DivotMaker
New member
How'd the story finish, Kelvin? Pics and review, please & thank you! 
First Pork Butt with #2
- Thread starter kelvinator
- Start date
kelvinator
New member
Haha sorry guys got really busy making everything and having everyone over.
It hit 195 at 5 and I turned it down to 140 and left it in there till ~7:15 and then pulled it. It was awesome! Taste was good, rub was good (I used the big bald BBQ rub from Jeff's book since I had made a bag I figured I would use it up). Everyone enjoyed it. Maybe was a tiny tiny bit dryer than I expected but that could be from leaving it in the smoker at 140 for 2 hours. The brine seemed to work great though. Flavor was excellent. I can't wait to see how the quality will be with quality meat instead of IBP from cash and carry haha. I got a pic after I started breaking it down that I will post soon
It hit 195 at 5 and I turned it down to 140 and left it in there till ~7:15 and then pulled it. It was awesome! Taste was good, rub was good (I used the big bald BBQ rub from Jeff's book since I had made a bag I figured I would use it up). Everyone enjoyed it. Maybe was a tiny tiny bit dryer than I expected but that could be from leaving it in the smoker at 140 for 2 hours. The brine seemed to work great though. Flavor was excellent. I can't wait to see how the quality will be with quality meat instead of IBP from cash and carry haha. I got a pic after I started breaking it down that I will post soon
NDKoze
Moderator
How long did you rest the meat after removing it from the smoker? You should rest it double-foil wrapped in a cooler with towels on top for a minimum of 30 minutes, but 1-2 hours is even better.
Not sure if you did this or not, but turning it down to 140 in the smoker is not really a good substitute for a rest double-foiled in a cooler with towels on top. It would be better than just taking it out at 195 and digging in as some of the moisture should start moving its way back into the inner parts of the roast, but I think the rest outside of the smoker is important.
Not sure if you did this or not, but turning it down to 140 in the smoker is not really a good substitute for a rest double-foiled in a cooler with towels on top. It would be better than just taking it out at 195 and digging in as some of the moisture should start moving its way back into the inner parts of the roast, but I think the rest outside of the smoker is important.
kelvinator
New member
I didn't really rest it outside the smoker to be honest. I figured leaving it in the smoker for 2 hours at 140 was good enough since I was under the impression the cooling down of the meat is what is important in terms of "resting meat" as the cooling stops the cooking process so the juices redistribute through the meat. I probably should have wrapped the butt and then put it back into the smoker. It definitely wasn't too dry overall though and the BBQ sauce and coleslaw helped. For the leftovers I have just been heating them up in a pan with a lid and pouring in like an 8th cup of water and that has worked great! 
Now that I have a better idea of how long the butts will take I can execute the cook better next time
Now that I have a better idea of how long the butts will take I can execute the cook better next time
NDKoze
Moderator
I may be wrong about this, but anytime I have had to hold a butt after it got done early, I still always rested it for usually two hours. Since it was done at 5:00 and you were eating at 7:00, I would have just pulled it from the smoker right a way at 5:00 and rested it until meal time.
But hey, it does sound like it turned out good though. So you're off and running.
But hey, it does sound like it turned out good though. So you're off and running.
kelvinator
New member
Yeah I appreciate everyone's advice! I will definitely have to experiment a bit though! Trial and error haha
DivotMaker
New member
Kelvin, it was probably a little drier than expected because the smoker doesn't instantly cool to 140, even though you turned the dial down. These smokers are really tight, and it takes quite awhile to cool. You probably kept cooking for another hour.
If I'm going to hold in the smoker, I turn it down when my meat is 5° below target temp, then open the door for a few minutes after turning down to 140. You need to get that box temp down quickly, and the meat will rise to your desired temp through carryover cooking.
If I'm going to hold in the smoker, I turn it down when my meat is 5° below target temp, then open the door for a few minutes after turning down to 140. You need to get that box temp down quickly, and the meat will rise to your desired temp through carryover cooking.
kelvinator
New member
Those are great points DM! I did notice the IT of the meat dropping pretty quickly when I turned the smoker down though. Next time if I hold it I will definitely have to open the door. I think now that I have a solid idea of the time it takes I can just pull it and rest it.
So when I was cleaning out the smoker today I noticed that the 3 foil boats I made containing the 5 ounces of wood I used had barely anything in them. Hardly any ash. It was weird. I think the wood may have flared up, the door down near the bottom was blacker than before. i wasn't awake to monitor the smoker so I don't know if there were any belches or anything like that. Maybe the length of the cook just burned up the wood to nothing. I did do the ramp up method at 140 for maybe 45 minutes to an hour.
Interestingly enough though I never really analyzed the smokiness of the meat when eating it. However, considering the fact that I never thought to myself this isn't smokey enough and never thought this is too smokey or bitter it must have had about the perfect amount of smoke flavor. That and nobody complained.
My girlfriend made Gyoza tonight (homemade potstickers) and I had her chop up some of the leftover pulled pork and add it to the mix. They were super good with the pulled pork in them. Added a nice light smokey flavor. Definitely a great way to use the leftovers.
So when I was cleaning out the smoker today I noticed that the 3 foil boats I made containing the 5 ounces of wood I used had barely anything in them. Hardly any ash. It was weird. I think the wood may have flared up, the door down near the bottom was blacker than before. i wasn't awake to monitor the smoker so I don't know if there were any belches or anything like that. Maybe the length of the cook just burned up the wood to nothing. I did do the ramp up method at 140 for maybe 45 minutes to an hour.
Interestingly enough though I never really analyzed the smokiness of the meat when eating it. However, considering the fact that I never thought to myself this isn't smokey enough and never thought this is too smokey or bitter it must have had about the perfect amount of smoke flavor. That and nobody complained.
My girlfriend made Gyoza tonight (homemade potstickers) and I had her chop up some of the leftover pulled pork and add it to the mix. They were super good with the pulled pork in them. Added a nice light smokey flavor. Definitely a great way to use the leftovers.
DivotMaker
New member
Good to hear, Kelvin. Glad it turned out well!
