Pork butt

[dominicansmoker]

got a nice little boston butt ready for tomorrows games it weights 3.50 pounds planning on smoking at 225 planning to foil at 165-170 then back on the smoker till it hits 200... am i missing anything else? lol (noob here)

20131102_110700.jpg

• dominicansmoker
• Nov 2, 2013

 

[cliffcarter]

IMHO you should not be jumping through hoops on your first butt cook, instead just apply your rub, cook it between 275°-285° until done. That little 3.5 pounder will take between 3 and 3.5 hours to cook(maybe less) at that temp. No muss, no fuss and some good eating.

Good Luck

 

[floyd]

Thanks Cliff. I have only smoked 9 to 10# butts and I found a 3.5# at the grocery store yesterday. I was wondering if I could get cooked a lot quicker that the big ones. I also have always cooked at 220 to 240 for my butts. Will it be as tender with the higher temp of 275-285. I plan to pull it at 195 to 200 degrees. I am also cooking two spatched chickens during the same session and the higher temp works for them. Anyone got any hints for success?. 

 

[pgsmoker64]

 
Thanks Cliff. I have only smoked 9 to 10# butts and I found a 3.5# at the grocery store yesterday. I was wondering if I could get cooked a lot quicker that the big ones. I also have always cooked at 220 to 240 for my butts. Will it be as tender with the higher temp of 275-285. I plan to pull it at 195 to 200 degrees. I am also cooking two spatched chickens during the same session and the higher temp works for them. Anyone got any hints for success?. 

I'm not cliff but I have done my last few butts at 275 - they cook quicker and are just as tender and juicy!  My only complaint is that they do not have as much of a smokey flavor, even when I add more wood for smoke.

Going by internal temperature is the best way to judge the doneness...

Good luck,

Bill

 

[floyd]

Thankjs Bill AND Dic k,

I am going to try the higher temp since IU am doing two chiskens too. I'll send pix.

 

[cliffcarter]

As PGSmoker64 said no loss of juiciness or tenderness(or bark). As for smoky flavor, that tends to be personal preference and is also dependent on the wood used. I use 6-8 pieces of seasoned apple or black cherry(3" long by 1" thick) buried in my charcoal ring when I cook butts, this gives us enough smoke flavor for our tastes. YMMV.