New member, Pulled Pork smoking question

[lemans]

Half vinegar half apple juice.. Are you injecting

 

[smokesontuesday]

Half vinegar half apple juice.. Are you injecting

Nope. Rub it up and let it go. There's more than enough fat in an untrimmed butt to keep it moist even for 15 or 16 hours.

 

[lemans]

Go for it...

 

[wklkjn]

Here we go!

Rubbed the pork butt with McCormick and wrapped in fridge overnight.

Pecan wood.

Water pan full.

Pork Butt in the smoker at 7:30am.

Smoker temp is 240, I'm monitoring it with the 'I Grill' bluetooth probe.

I'll check the IT with my instant temp thermometer.

Ok, I showed my wife a post from someone else where they put pulled pork on top of crispy tate tots, then shredded cheese on that.

We're already looking forward to the leftovers which brings up a question....

After I shred the pork later today, I'll have a bowl of shredded pulled pork.

When I've done pulled pork in the kitchen oven in the past, I just mixed the shredded pork with bottled BBQ sauce.

I'm not a big fan of using pan drippings/fat to make a sauce (no offense).  :)

I suppose anything goes at this point of preparation, I'm curious to see if the pork out of the smoker is juicy enough to stand on it's own, without mixing it with anything.  But, if you have suggestions, feel free.

As for saving the leftovers, I'm going to put portions into ziplock bags squeeze the air out, and freeze them.  We don't have a vacuum setup yet, but I understand that would be best.  In any event, I'm sure the leftovers will dissappear the first time our son comes over in a week or two so we're not looking at long term freezing right now.

Here's the first pic.  For no particular reason, I decided to put the pork butt on the open rack, fat side up, and placed a drip pan under it.  I did not put any water in the drip pan, hope that's correct.

You know, I could have figured out all the tricks, tips, and instructions eventually (after a few years) but if I added up all the tips you guys have given me, I can't thank you enough.  One of the things I'd love to do is attend a Smoking Competition just to see what goes on.  I'm in between Cleveland and Akron Ohio - I don't mind driving, is anything coming up in the Ohio area?

Thanks again.  More pics to follow.

IMG_1602.JPG

• wklkjn
• Aug 6, 2016

 

[smokesontuesday]

 
Here we go!

Rubbed the pork butt with McCormick and wrapped in fridge overnight.

Pecan wood.

Water pan full.

Pork Butt in the smoker at 7:30am.

Smoker temp is 240, I'm monitoring it with the 'I Grill' bluetooth probe.

I'll check the IT with my instant temp thermometer.

Ok, I showed my wife a post from someone else where they put pulled pork on top of crispy tate tots, then shredded cheese on that.

We're already looking forward to the leftovers which brings up a question....

After I shred the pork later today, I'll have a bowl of shredded pulled pork.

When I've done pulled pork in the kitchen oven in the past, I just mixed the shredded pork with bottled BBQ sauce.

I'm not a big fan of using pan drippings/fat to make a sauce (no offense).  :)

I suppose anything goes at this point of preparation, I'm curious to see if the pork out of the smoker is juicy enough to stand on it's own, without mixing it with anything.  But, if you have suggestions, feel free.

As for saving the leftovers, I'm going to put portions into ziplock bags squeeze the air out, and freeze them.  We don't have a vacuum setup yet, but I understand that would be best.  In any event, I'm sure the leftovers will dissappear the first time our son comes over in a week or two so we're not looking at long term freezing right now.

Here's the first pic.  For no particular reason, I decided to put the pork butt on the open rack, fat side up, and placed a drip pan under it.  I did not put any water in the drip pan, hope that's correct.

You know, I could have figured out all the tricks, tips, and instructions eventually (after a few years) but if I added up all the tips you guys have given me, I can't thank you enough.  One of the things I'd love to do is attend a Smoking Competition just to see what goes on.  I'm in between Cleveland and Akron Ohio - I don't mind driving, is anything coming up in the Ohio area?

Thanks again.  More pics to follow.

IMG_1602.JPG

• wklkjn
• Aug 6, 2016

Looks like you're on the right track. That's pretty much what a pork butt looks like in my MES at the start.

As long as you let it rest for an hour or so before pulling it should be more than juicy enough to stand on it's own. Wrap it in a towel or two and put it in a cooler to keep it hot for hours.

Finishing sauces are intended to add another layer of flavor to the finished product, not necessarily moisture. I only add in the strained, i.e. fat cooled and removed, pan drippings because it's the juice that's already in the meat anyway. It doesn't change the flavor any. If I'm making Philly Smoked (Roast) Pork Sandwiches then I keep the drippings to make Au Jus instead of adding it back.

Your freezing method will work just fine, especially for short term freezing. If you want to freeze longer than a couple weeks I'd definitely be looking at a vacuum sealer. I freeze most of a butt pulled without finishing sauce in 1 pound packages. That way I can add a sauce during reheating that melds with whatever dish the pork is in (Mexican leaning for carnitas, vinegar based for pulled pork sammies, etc.).

