Overnight smoking?

[Average Human]

Hey all,

Does anyone have any advice for smoking overnight? I'm finding that 2 hours per pound at 225 to 250 F for pork butt is what I have to work with. Yet, no matter how early I wake up to start (3 or 4am) I am always in a panic to feed my hangry friends family before The sun goes down again. Not to mention that I am completely overwhelmed by sheer exhaustion by that point.

I want to try a different approach next time by starting the night before and letting it smoke overnight so I can serve much earlier in the following day. Any tips will be greatly appreciated! Thanks!

 

[Lonzinomaker]

I smoke butts overnight all the time, put them in (brined x24hr) at 0900 and pull when they reach 190 deg, usually about 11AM-1pm and let them rest for 2 hours.
My secret is to use a Smokin-It electric smoker. I put 4-6 oz of wood in, place the thermometer probes in meat and then close the door. The door stays closed until my thermometer tells me the 190 deg temp has been reached, which is when I check to make sure it is done. With the Smokin-It there is no need to add more wood or open door until temp has been reached.

 

[gmc2003]

Allot of it depends on what type of smoker your using. I don't do the overnight cooks. To many wild animals(including humans) around here. Add in the fact that I wouldn't get any sleep with the smoker running. If I'm smoking a butt for a party or for a family dinner then I would do it a day or two before, and reheat it the day of the party. You don't really lose any flavor and your sinuses are clear of smoke.

Chris

 

[Jonok]

I have a mod on my MES40, and do the same as Lonzino.
Usually don’t even look until 12-14 Hrs at which point the meat is essentially always nicely barked and done (with 7+ pound butts at 250, and a few chunks of wood)

 

[indaswamp]

I find that time of the cook is more dependant upon the thickness of the chunk of meat than the weight. If you want to speed up the cook, I suggest butterflying the butt into thinner chunks...It will be ready in a little over half the time.....

 

[drunkenmeatfist]

Can your smoker cook hotter? I run 275-300 on pork butts and even hotter if I am short on time. The meat doesn't taste any different.

 

[Average Human]

Thanks guys,

What I sort of had in mind was to start smoking in the late afternoon around 4pm and then move it to the oven (in aluminum foil) at around midnight and let it roast on low while I get some sleep. If all goes well, I should be able to pull by early afternoon.

I usually try not to smoke higher than 250 for a couple of reasons. Firstly because I don't want to risk having tough meat and secondly, because I could end up with lots of issues with my wood clumps catching fire. I use a Masterbuilt Pro dual fuel upright smoker.

 

[smokerjim]

Allot of it depends on what type of smoker your using. I don't do the overnight cooks. To many wild animals(including humans) around here. Add in the fact that I wouldn't get any sleep with the smoker running. If I'm smoking a butt for a party or for a family dinner then I would do it a day or two before, and reheat it the day of the party. You don't really lose any flavor and your sinuses are clear of smoke.

Chris

i'm with gmc2003, I smoke stuff days before, that way i'm not worried about being done on time, and if something goes wrong I have time to fix it.

 

[Murray]

I don’t smoke overnight, the potential for a fire should things go south.

 

[chef jimmyj]

I too, smoke ahead and reheat, as many Restaurants do, or cut an 8 pound Butt into 2 pound pieces and and I'm done in about 5 hours...JJ

 

[Nole4L]

I do brisket overnight. My wife relegates me to the inflatable mattress because she doesn't like waking up every hour as I'm checking the cooker.

 

[drunkenmeatfist]

I usually try not to smoke higher than 250 for a couple of reasons. Firstly because I don't want to risk having tough meat and secondly, because I could end up with lots of issues with my wood clumps catching fire. I use a Masterbuilt Pro dual fuel upright smoker.

The meat doesn't get tough smoking at higher temps, especially pork shoulder.

 

[indaswamp]

The meat doesn't get tough smoking at higher temps, especially pork shoulder.

Yep....once that collagen starts breaking down, it can hold 10X it's weight in water. And when the collagen turns to gelatin, it becomes ooey gooey GOOD!!!

 

[chopsaw]

No over night for me either . I have enough stuff going wrong during the day .

 

[JckDanls 07]

You say your gonna wrap around midnight and put in the oven until noonish or later the next day... Once you wrap it it will cook very fast.. Thinking it will be mush by the time you take it out of the oven ...

 

[hardcookin]

Most days I'm up at 5:30am so most of my longer smokes start at 4:30am,and I usually smoke @ 275 on my offset.
I have also smoked a larger quantities of pork butts a day or 2 before an event.
I really don't like doing overnight smokes. I have an offset so no set and forget.

 

[HowlingDog]

I have a WSM 18.5 and have done overnights several times. The WSM holds temp really well. I put a thermometer on the nightstand and since I rarely sleep through the night anyway, I just roll over and take a peek. So far, I have not had to make any fire adjustments. Usually I will put the pork on about 9pm and I am am shredding in time for lunch!

 

[jcam222]

I’ve done overnights in my charcoal vertical cabinet lately. That said I do most of my butts a day or two ahead. I use a water pan with broth which yields some liquid gold juices. I mix those back through the pulled pork in roaster pans. Have had many people tell me it’s the best they have had and friends who smoke have adopted this and won’t do it any other way.

 

[TomKnollRFV]

Gonna bring this up as well... I've had to stop a smoke early, and I use sous vide to finish it. It's not as crispy bark wise, but it most definitely will be tender after being in a sous vide for hours.

Honestly for my MES, I run the pork butts starting around 11 PM to midnight, at 225f, overnight. Around 10 AM to noon, I'll crank it to 250 to 275f and it normally finishes by 6 PM. Most of the pork butts I do average around 9 pounds. Boneless. It seems to work out every time.

I learned to stop worrying about the smoker etc. No point in me waking up every hour to check unless I suspect power issues. <At which point it still won't matter if the house has no power from a storm!>

 

[Average Human]

These are all good suggestions. Good to know that there are actually quite a few different options I can explore. Going to try some of them out over the next year and see what clicks. Thanks again!