Starting on charcoal and moving...would this be possible?

[phlux]

Greetings, everyone.

I usually smoke at least one Boston Butt a week, but this past weekend, for whatever reason, I never got around to it.

This leaves me in a slight conundrum. I want some pulled pork, but I don't necessarily have the time to tend to the fire for 12+ hours. I could always bump the temperature on the charcoal smoker, but I fear that would lead to tough/dry meat.

I have a MES on the porch. Could I start the smoke on the charcoal smoker, smoke it for a few hours to get the smoke flavor I want, and then move it to electric, or would I be wasting my time smoking it on the charcoal smoker first?

I really prefer the smokiness that I get from the charcoal smoker vs what I get out of the MES...even with an A-MAZE-N pellet smoker on the bottom grate. In my opinion, it just doesn't compare.

So, what do you guys think? Can I have the best of both worlds? Smoke it for a few hours and then move to a "set it and forget it" setup? If so, how long should I do the charcoal smoke?

Thanks!

 

[kruizer]

Your butt roast will get all the smoke you need in 2-3 hrs. Then you could wrap and move to your mes or inside oven for the finish low and slow.

 

[chilerelleno]

Kruizer has the right answer for you.

You can also cook a Butt
Hot-n-Fast at 275°-300°
Or
Extreme Hot-n-Fast at 375°-400°
And it'll be just fine, Butts are very forgiving.

 

[radio]

I have started doing this with my pellet grill and it has worked well so far

 

[browneyesvictim]

Your apprehension about leaving your charcoal smoker unattended is commendable. And the solutions mentioned above are spot on. The dirty little secret is how to do overnight smokes...

 

[siege]

I do that with hams. I grew up down south, and hams were cured, smoked, and hung longer than what is commonly available at my local grocery. 2 hours under fairly heavy smoke , then 3 or four hours in the MES allows most of the "added solution ", water, and excess liquids to render out, and the ham to tighten up. It's still not an aged prime Smithfield, but it sure is better tha the wet mess it started out at.
Should work great on your pork shoulder.

 

[noboundaries]

The OP has a MAJOR flaw in his thinking. He's afraid of bumping up the temp and getting tough/dry meat. That WILL NOT happen with a butt...EVER!

Undercooked butts are tough and dry. Overcooked butts are moist and mushy.

This tough/dry misunderstanding is persistent and pervasive in the smoking community. It applies to other cuts of meat, but not butts. Want proof? It's right there in Chili's answer. I've smoked butts across the entire range of temps and always came out with juicy tender butts, especially once I learned to probe for tenderness instead of depending on a temp probe. The only thing that changes is the time on the clock for the butt to finish.