Pulled pork for 16-ish

I would double your raw amount. You will have a little extra, but 1 butt is probably not enough for 16 people. Definitely cook 2.

An 8lb butt will yield about 4lbs cooked product, so enough enough for 8 people at 1/2lb a piece..


Edit - Sorry, didn't answer your other questions.. Your time will depend on how hot you like to cook. Butts are super forgiving (I've cooked them at over 400 without any problems) I would recommend cooking around 300, which will will get you hot pulled pork in about 6-7 hours, a little less if you wrap.

You can totally do 2 butts in a kettle, but if its an 18" it may be tight. I've done 2 10# ers on a 22, with the snake method. I did have to move/rotate the meat periodically to keep one side from getting burnt, and I added a little foil heat shield to the part nearest the coals.

Depending on when you are going over, if you have a better cooker at home, butts can be cooked ahead of time and kept hot in a cooler for 10 hours or more.

Here's 2 butts hot and fast in a 22"

http://www.bbq-brethren.com/forum/showpost.php?p=3126316&postcount=2

If you were doing 1/4 per person your amount would work. Do to shrinkage while cooking.I would do 1 lb raw meat per person. 275-325 Gitter done

2 butts in the 8-10lb range is plenty to feed 16. Depending on who the crowd is, there may or may not be leftovers but that's enough for everyone to have a couple sandwiches...I really hope it's a 22" kettle because 2 won't work on an 18. What do you mean by "add a second grate?" I've done 2 butts on a 22" kettle at the same time many times, just make sure you bring some firebrick or some other good material to bank your coals off, with 2 butts room is tight and you'll want a good barrier that extends almost up to the cooking grate.

Imp81318 said:

I plan on doing the snake method rather than minion since I haven't had any luck keeping temperatures down with the minion method.

By adding a 2nd grate, I mean something like this:
http://www.bbq-brethren.com/forum/showpost.php?p=2361884&postcount=4

Click to expand...

Lots of folks like the snake, I haven't used it, always did the minion thing, having a solid barrier and only using about 10 lit briquettes always worked for m, what temps are you hoping to run at?...as for the second grate, I'm not sure that will work on a kettle with whole butts, I'd check to make sure you can stack butts like that and not have the lid resting on the butt on top, 2 butts on the regular grate is doable, I just rotate mid cook.

Cook the butts at home ahead of time...Vacuum pack portions that you can manage and reheat as needed...Use the grill to cook appetizers and other sides to add to your meal as needed...

If you don't tell anyone they won't know or care that it's reheated...My .02

I always figure one regular sized butt will feed about 10 people with sides.

General rule of thumb for pulled pork are the following

Yield - Pork butts/shoulders yield between 50-60% of their raw weight. I always figure on the lower side of 50% to ensure I have enough food for people.

Serving size - If you are serving a full meal you will typically average about 1/4lb per person. If they are all teenage boys eating I would figure about 1/3 lb per person. If it is a mix crowd I definitely go on the 1/4lb.

So for 16 people you will need 4lbs of cooked pork, which is an 8lb butt. That is the bare minimum I would cook. If I could find a 9-12lb butt I would cook that instead of an 8lber.

2nd if you are cooking on a Weber Kettle, you can cook pork butts in 6-8 hours. Use the ring of fire technique so temperatures stay stable. If you keep the top and bottom vents wide open, and do a 2x2x1 snake and start with 8-10lit coals, you will be cruising somewhere between 300-325 at the grate. At about the 4-4.5hr mark, the bark will be set and a pretty color. This is about the time frame of when I will wrap. At about the 6-6.5hr mark, I do the bone wiggle test or probe test. If it doesn't pass, I keep cooking for 30mins and test again, repeat till butts are done. I have had butts finish as early as 6 hours and as late as 8 hours. None have went over 8 hours ever.


here is a hot and fast brisket cook on my kettle.
http://www.bbq-brethren.com/forum/showthread.php?t=167397

hot and fast butt on the kettle
http://www.bbq-brethren.com/forum/showthread.php?t=175327

I agree with everything that has been said in greater detail. I would cook two butts. Everyone can get a good serving and you can have left overs.

blazinfire said:

I agree with everything that has been said in greater detail. I would cook two butts. Everyone can get a good serving and you can have left overs.

Click to expand...

^^^^This^^^^

I would cook two 9-10 pound butts. They are cheap and leftover PP is great. If you have any left.

Imp81318 said:

I plan on doing the snake method rather than minion since I haven't had any luck keeping temperatures down with the minion

Click to expand...

Smoked on a kettle for years before breaking down and getting a WSM, started with using firebricks and the minion method. Started using the snake/fuse method and found it easier to control temps, especially after lifting the lid.

Keep in mind that if you wrap in towels and hold in a cooler....you can hold for lots of hours. Get it done as early as possible.

This is a 7 & a 9# on a 22"...............



Some rotation like Shagdog says

an 8# on an 18"............



Doing more can be a good thing....what are you doing for breakfast the
next day?

(i.e.: pulled pork & eggs)

I did just under 9 for 15 people a few weeks ago and it was more than enough. Had plenty of leftovers. That included 4 children under the age of 7 though...

All depends on how big eaters they are too. If I'm cooking for friends I do 1/2 pound cooked meat per person. Family I do closer to 1/4 pound since there are kids and light eaters.