knifebld
Smoking Fanatic
Nooooooo! Don't give in to the dark side of the force Luke...you might fight...and come back to foil and juiciness!! LMAO
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The "Cult of the Bark"
- Thread starter grillmonkey
- Start date
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Fun thread. As a Star Wars fan it was fun playing with the phrases we all know.
This was a great experiment in adding another technique and more experience to my smoking efforts. I've pretty much got the wrapped meat technique nailed for a variety of meats and cooking temperatures. If time isn't a concern though, I'm now a believer that unwrapped is the way to go, at least for butts.
For this roast I dusted the butt heavily with my own rub, coated it with turbinado sugar, then back in the fridge for several hours, uncovered, while I waited for my start time that night. While in the fridge a lot of the sugar turned to liquid. I poured it back over the meat and added more rub and sugar just before I put it on the smoker. The sweet, spicy, crunchy bark was WAY different than how it tastes when wrapped.
Now that I have a baseline for an unwrapped, unbrined, uninjected 8lb butt at 225F, you know there's NO WAY I'm leaving that alone. I'll change one variable at a time and smoke it at 250F next time, same start time. Then 275F. Finally I'll inject/brine at the temp I like best.
This was a great experiment in adding another technique and more experience to my smoking efforts. I've pretty much got the wrapped meat technique nailed for a variety of meats and cooking temperatures. If time isn't a concern though, I'm now a believer that unwrapped is the way to go, at least for butts.
For this roast I dusted the butt heavily with my own rub, coated it with turbinado sugar, then back in the fridge for several hours, uncovered, while I waited for my start time that night. While in the fridge a lot of the sugar turned to liquid. I poured it back over the meat and added more rub and sugar just before I put it on the smoker. The sweet, spicy, crunchy bark was WAY different than how it tastes when wrapped.
Now that I have a baseline for an unwrapped, unbrined, uninjected 8lb butt at 225F, you know there's NO WAY I'm leaving that alone. I'll change one variable at a time and smoke it at 250F next time, same start time. Then 275F. Finally I'll inject/brine at the temp I like best.
heubrewer
Meat Mopper
Count me in. Isn't the bark why we smoke?
Last edited:
addertooth
Smoking Fanatic
Wow! that is as dark and crunchy as Darth Vader crawling out of the lava!
grillmonkey
Smoking Fanatic
Trying to bark a brisket today. Should butt and brisket bark be two different cults?
- Aug 27, 2008
- 5,170
- 410
I think it would be better to simplify: Cult of the Bark, with "sub-cultures" (LOL!!!) for pulled pork, pork ribs, brisket, chucky, beef ribs, poultry (yes, I've barked-up some skinless birds, too), etc.
Eric
seriousbbqs
Newbie
Good job, guys!
I usually cook butts unwrapped, but it can seem to take forever to reach 200 IT. And cooking a whole batch of butts all day unwrapped at 250-275 degrees really makes for a lot of crusty roadkill and grates.
Have you done any experiments with spraying/sugar rubs/etc to determine whether it makes a significant difference in bark?
I usually cook butts unwrapped, but it can seem to take forever to reach 200 IT. And cooking a whole batch of butts all day unwrapped at 250-275 degrees really makes for a lot of crusty roadkill and grates.
Have you done any experiments with spraying/sugar rubs/etc to determine whether it makes a significant difference in bark?
I've explained before than I am always experimenting with my techniques. Experimented again yesterday. I just did 17 lbs of boneless pork shoulder/butt. No mustard or EVOO, just put the rub right on the meat just before going on the smoker. The rub had very little brown sugar in it and stuck to the meat just fine for the entire smoke.
I cranked the temp up on the smoker to 285F, no water in the water pan, smoked them for 7 hours, then put them each in an aluminum roaster (fat side down) with 1 cup of fresh pressed apple cider and covered tightly with HD aluminum foil. Took 3 more hours for them to get to 203F IT then rested for two hours before pulled. I poured the drippings off into Tupperware container and put them in the fridge.
The butts actually had a nice, crispy bark on them, which was surprising. It wasn't very deep but it was crispy.
It is all reheating on the stove right now for a party tonight. I scrapped the fat off and put the gelatin in a Dutch Oven, turned on the heat to let it melt, then added a little sauce, some rub, and some raw sugar. Then put the pulled meat in and stirred it all together. Great smoke flavor and nice rub/sauce/slightly sweet flavor. Taking a Chef JJ's finishing sauce to the party too.
Update: came home with an empty roasting pan. People were unaware I was bringing pulled pork and were chowing down on burgers and hotdogs. As soon as I unwrapped the steaming hot pork folks went nuts. A sweet little old lady shyly told me later she was on her third helping, eating nothing but pulled pork. Since it was a block party folks had easy access to containers in their homes. As the evening ended I encouraged them to take all they wanted. They did.
I cranked the temp up on the smoker to 285F, no water in the water pan, smoked them for 7 hours, then put them each in an aluminum roaster (fat side down) with 1 cup of fresh pressed apple cider and covered tightly with HD aluminum foil. Took 3 more hours for them to get to 203F IT then rested for two hours before pulled. I poured the drippings off into Tupperware container and put them in the fridge.
The butts actually had a nice, crispy bark on them, which was surprising. It wasn't very deep but it was crispy.
It is all reheating on the stove right now for a party tonight. I scrapped the fat off and put the gelatin in a Dutch Oven, turned on the heat to let it melt, then added a little sauce, some rub, and some raw sugar. Then put the pulled meat in and stirred it all together. Great smoke flavor and nice rub/sauce/slightly sweet flavor. Taking a Chef JJ's finishing sauce to the party too.
Update: came home with an empty roasting pan. People were unaware I was bringing pulled pork and were chowing down on burgers and hotdogs. As soon as I unwrapped the steaming hot pork folks went nuts. A sweet little old lady shyly told me later she was on her third helping, eating nothing but pulled pork. Since it was a block party folks had easy access to containers in their homes. As the evening ended I encouraged them to take all they wanted. They did.
Last edited:
thesmokist
Smoking Fanatic
The old lady always stands by when I pull the meat off the racks so she can get the big chunks of tender meat and bark that sticks on the rack!
grillmonkey
Smoking Fanatic
I love that part too!
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