I'm stuck in front of a computer at work today so if you have any questions or if something comes up just post and I'll try to get back with you pretty quick.

 

[wklkjn]

Well, as long as you don't mind reading, I don't mind posting!

We are now 3 1/2 hours into the smoke.

My temperature has been unbelievaly steady, between 250 and 260 for almost the whole smoke so far.

I have never been able to keep the temperature stable like this but this is the first time I'm smoking since people on the forum  recommended that i open the bottom air vents and the top smoke vent all the way.  (More great advice)

So, at 3 1/2 hours in, the internal temp is at 145 making sure that I don't touch the bone.

Ahhhh, as I put the probe into the meat, juices flowed out.  :)

Here's the latest pic.

I've got high hopes for good success today.

I'll post all the photos start to finish when I'm done.

Quick comment - I have the fat slab side facing up.

I did kind of expect it would melt off the meat.  It looks like it's just blackening up.

Will this peel off once I'm done, or am I getting ahead of myself?

Thanks!

That's my cheap-o $12 knock-off temp probe.  :)

IMG_1603.JPG

• wklkjn
• Aug 6, 2016

 

[lemans]

Looks great. Yea just peel that fat off and you r in business. Ps I have the same therm. Mine is blue
Bought it from Amazon $8.95. I can buy a lot of them for the price of a therapen

 

[smokesontuesday]

Looking good so far. It will blacken just like the rest of the butt as you build crust but when it's done you'll realize that most of it is gone. Peel the leftover and keep it if you want (I do) for beans or flavoring other things.

One thing you might do on the next one is score the fat cap. Sometimes I do, sometimes I don't. I can't tell much difference in the end product but it will allow you to see that fat really breaking down as you cook it.

 

[wklkjn]

Update:

at just about 6 1/2 hours, I hit 170.

Funny thing, the smoker's been running between 260 and 270 and I didn't see what people call the lag time where the meat sits at 160 for several hours.  Mine just went from 155 (when I first put the meat probe in, to 170, in about an hour and a half.  

So, about 20 minutes ago I wrapped it in aluminum foil.

I'll stop putting wood in the smoker now.

I have to say, first time with Pecan wood - it smells awesome.

I've got the probe in the meat, punched through the aluminum foil, and I'm on my way to 205.

I'm keeping the smoker temp at 260 to 270 until the meat is done.

It sounds stupid to say it, but this is very exciting.

I'm guessing I've got probly 3 more hours?

It's at 175 right now.

In my ineducated days, I was pulling it off already and wondering why it wasn't falling apart.  :)

 

[smokesontuesday]

Three more hours sounds about right if it doesn't stall. I've had butts sit at 170-175 for 2-3 hours in a stall before. Pork butt is done when it's done lol.

Pecan is a great smoking wood. 

 

[GaryHibbert]

Looks great. Yea just peel that fat off and you r in business. Ps I have the same therm. Mine is blue
Bought it from Amazon $8.95. I can buy a lot of them for the price of a therapen

Jeep. Now I'm feeling like I spent too much. $12 for a Webber instant read (takes about 8 secs). LOL

Gary

 

[GaryHibbert]

Update:
at just about 6 1/2 hours, I hit 170.
Funny thing, the smoker's been running between 260 and 270 and I didn't see what people call the lag time where the meat sits at 160 for several hours.  Mine just went from 155 (when I first put the meat probe in, to 170, in about an hour and a half.  
So, about 20 minutes ago I wrapped it in aluminum foil.
I'll stop putting wood in the smoker now.
I have to say, first time with Pecan wood - it smells awesome.
I've got the probe in the meat, punched through the aluminum foil, and I'm on my way to 205.
I'm keeping the smoker temp at 260 to 270 until the meat is done.
It sounds stupid to say it, but this is very exciting.
I'm guessing I've got probly 3 more hours?
It's at 175 right now.

In my ineducated days, I was pulling it off already and wondering why it wasn't falling apart.  :)

Yeah pecan is great smoking wood. It's Miss Linda's favorite. Personally, I like hickory for PP, but...... So I generally use a 50/50 mix.

Gary

 

[westby]

Another opinion on fatcap - I trim as much off as I can.  I like the bark and if you end up peeling off the fatcap at the end, you effectively lost a good percentage of your potential bark.  It will not dry out as there is plenty of intramuscular fat in the meat.

 

[burgerbob]

Looked like a good smoke and sounds like you're getting a lot of good advice.  Pork butts are one of my favorite things to smoke because of all the options for the leftovers.  I do a 12-hour brine on my pork butts which seems to really help with the moistness of the meat.  

Also I like to leave about a quarter-inch of the fat cap on top of the pork butt then mix it in with the meat when I go to pull it.  There is going to be a lot of flavor in the fat and it will help a little more with keeping the meat from drying out as I have friends that remove the fat cap and theirs come out dryer than what mine does but that also could be the brine that I do.  Anyways, congrats on the smoke and keep on experimenting, that's the fun stuff!