The best pork butt you've ever cranked out

[Frank Mahovlich]

I'm gonna be smoking a pork butt this weekend on my WSM for a very special event. Looking for your thoughts on the best methods. This special group places a premium on bark and juiciness, so that's what I'm striving for. Planning on using Plowboy's Yardbird. Beyond that, I really have no plan and am looking for some direction.


Do you wrap?

Do you inject?

Low & slow?

Hot & fast?

Plenty of right answers here. I am specifically interested in hearing some details of the cook of the best PB you've ever cranked out.

Thanks in advance,
FM

 

[ChrisBarb]

Just did an unwrapped butt on my WMS last weekend. The feedback I received was that it was too smokey. But that's a taste thing. Some like the smoke. Next time I plan on wrapping at about 160 and let it finish from there.

 

[stangman327]

I don't have a WSM but from my experience when I've wrapped at or around 160 and finished it off with aluminum foil the bark wasn't as crunchy/tasty but the internal meat was a bit more moist.

As far as injecting I do it about 75% of the time since I tend to like the enhanced flavor it provides.

I run between 250-275.

I let it rest at least an hour before I pull.

 

[Jrogers84]

Season after pull also, mix all together. Ive liked that style since brethren Diesel Dave showed me.

 

[KevinJ]

I like to aggressively trim the fat so when I pan it cuts down on the grease/fat collected, cook at 300 pan at 3.5 to 4hrs give or take, I pan and cover when I get the color I'm looking for. Cook covered until probe tender then pour the collected au jus into a cup and into the freezer to solidify the fat so it can be separated from the au jus.

Just before chopping the Butt after it's rested, reheat the au jus and mix in a little Swamp Boys Bootleg Red or Apple Cider Vinegar with the au jus. I like to chop the Butt after resting instead of pulling, gives it more texture and doesn't become mushy, pour the au jus back onto the chopped pork and season again with rub, been using BPS Happy Ending or Sweet Money but use whatcha got. Give it all a quick toss in the pan to mix everything up and ready to serve.

 

[akoda]

Make sure you run a clean fire, TBS

Inject with Apple Juice

I would smoke for 4 hours or so, wrap for a couple to get you ever the plateau, then you could unwrap and let the bark setup more

Add some of the juice from the foil to it when you pull and add a little more rub

 

[Kanco Connection]

No WSM but I run about 250ish on butt in my kettle.
I like to inject (Chris Lilly recipe of apple juice, W sauces, salt, water, sugar, a little cayenne)
Generally no wrap but wrap just to speed up the process sometimes
When I wrap, I redistribute some of the collected juices into the pulled pork, and add a little more rub
I think butt is the hardest thing to screw up as long as you get it well into the 190s, and even then a sliced butt in the 180s is good

 

[CeramicChef]

I never wrap. I use oak chunks in a 2Qt Dutch Oven smoke pot. I cook at 225° in a Komodo Kamado over FOGO lump charcoal. I heat soak my KK for about 3-4 hours before the butt ever hits the grill. I use olive oil as a binder and my rub is coarse sea salt, coarse ground black pepper, and that's it. I'll monitor my cook using a dual probe digital thermometer probing with bamboos skewers when the internal temp reaches 195-197°. I generally pull when the internal tep hits 203-205° and it probes like warm butter. When I pull the butt I wrap in double layers of aluminum foil and then I double wrap in beach towels and place in a cooler for 2-4 hours before serving.

The average butt weighs something like 8-9 pounds prior to cooking. I always buy bone-in butts. I don't trim much. My kamado setup is with heat deflectors in the lower position, a big drip pan resting on 1/2" copper plumbing tees which rest on the deflectors. This arrangement prevents the drippings from burning and possibly fouling the smoke.

I always rub 24 hours prior to the cook amd then again an hours or so before the butt goes on the cooking grate. After the second rub application, I place the butt in the freezer to insure that I get a good smoke condensation on the butt sooner during the cook.

That's basically it. I don't inject, don't spritz, etc. once the butt goes on the grate, I don't open the KKs lid until the IT reaches the ranges given above. I believe in keeping things simple. My guests love my butt and brisket cooks.

 

[PorkinButts82]

I like to aggressively trim the fat so when I pan it cuts down on the grease/fat collected, cook at 300 pan at 3.5 to 4hrs give or take, I pan and cover when I get the color I'm looking for. Cook covered until probe tender then pour the collected au jus into a cup and into the freezer to solidify the fat so it can be separated from the au jus.

Just before chopping the Butt after it's rested, reheat the au jus and mix in a little Swamp Boys Bootleg Red or Apple Cider Vinegar with the au jus. I like to chop the Butt after resting instead of pulling, gives it more texture and doesn't become mushy, pour the au jus back onto the chopped pork and season again with rub, been using BPS Happy Ending or Sweet Money but use whatcha got. Give it all a quick toss in the pan to mix everything up and ready to serve.

^^^ this right here is all you need to know! Hot n fast will get you excellent results in about 6 hrs depending on the size of pbutt you plan on using.



