I was worried that this initial high temp. would have seared the meat and not let the smoke penetrate properly. But the 1/8"-1/4" smokering proved my worries otherwise. I am in the process of gathering the material to build a temperature controller to help with this problem.


Just wanted to share my first success with you all, sorry no pictures, didn't have the camera with us either.
 
DEER MEAT, Way to go. A nice thing about a pork butt is that they are more forgiving that a beef brisket when it comes to temperatures.

The use of mustard before applying the rub is a personal preference. I used to do it but no longer worry about it. Just apply your rub to the butt in the normal manner, wait until the rub begins to absorb the moisture in the meat and when it begins to look wet, give the butt another dusting of the rub.
 
Ah yep. Since the flavor of the mustard cooks out and you don't taste it, why waste it when you could put the mustard on some smoked Brats that you've hopefully tossed into the smoker along with the butt! :mrgreen:
 
The butt was all that I did. I was worried about getting to many irons in the fire for the first time butt. Now that I have done this I will put on some other things, Like your "wicked baked beans" perhaps. Although I did bake a chocolate cake in the dutch oven while this was all going on. Hey you need desert to!!
 
Cooking in dutch ovens for nearly 25 years and doing dutch oven cooking demo's is what earned me the nickname of "Dutch". For family gatherings, what food that doesn't come out of the smoker will usually come out of one of 14 dutch ovens. :mrgreen:
 
Hi Dutch,

I was wondering if your name related to the cast iron cookware. I have not seen many reciepts on here for d.o. cooking. What is your favorite thing to make?
 
Hi There Deer Meat!

Welcome to the forums!

Congratulations on a good smoke. Pork butts are great and as Brother Dutch says they are very forgiving but they do take a long time so what some of us do is we put some bratwursts or Jimmy Dean chubs in the old smoker for a few hours so that we have something to snack on while we are waiting for our Butt to smoke :P

ranger72 :)OTBS # 14
 
Well, seeing as how this is a smoking and grilling forum, I don't post my D.O. recipes here. The Smoked Salmon with Maple Glaze (in the Fish Forum), believe it or not was first created for a dutch oven cook-off I was in 3-4 years ago and the salmon was smoked in the d.o.

Since I like to eat, everything I cook in the d.o. is my favorite. My Grandson gets a kick out of watching me pull a pizza out of a d.o.

I've done many varieties of meats, breads and desserts.
 
Hi There Deer Meat!

It took me a while to dig up this tutorial I did awhile back on a dual pork butt smokola I did one night.It is documented well with pictures and contains tips on Rubbing your Butt :P and also one of my great mop recipes for pork butt (Please Try it)

It also has links to SoFlaQuer's great finishing sauce for pulled pork and in addition to that it also has links to another members Beer can Chicken recipe Bearswoodshop who is another old-timer at all this.

This is a great read with good pics on many aspects of our smoking culture!

Go Here: http://www.smokingmeatforums.com/viewtopic.php?t=617


Hope it Helps!

ranger72 8)
 
Thanks, Ranger

I will have to try that mop sauce. When I smoked mine I used a mix of apple juice and jim beam in a spray bottle.

Where can you get these mops at? And how would you clean something like that?


The pictures look great!! :lol: I am going to try posting some pictures sometime.
 
Hey, Dutch


You say that you don't post D.O. recipes on this forum? Is there a forum that you use for dutch oven coooking?


just wondering :?
 
DEER MEAT!


You can certainly use apple juice and Doctor Beam! :P

Perhaps you might try adding a few tablespoons of Corn Oil to your mix.A spray bottle is a great way to Mop your "Que" as long as you stick purely to liquids for your mop.

When you start adding items like chopped onions, garlic, and various herbs like rosemary or oregano to your mopping mixture then you find that the spray bottles have a tendency to clog up easily.

There is one member here who is renowned for his expertise in Pork shoulder Que and he swears that the only thing to mop shoulder with is a 2/3 cup of vinegar mixed with pure water in a spray bottle. I tried that and I found it to be just fine :) I believe his handle is smokin all night"


Mops are various liquids/concoctions that we all put together in various ways that we baste our smoking works of art with. However, there is such a tool as a B-B-Que Mop and you can find some here: http://www.barbecue-store.com/mops-7055.htm 8)

Another tool to use is a good quality long handled paint brush made of hog's bristle's or some other animal hair..Stay away from nylon bristles as they can have a tendency to melt and become toxic!

Perhaps tulsajeff will consider offering such items for sale here in the forums someday.It would be nice to add to his great rubs and sauce recipes! 8)

As far as cleaning Mops and brushes I just throw them in the dishwasher.If you don't have a dishwasher then soapy hotwater does the trick but you need to make sure you rinse in hot water well enough to get rid of all the soap residue. :D

regards,

ranger72 :)
 
DEER MEAT- Spraying & Mopping does the same thing-adds some moisture to whatever you're smoking. The advantage to using a spray bottle is that nothing but the spray comes in contact with the meat. If your trying to develop a nice bark on a butt, dragging a mop over it can/will disturb the developing bark.

The only time I use a mop is when the sauce is too thick to be sprayed.

As for Dutch Oven Recipes, check out IDOS (International Dutch Oven Society). They have a number of links to other D.O. sites.
 
i guess im the odd ball here, i dont do anything to my butts. i just throw them in the smoker and go.

ive tried rubs but there isnt enough with the amount of meat to taste it when its done and you mix in your finishing sauce. i will wrap it in foil for the last couple of hours and put it in the cooler but for the most part that is it.

mine have turned out with no complaints, but i may try these styles to see if it makes enough of an improvement. mine has always turned out juicy and tender i am sure you all know what the K.I.S.S. method is, thats me with it all.
 
SmokingMeatForums.com is reader supported and as an Amazon Associate, we may earn commissions from qualifying purchases.

Hot Threads

Clicky