Going to try my first butt tomorrow :)

[tumbleweed1]

Guys what about brown sugar?  Shall I put some on?

Definitely.

 

[timberjet]

What rub are you using? I use jeff's rub and it has brown sugar in it. I smoke with apple and smoke the whole time. I figure 2 hours per pound with a 2 hour rest. Rarely have if ever have I had one take less than 2 hours per pound. Save the juices that drip into your drip pan to add back in and type JJ's finishing sauce into the search bar. I have done a hundred or so butts in the last 3 years and this advice has never done me wrong. Just double wrap at the end with HD foil with the liquid of your choice. You can use apple juice, beer, or whatever. wrap in towels and put into a dry cooler for the rest, it really makes a difference. I smoke mine until 205 internal and then check to see if the bone is loose or if boneless I probe test it for tenderness. Every Butt is different and all of this is ballpark. You could have two butts right next to each other the same weight and they could be done hours apart. Leave yourself plenty of time. If you do not use a real strong smoke wood like hickory or mesquite you can smoke the whole time with that maze and the thin blue smoke will make some killer pork. I don't know about setting it and forgetting it on your first one man. You might want to get a few notches under your belt before you trust your equipment like that. What smoker did you end up with by the way? I have been working night and day and missed that. Happy smoking, timber

 

[mummel]

Hey!  Yeah I've been crazy busy too.  Been away on vacation and trying to catch up.  I ended up with a MES 40 BT from Cabelas.  I got a fantastic deal.  Very happy.  I did two racks of ribs a couple of days ago and I gave them a 5/10 (my family said 7/10, but of course, Im cooking, so Im highly critical).  I definitely need to refinement: http://www.smokingmeatforums.com/t/201820/quick-help-guys-its-been-hectic#post_1394866

I'm looking forward to smoke #2 and this butt.  Im using PBB All American rub (see pic).  It contains 12% salt.  It's not bad, but I think I could definitely use some sugar.  I dont know how much to put on and will just eyeball it. 

0085272200315_A?$img_size_380x380$

• mummel
• Jun 12, 2015

So as of now:

1) butt is in the fridge, I dry brined it with Kosher salt yesterday afternoon, it was left uncovered in the fridge for 24 hours, I hope that it didnt lose moisture

2) After work, apply rub, dont forget the brown sugar this time

3) Set smoker to 225F, set timer to 15 hours, fill AMPS with Pitmasters choice, put in probe (Maverick 733 with alarms), and set it and forget it!

4) Pull butt when internal temp hits 203, foil, and leave in a cooler for 1-2 hours.

Sound like a plan?????  I have a 17 hour window if I start at 6pm tonight.

 

[timberjet]

17 hours could be pushing it. I would plan for 18. If you dry salted it and are going to add a high salt commercial rub you will end up with a salty product. I would not have dry brined with salt myself, I don't know what the benefit of that would be except to pull moisture out of a perfectly good Butt. Why not get a rub recipe off this site and forgo the salt. I think you have it salty enough. Make sure you have your smoke generator totally dialed in. Your alarm won't tell you if it goes out and they occasionally do. I never go for more than a few hours without checking things.  Smoking for hours and hours things can go awry and will by murphy's law. There is nothing automatic in this world of smoke and flame. I wish you a good first butt smoke but take heed in my advice. Electric smokers can trip breakers, your maze can go out, your power could go out, you could sleep through the alarm, and many more things can happen while you are setting and forgetting your first Butt.

 

[timberjet]

ignition 2.jpg

• timberjet
• Jul 26, 2014

9 pounds, took 22 hours and then a 2 hour rest.

butt 1.jpg

• timberjet
• Jan 20, 2015

5 pounder, took 17 hours.

aprilbutt1.jpg

• timberjet
• Apr 13, 2015

another 5 pounder that took 7 hours.

so just goes to show you can't plan perfect timing in any Butt. You just never know.

 

[mummel]

Thanks Timber.  Wow those look fantastic. 

I read up on dry brining and this guy makes a compelling argument: http://www.genuineideas.com/ArticlesIndex/brine.html

I thought I would give it a shot.  It seems like dry brined meat retains the most moisture.  Hope my butt finishes in time!

Brine.png

• mummel
• Jun 12, 2015

 

[timberjet]

Well, I don't know about that but it seems like that is geared toward ham and not pulled pork. Butt's have plenty of moisture on their own and you do not need to try and create more with salt. All that connective tissue and fat in there melts down to make that moisture. That is why you want to save the drippings, defat them and add them back in at the end after you rest and pull the pork. Just trying to help you out so you don't end up with an inedible salt lick after all that time and work.

 

[mummel]

Thanks Timber.  I really appreciate it.  I did the same with the ribs and did not find them salty.  And I am salt adverse.  I dont like it on food.  My wife uses too much IMO and I can immediately notice it.  The PBBQ contains 12% salt so I think it will be ok. 

 

[capt-underpants]

Just did a Costco butt pair 2 days ago for my son's graduation party. About 7 to 8 pounds each.