Sent from my SM-G920V using Tapatalk

 

[Texstan]

I usually get the Costco two-pack of boneless butts. I tie them up so they don't flop about, and I don't inject. I dry-brine with just Kosher salt overnight, and rub just a little while before putting them into the Traeger Texas at 225. Last few times I've used pecan pellets. I've also augmented with a smoke tube filled with apple or cherry pellets. I like the cherry for the deep reddish brown color it imparts to the bark. At about 160 I wrap tightly in foil. I understand wrapping is not necessary, but it speeds it through the stall. It's usually done when it hits 203 degrees. The biggest reason I wrap in foil, though, is so I can collect the drippings.

If I'm serving the pulled pork later (smoke on the weekend for a Tuesday event, for instance), I put the whole butt in a ziplock bag in the fridge. On event day, I heat it up in the oven to maybe 140, then pull. I have the option of using the defatted drippings to remoisten the pulled pork. Gives the illusion of being hot off the smoker, and it turns out great! Only raves. No rants.

 

[Yendor]

My last butts were my best.

I wrapped them at 167° (was cooking at around 250° on a Weber Kettle with Weber Charcoal and apple wood chunks), because that's where they seemed to stall for a bit. I let them ride in my kettle until it started raining.

I put them in the oven at 300° with the meat probe still in one of them. I started testing their tenderness at around 198° with a bamboo skewer. I don't know what the temp was when I decided that it was done, but it was based on how tender they were.

After they sat for a few minutes we placed in a pan, pulled and seasoned again with the rub we used (Fast Eddy BBQ rub) and reintroduced some of the juice (no fat seperated) back into the pan. The dog didn't leave the kitchen for about 5 hours afterwards. Delicious.

 

[g257945]

Did a bone-in butt a couple weekends ago on my 36 Lang over Cherry. Had the Butcher cut it into 4 equal steaks. Cooked for 6 hours at 275, spritzed every 40 minutes with apple cider vinegar. Pulled them off at 205 or so, cooled and pulled apart. Have to say it was much more flavorful because of the added surface area for the smoke to reach, really didn't need any sauce but was on the dryer side like bacon. Used my co-workers as guinea pigs, no leftovers. :thumb:

Scott

 

[yakdung]

My default go-to. Wizard on the WSM.

http://www.slapyodaddybbq.com/2012/04/slap-yo-daddy-bone-in-pork-butt-2/

 

[4ever3]

Get Waylon rolling at 300°.
Season the butt with adobo only.
Put it in a pan and put it in.
When it probes pull it out, take it out of the pan and into a cooler.
When it's time to eat, pull it and pour separated drippings on it.

EAT!

 

[jermoQ]

For my best I like to stick garlic on the inside by halving the cloves and taking a paring knofe to cut 2 inches down. Rub on an hour or four before. Cook 275-290 on my UDS until it is "brownie colored" then wrap until 205, pull out and cooler or towel wrap for an hoir ir two. Pull it, mix the juice back in that is in the foil. Eat with optional sauce.

 

[ColoradoSmoke]

I've been working on this for many many years Like others have said, hard to mess this up. Everyone I know does it differently, her's my way.

Inject with apple juice mixture (also similar to Chris Lilly's book). I then use a paper towel to pat it dry and generously coat w/ rub. In the fridge for 24 hrs.

Smoke @ 275 adding wood chunks every hour for first 3 hrs.

After 3 hrs, baste every 45 min w/ Meatheads Lexington Dip (with minor tweaks for taste preference).

No wrap. Off when it reaches 200F. I let it sit for 15 min and then pull apart. I then mix in a little of the Lexington dip and serve. Then I watch it disappear in 5 minutes!

 

[hurricanedavid]

My best results have been using Butt Rub, fat side down at 230F for around 10-12 hours, no wrap, RO lump with hickory chunks. Take off when bone wiggles. A very simple process and aways has nice bark.

 

[Frank Mahovlich]

Thanks for the input, much appreciated!

Thinking I may wrap but not inject.

Although Harry Soo's method looks interesting to try, and that calls for injecting. So I may go that route. Just seems that I haven't gotten a huge pickup in moisture when I've don that in the past...

 

[HumboldtSmokeBBQ]

I sprinkle mine with salt. UDS at ~250, RO Restaurant Grade, with some hickory chunks. 1.5 hours per pound. Fat side up, no trimming of fat. Spray with AJ during the cook.

 

[EricD]

My "Very best butt" was actually a mistake!
I had to bring pulled pork to our neighborhood block party. The party was Saturday at noonish. So I had to cook overnight. I had never done this before. Thursday night I prepped the pork with Kosher salt and basic pork rub. Friday night I got the WSM up to temp (250) and steady about 3AM. Throw the meat on and go back to bed with the Maverick temp gauge on the bedside table.
Something stirs me and I half open an eye and see the clock says 4:00...wait what CHIT!!! Thats says 400 degrees!!!! Fly outa bed out to the backyard (in my boxers only) and figure out I left a vent open. Still don't know why the Maverick alarm never went off.
Anyway, left the meat in there while I fought to get the temp back down. It finished a lot earlier than expected so I took it off to let it rest. Another first I've never done is wrap it from that point on and threw it in a cooler until ready to pull (about 4hrs)
When I opened it to pull there was a lot of juice in the foil, dumped it all on the pulled meat.
So now, I cook butts really hot for a few hrs, then let temp come down till IT 180ish. Wrap until IT 203ish. keep in foil and in cooler to rest for another couple hrs. Pull and dump juice in. Serve.