My dad and a couple of his brothers started this in 1992 and I have helped each year but now have taken dad's place as a full time partner. One of my cousins joins us as well. Always held at my uncle's mountain home in a pavilion we built just for such gatherings.
We started this year just after midnight on the last Saturday of September preparing the meat.
A local butcher gets our pork shoulders for us each year. He has recommended the Landrace breed for our shoulders and we have been very pleased with how they turn out. These shoulders are a little leaner than most pork shoulders. I believe we cooked 7 this year.
Instead of apple juice, this year we injected pineapple juice into the shoulders and it was better in our opinion. We used an off the shelf Butt Rub on the meat but have made our on before. I couldn't tell much difference at all.
We try to keep the temperature on our gauge around 180 degrees F and no higher than 200 degrees. We build a fire inside our pit to warm the rocks and add coals as needed thru out the cooking time, usually 4 to 5 hours.
During that 4 or 5 hours the meat is cooking, we cook breakfast, eat and talk. I never get tired of hearing the stories my uncles and my dad, when he was still with us, tell while we waited. Precious memories indeed.
The meat was finished about 7 a.m. and we let the heat just gradually die down. About 10:30 a.m. we pulled the meat off and chopped it up. We've done it both ways, pulled and chopped, but it goes a little further chopped so that's what we do now.
The crowd starts to gather around 10. We usually have one gentleman who brings his horses and wagon and gives wagon rides during the day. The ladies bring a covered dish or two and with the meat we have a feast. This year we fed over 80 people and had BBQ left over.
I hope you enjoy the pictures and I'll try to answer any questions. You won't offend me by offering suggestions or giving me advice either. If you're ever in North Alabama the last Saturday in September, you're welcome to join us, eating around noon. But the best time is during the cooking so plan on arriving about midnight for the best sausage, tenderloin, scrambled eggs, biscuits and gravy you've ever ate. The conversation is not bad either.
Note: I couldn't get the pictures to load so I'll have to work on that. And yes, I know this thread ain't no good without pictures! Bear with me please. I'll try to upload them to the Media section and then embed them in this thread.
We started this year just after midnight on the last Saturday of September preparing the meat.
A local butcher gets our pork shoulders for us each year. He has recommended the Landrace breed for our shoulders and we have been very pleased with how they turn out. These shoulders are a little leaner than most pork shoulders. I believe we cooked 7 this year.
Instead of apple juice, this year we injected pineapple juice into the shoulders and it was better in our opinion. We used an off the shelf Butt Rub on the meat but have made our on before. I couldn't tell much difference at all.
We try to keep the temperature on our gauge around 180 degrees F and no higher than 200 degrees. We build a fire inside our pit to warm the rocks and add coals as needed thru out the cooking time, usually 4 to 5 hours.
During that 4 or 5 hours the meat is cooking, we cook breakfast, eat and talk. I never get tired of hearing the stories my uncles and my dad, when he was still with us, tell while we waited. Precious memories indeed.
The meat was finished about 7 a.m. and we let the heat just gradually die down. About 10:30 a.m. we pulled the meat off and chopped it up. We've done it both ways, pulled and chopped, but it goes a little further chopped so that's what we do now.
The crowd starts to gather around 10. We usually have one gentleman who brings his horses and wagon and gives wagon rides during the day. The ladies bring a covered dish or two and with the meat we have a feast. This year we fed over 80 people and had BBQ left over.
I hope you enjoy the pictures and I'll try to answer any questions. You won't offend me by offering suggestions or giving me advice either. If you're ever in North Alabama the last Saturday in September, you're welcome to join us, eating around noon. But the best time is during the cooking so plan on arriving about midnight for the best sausage, tenderloin, scrambled eggs, biscuits and gravy you've ever ate. The conversation is not bad either.
Note: I couldn't get the pictures to load so I'll have to work on that. And yes, I know this thread ain't no good without pictures! Bear with me please. I'll try to upload them to the Media section and then embed them in this thread.
