Well it's been 22 hours without another response, so this will be the cut-off point for my purposes....
I want to thank all of those who took the time to reply to the original post. The replies are basically what I had anticipated to receive.
Before getting to the reason behind the thread, I'll give my two cents on injecting pork butts first.
There has always been a discussion about whether or not to inject pork butts or shoulders. Certainly there is no right way or wrong way, as long as you enjoy the final product, it all good.
The pork butt or shoulder is a large piece of meat, the most flavorful part of it is the bark, because that's where the bulk of the seasoning is. But flavors change during cooking as the aromatics meld together in the heat, they form concentrated flavors on the outer bark. Meanwhile in deep inner parts can remain somewhat bland. To combat this some will sprinkle rub into the pan of pulled pork and mix before serving. Injecting can improve the flavors deep inside the meat.
Many will tell you that pork has enough internal fat to keep the meat plenty moist when cooked. I do not disagree with this, but sometimes we inject for flavors, and not just for the purpose of adding moisture or tenderness.
So my discussion today isn't about injecting for tenderness or moisture, but moreso about adding flavor into the meat. However none of us will complain about the added moisture and tenderness as a secondary result of the injection process.
I also feel that injecting the meat also helps to improve texture, allowing it to pull in very long strands. In my experience, the long strands are more pleasing to the eye of the patron/guest as the meat looks more substantial. Lastly, yes added tenderness and moisture will be present, that is not why I inject my pork, but it is an added benefit.
Brining pork can be a long task and can take up a lot of space in the refrigerators. With large amounts of pork to brine, it could soon become a large cumbersome task. I used to brine pork and had really good results. Then I started injecting which made the task easier and less of a task for clean up. Injecting also uses much less product and takes much less time. For me, when injecting, there is no need to let the large cuts of pork sit for long periods of time. I find from experience that just letting them sit for about three or four hours while you ready your smoker is often ample time. Then I apply the rub about 30 - 60 minutes before putting the pork into the smoker.
I have used Chris Lilly's Injection but found it to be a little salty to my personal tastes, so I cut back to almost half the amount of salt and it was much better. But there are many different versions of Chris Lilly's injection around, so people have changed the original recipe and re-posted them everywhere.
Several years ago I switched to Oakridge Game Changer Brine as my Injection and I have had nothing less than great results and flavor with it. I also sometimes add a little rub with this injection for more added flavors. A word of caution when adding some rub; if you don't have the injection solution completely dissolved, you can end up with pockets or streaks of coloration from the additional rub.
Oakridge Game Changer Brine is now my only injection, I mix it with fruit juice/nectar (Peach, Pear, Apple, or White Grape) for added flavor. For every 8 ounces of juice add 1 Tablespoon of OakRidge Game Changer Brine and then inject into the pork. Add 1 Tablespoon of Game Changer Brine per cup of fruit juice and inject roughly 1 ounce of mixture per pound of meat. So roughly one cup of injection per eight pound pork butt. I usually put the cyro sealed butts in a bus pan and inject right through the cyro-packaging to save with cleanup. I use different angles through the same hole to minimize leaking.
I used to rub and let the pork sit overnight, but now with injecting, I'll rub an hour or so before smoking, depending upon my time constraints.
When cooking injected pork butts the stall seems to last slightly longer, and I find the bone begins to wiggle sometimes as low as 187° (internal temperature has no bearing on being done). Once the bone wiggles, it's done.
I always calculate a 3 to 4 hour hold time in an insulated cooler after the cook. This gives me a cooking buffer if the meat takes longer. Pork butt/pork shoulder is one of the meats that benefit from holding in a cooler because as it stays at temperature around 180°, the connective tissues continue to breakdown into collagen making the meat very moist and very tender. The rest period also allows you to get other things ready, or even a rest before your guests arrive.
I find the OakRidge Game Changer Brine keeps the pork exceptionally tender, moist, flavorful, and it pulls in very long strands which is great for sandwiches. You'll notice that not only does the pork pull in long strands, but it also keeps it's warm color with plenty of pink from the smoke ring, and it never turns dull gray in color.
In the end you should choose the method that works best for you, not what works for someone else. After all, you are cooking it, and only you, your family, and your friends will enjoy the results of the cook.
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Now for the real reason for asking these questions, this might be the difficult part to choose, so random generator will do the work.......
Several years ago when I was doing vending and having large cooks, I purchased a "No-Cents" Injector. Before I could use it, I experienced some changes in my health and the large scale cooking came to a stop. Sadly, I never got to use the injector and it has sat in the box for several years. Again, this is new, never tested, and never used. I am not the manufacturer, so I make no warranty or claim to the product.
Of those who previously responded that do larger cooks, I'll select an individual to receive the injector if they want it. My only concern is that I don't want to send it to someone who may not use it, letting it sit collecting dust; Thus the real reason for this post, finding someone who does larger cooks with a small injector.
The injector has a large needle and therefore isn't suited for chicken. It also has a trigger valve, which means that the injection has to be passed through a coffee filter before going into the injector reservoir. For those who do smaller cooks, the injector would become a cumbersome task to set-up, use, and then clean it afterwards. It's just not worth the effort to use it for less than 6 or 8 pork butts.
To be fair to those who have listed smaller cooks; I will randomly select three BBQ-Brethren who have responded prior to my post here, sending them a package of Game Changer Brine if they wish. Thus, nobody is excluded because they do not have large cooks. For those who do small cooks but thought they might like the idea of this injector, a Google search can lead you to the instructions on how to make a similar product to that listed above.
Good luck to all; I have some time planned to spend with my Grand Daughter who just came to visit, so it might be a few days before I post those that were randomly selected for me.
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