what to smoke as a newbie

[killmeh]

I have only done ribs and some beer butt chicken...any ideas what to do this weekend? I want to attempt a pork butt and make pulled pork but im not sure if i am ready for a 12hr+ smoke...so any ideas?

 

[pineywoods]

A butt is a very forgiving smoke so go for it. Maybe do a fatty some ABT's and a butt the fatty and ABT's won't take that long and will make great snacks along the way

 

[redneck69]

hey killmeh...welcome to SMF!  1st off what type of smoker do you have?  that will help give us some clues on what to suggest.

 

[killmeh]

i have an 18.5 WSM

the thing about the butt, im not sure what quality of meat to look for (it is pork shoulder right?)

i might have to try that, and in the cheapo brinkmann i have do some ABTs

 

[les3176]

Try a meatloaf or a fatty they will not be the long smokes.Maybe some salmon just use jour imagination. if you don't feel your not up to the long smokes then don't there's nothing wrong with that.There's nothing wrong with getting short smokes under your belt to work up to the big ones.In no time you'll be ready to do your pork butt.Good luck!

 

[raptor700]

I like Pinney's idea with the ABT's, you gotta have a few appetizers along the way.

For the butt, I sometimes cut them into smaller sizes

An 8 or 9lb'er cut in half will cut your smoke time in ½.

 

[killmeh]

I think i am going to try the pork butt

will having 2 8 pound pork butts increase your cooking time as compared to only a single 8lb'er

also any general tips? as in at walmart (really only meat store here) are they marked as pork shoulder or boston butt or what?

 

[redneck69]

it will increase your cook time..the main thing with pork shoulders..you have to go by internal temp..never try and judge by time.  hopefully you have some thermometers handy to take readings while you smoke your food.

 

[redneck69]

like raptor said...if you cut them in half, it will decrease your smoke time

 

[killmeh]

Yes i have a wlamart digital probe and my Maverick et-732 just came in today so i will be using those

so about average how long will 2 8lbers take compared to one

 

[killmeh]

like raptor said...if you cut them in half, it will decrease your smoke time

 

[pineywoods]

Two 8 lb butts won't really take any longer than doing one. Just tell the meat guy you want a boston butt and he should show you exactly what you want. If the smoke seems too long or you have problems then smoke it to 165 internal foil it and put it into the oven at 225 to finish.

 

[redneck69]

possibly a few hours more..but one can stall temp wise while the other gets to temp real quick.  its really hard to tell

 

[pineywoods]

possibly a few hours more..but one can stall temp wise while the other gets to temp real quick.  its really hard to tell

Why would it take a few hours longer????

 

[killmeh]

i like this idea...i think i will do this and find a nice reciep to follow and try to smoke it, like he said if all else fails, foil and the oven will work lol

next newb question...both on top rack, or one on top and one on bottom?
 

Two 8 lb butts won't really take any longer than doing one. Just tell the meat guy you want a boston butt and he should show you exactly what you want. If the smoke seems too long or you have problems then smoke it to 165 internal foil it and put it into the oven at 225 to finish

 

[les3176]

Smoke by temp not by time... they are done when they are done. smoke to 165 then foil, take up to 200-205 for pulling.they say 1-1.5 hours per pound but this can vary greatly.

 

[raptor700]

Two 8 lb butts won't really take any longer than doing one. Just tell the meat guy you want a boston butt and he should show you exactly what you want. If the smoke seems too long or you have problems then smoke it to 165 internal foil it and put it into the oven at 225 to finish.

What he said,

The thing is, butts (average) cook time is 1½hrs per lb. So if you cut 8lbs into two 4lb'ers you go from a 12-14hr smoke to 6-8hr smoke.

The idea is to smoke the same amount of meat in ½ the time.

As for the butt or shoulder, at Wally World the Whole shoulder is almost half the price of the butt.

The shoulder has both bones in the center so you can't divide into 2 halves
 

 

[pineywoods]

Whatever way you prefer just remember that the heat may be different from one grate to the other and no matter what two pieces of meat the exact same weight will not finish at the same exact time. When the first one finishes if its foiled wrap in a towel and place in a warm dry cooler to start its rest then when the other one finishes do the same. You can pull one out of the cooler after about an hour rest and pull it or you can leave it in the cooler till they are both ready to pull.

 

[killmeh]

Would yall suggest cutting the 2 in half? or is it usual to leave them hole

 

[raptor700]

You would normaly leave them whole.

Just remember the (average) cook time @ 250º is 1½hrs per lb