First Port Butt (shoulder) a Few Questions - With Updates

[crazymoon]

SH, Your pork looks good and you'll never wrap if you love the bark . I think a lot of folks here will tell you to plan on 2 hours per # to be safe on planning a meal. All butts cook differently and you had a long cook but it looks like it was worth it ! like

 

[Bearcarver]

Finale Looks Perfect.:)
As long as you start early enough, the times means nothing, as long as it tastes Great.
Like.

You Won!!

Bear

 

[SquattingHen]

Thanks everyone. Now I have to figure the best way to reheat it. I pulled (ate my fill) and put the rest in the fridge, air tight container. I have been researching this morning and it seems most say to use food saver type bags and reheat in those. Well, I don't have that, and there wasn't much just in the pan below the pork....and I didn't save that. I assumed I could just reheat in the ovan, but man.... even just trying to figure this part out seems a bit overwhelming. I have an ovan and crockpot, (grill and smoker too) anyone have an easy suggestion?

 

[Bearcarver]

Thanks everyone. Now I have to figure the best way to reheat it. I pulled (ate my fill) and put the rest in the fridge, air tight container. I have been researching this morning and it seems most say to use food saver type bags and reheat in those. Well, I don't have that, and there wasn't much just in the pan below the pork....and I didn't save that. I assumed I could just reheat in the ovan, but man.... even just trying to figure this part out seems a bit overwhelming. I have an ovan and crockpot, (grill and smoker too) anyone have an easy suggestion?

I don't know how many you're reheating for, but with us it's just the two of us, and I just put enough in a bowl for one sammy at a time & Nuke it until it's good and Hot. Mrs Bear does the same. This is my favorite way, but I'm not ashamed to use a Microwave for reheating things.

For larger group you can spread it out on a pan in the oven, and take it from there to the Crockpot.
Or in a vac pack, and in your Hot water for awhile. Then Crock pot.

Just going in the Crockpot takes too long.

Bear

 

[SquattingHen]

I don't know how many you're reheating for, but with us it's just the two of us, and I just put enough in a bowl for one sammy at a time & Nuke it until it's good and Hot. Mrs Bear does the same. This is my favorite way, but I'm not ashamed to use a Microwave for reheating things.

For larger group you can spread it out on a pan in the oven, and take it from there to the Crockpot.
Or in a vac pack, and in your Hot water for awhile. Then Crock pot.

Just going in the Crockpot takes too long.

Bear

Thanks. Just the four of us, so microwave or oven would work best. Maybe I will try both and compare. Do you add anything before reheating? Apple juice or sause?

 

[Bearcarver]

Thanks. Just the four of us, so microwave or oven would work best. Maybe I will try both and compare. Do you add anything before reheating? Apple juice or sause?

It usually doesn't need anything, but I always save the juices in the Pan from Foiling. Then I defat it over night in the fridge, and then cut the solid fat off the top, so I have that juice to add if needed, but most times it isn't needed. Plus I put some sauce on the roll itself.

Bear

 

[Scott "Stu" Stewart]

Hello all. I have read a lot, but I feel like I still have a few questions. I plan on trying my first pork butt this weekend. I purchased a small one, 6lbs, to try out as they tend to take a while.

1. General Smoking Question - When everything says to get the smoker ready to 225 or so, when I open it up (propane vertical smoker) place the meat inside and close the door, I lose quite a bit of heat. Waiting for it to get back up to 225 can take a long time. Should I be (I have) bumping the heat up a bit to get it settled back at 225?

2. Port Butt - Fat Up or Down? I have read both, so maybe it doesn't matter? Fat down says to protect the pork from temp spikes. Fat up, says to glaze the pork as the fat melts.

3. I really don't want to wrap the butt, especially for my first time. Just about all the suggestions I have come across, even the sticky on the top of this page, suggest it. It wrapping preferred on these?

4. I really wanted to place it and leave it. I see many of the suggestions say to spray it every so often. Is that really necessary?

5. I have the Smoke by thermoworks to monitor the temp of the smoker and the meat. General question, do you all insert the probe in the meat at the beginning of the smoke? I read something about contamination and that you should insert it after it has cooked a while. It is just much easier to insert the probe when the meat is first placed in.

Thank you.

I use a vertical offset wood/charcoal setup so temperature can be rather variant if things aren't controlled properly.

1. I shoot to always maintain my temp within 10-15 degrees.

2. I always cook fat up, and will score the cap in a crosscheck.

3. I only wrap as a last resort for butts. Ribs are a different story. I like to wrap my ribs about 2 hours in.

4. I never spray or mop a butt. As mentioned previously, maintaining a consistent temp on my set-up demands opening the cooking chamber as few times as possible.

5. I place one probe in the meat, and use one probe to monitor the cooking chamber's temperature. If you cook to the right temp 205ish, the threat of bacterial contamination is negligible.

Happy Smoking my friend. It's a trial and error process, but the learning can be exponential if you have good sources to rely on, take notes on your cooks especially as you start, and trust yourself. Yes you'll have a bad cook on occasion, but that's when you learn the most.