I used "Bad Byron's Butt Rub generously and about 1/2 a cup of brown sugar as my rub per butt. Put them in a 2.5 Gallon zip lock and added 1 cup of yellow mustard well distributed and refrigerated for 8 hours. I started my MES at night at 225 and put the Butts in a 11:30 PM with about 8 hours worth of  smoke chips (Cherry and Pecan Mix). By 7:30 in the morning the Butts were at 165. Double wrapped them individually  in heavy duty aluminum foil adding 1/2 a cup of pineapple juice inside each wrap. By noon they  were at 205. Put them in the cooler for 2 hours before pulling. They were incredibly juicy and tender. I finished one of them with my favorite BBQ sauce and the other one just plain. Each butt will need about 1 pack 36 count Costco slider buns if you are planning for sliders.  The only problem was they only lasted for about 10 minutes on the table.

I Hope that helps.

 

[mummel]

Awesome.  Yeah I read Bad Byrons is loaded with salt.  I will contact them and inquire about the salt content.  The sugar helps to offset the taste.  Seems like most people take 8 hours to get to 165.  It looks like it took you another 6.5 hours until it was ready to be served by foiling.

I wonder how long the second part will be if you dont foil.  Anyone have any ideas.  10% longer. 50% longer?  I have zero calibration. 

 

[capt-underpants]

You are right. I was very concerned as you are. The rub is very salty to taste by itself but to my surprise the end result was not salty at all.I actually saw some people adding salt!! I've done it without wrapping and it takes another extra couple of hours but the wrapping made all the difference in my case as far as tenderness and taste. I guess a lot of the salt gets washed off by all the mustard during refrigeration.

 

[bmaddox]

 
Awesome.  Yeah I read Bad Byrons is loaded with salt.  I will contact them and inquire about the salt content.  The sugar helps to offset the taste.  Seems like most people take 8 hours to get to 165.  It looks like it took you another 6.5 hours until it was ready to be served by foiling.

I wonder how long the second part will be if you dont foil.  Anyone have any ideas.  10% longer. 50% longer?  I have zero calibration. 

If you are looking for low salt rubs then you should start making your own. Get a couple of smoking books, read the rub recipes, then adjust the salt level down until it tastes the way you want it.

There is no rule of thumb for how much longer it will take not foiled. Every piece is different. If you figure 2 hours per pound plus 2 hours to rest it will work in the vast majority of cases. 

If you are worried about time then you can always increase the temp to speed it along. A MES will go to 275 which is perfectly fine for a butt.

Butts are hard to mess up. Just go for it and see how it goes. There is always the fail safe of ordering pizza. 

 

[bmaddox]

 
I actually saw some people adding salt!!

You will always get that. I know people that eat so much salt it makes me cringe just thinking about it. You are better off keeping the salt low and letting people add as needed because once it is in the meat you can't take it away. 

 

[mummel]

Does foiling genuinely make the meat moister?  One of the rib racks I did the other day was foiled.  One of the racks was clearly juicier than the other.  But I dont know which one I foiled (fail, I know).  Was it the foil?

 

[timberjet]

 
Does foiling genuinely make the meat moister?  One of the rib racks I did the other day was foiled.  One of the racks was clearly juicier than the other.  But I dont know which one I foiled (fail, I know).  Was it the foil?

I have had naked butts just as moist as foiled butts. I don't think there is much difference as long as you use the drippings. I have done extensive testing. lol

 

[drewed]

Load up the AMNPS fully.  I like my butt with a lot of smoke.  I would use cherry and hickory mix.  I don't know what   Pittmaster's choice is, but I think maple makes everything taste like bacon.  Not that that's bad, but pulled pork is not bacon.  I also am a charcoal / wood chunk smoker, so I keep the smoke going until I foil it - if I foil it.  If I don't foil, I keep the smoke rolling.  Sometimes I will foil @ ~165 and pull the foil @ ~185-190.  This powers through the stall, yet allows the bark to re-crust to crunchy.  I usually only do this if I'm going to the re-wrap in foil to hold for serving.  Otherwise I just let it cool until I can pull it without burning through the pulling gloves - I like a slightly chewy / softer bark.

 

[drewed]

Annnddd about the brown sugar.  Most "butt rubs" include it.  Don't use BS only, it will be way to sweet.  Google up BBQ rubs.  

And just because I'm feeling evil, google "finishing sauces" as well!

 

[drlchi]

Best rubs are made at home! I've never once used a measuring cup either...here's mine:

-paprika
-cayenne pepper
-brown sugar
-white sugar
-cumin
-pepper
-salt (to taste)
-mustard powder
-herb mix
-garlic powder

Brown sugar is the majority of that rub, paprika is for the beautiful color after smoking and I use pinches of the other ingredients until it tastes good (obviously mix and match until it tastes good, then rub away)...

-D

 

[mummel]

Guys I need urgent help!  There isnt enough smoke being generated by my AMPS.  I will post pics shortly, but the AMPS continues to burn and not go out, but the smoke trail is so little, it barely shows up in the vent.  When I open the door, there is hardly any smoke in the chamber.  The thin trail seems to just go straight up and out the vent?????

What the heck do I do?  This is what happened with the ribs.  It wasnt enough smoke.  I'm 1h in and worried my butt aint taking on enough smoke!

 

[capt-underpants]

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