Week 1, 3rd smoke.

[AlienSockpuppet]

For our 3rd smoke, we went back to an all-time favorite, pulled pork.  This is our first time ever using a brine, so we were really excited to try something new.  (Our general rule is only change one thing at a time.)  We took a pair of 8-lb shoulder butts and soaked them for 8 hours in a simple sugar-water brine. The wife rubbed them both with our usual dry rub, and I stuck them in the #2, on the 2nd and 4th rails, with 6 oz of hickory and peach and set the thermostat to 220.  It took about 12 hours for the IT of the bottom butt to hit 190, and we took it out.  The top butt was still at 171, and didn't finish for another 4 hours.
Both were great. Beautiful bark, super juicy, and came off the bone slick as a whistle.  Couldn't stop myself from eating while I was shredding.
Any thoughts why the top butt might have taken so much longer to cook? The smaller one  was 7.94 lbs; the larger (fast) one was 8.18 lbs.

 

[Tyarra]

And, the picture!  We forgot to get the picture before we started shredding, but ... here it is after.

 

[gregbooras]

Scott,

Congrats on a perfect smoke and a great meal.

My rule is that when the meat is done it is done.....

How did you place the meat in the smoker?

Greg

 

[DivotMaker]

Looks great, Leah!  The top one was somewhat "shielded" by the lower butt.  I use this technique with ribs; thick cuts on the bottom, thin ends up top, and they cook "evenly."  No problem, if you expect it!  Give my butt brine a try sometime, and let me know what you think!

Brine for Boston Butt

 

[mizzoufan]

It takes some getting used to (or maybe that's just time to fully trust my equipment) but I finally got to the truly lazy q method.  I rarely even look at the receiver portion of my maverick until it beeps.  I used to keep it within sight all the time, now it sits by the patio door and I can hear it beeping from anywhere.  There are so many variables to affect smoke time that we cannot control and the SI has not let me down yet so I let it and the meat battle over how long it takes to get done and the maverick just informs me of their decision  ;D

 

[Tyarra]

We've pretty much come to that conclusion, too, Steven ... but, it's the "why?" that we're still hung up on.  We're good on the "set it and forget it" part - just trying to figure out if there is rhyme or reason for what it's doing.

Thanks, all, for your kind comments and encouragements, this is one really friendly community!

 

[DivotMaker]

Leah, I believe the "rhyme or reason" for what you're experiencing is that the lower butt (closest to the heat) was absorbing most of the heat, and your upper butt was shielded from the heat.  This has been my experience, from ribs to briskets, and I use it to my advantage! 

Thanks, also, for the kind words about our friendly community!  It is, and we're all proud of that!!

 

[BedouinBob]

Leah, think of it like sitting under the umbrella at the beach. Outside the umbrella you get lots of heat. Under the umbrella you get heat but a lot less. Your heating element is the sun in your case.

 

[AlienSockpuppet]

Your heating element is the sun

Don't stare directly into the heating element. Got it.

We're just getting used to the new way of doing things. We've been cooking in an offset rig for the past 10 years, so direct heat wasn't a major factor.  This is how we learn.