Pork butt on sale, waste of time to freeze?


 
Jeff Holmes

Jeff Holmes

TVWBB Super Fan
I've done 2 butts now, butt I didn't like paying full price for the one- this is supposed to be fun! I picked up two more , threw them in the freezer and plan on smoking one of them for Thanksgiving. Am I wasting my time or will giving them plenty of time to defrost help th come out ok?
 
When I hear people freeze Pulled Pork / Butt, they mostly freeze it after cooking and I assume it's because of the loss in moisture that results in freezing
 
I had two 9 pound butts in the freezer for four months and they cooked up as well as a fresh one, moist and tender.
 
When i see them on sale i pick up a few and freeze them. I haven't had any issues with them tasting any different than fresh ones.
 
It all depends on how they are wrapped/packaged. IF they are cryovac'ed, they'll last almost forever in a deep freezer. I cooked two that were over three years old and they were very tasty. Vaccum packed with a home unit will also last quite a long time. IF they are unwrapped, wrap tightly in plastic wrap and then wrap that with tin foil or butcher paper and you can freeze for a couple of months.
 
I wonder if freezing actually helps to tenderize the meat too. If items freeze slowly it generally creates larger ice crystals which can break down cell walls in vegetables so if the same thing holds true for meat it might actually tenderize it a little bit as well.....
 
We freeze butts before and after cooking. Whenever we see a good sale we pick up a couple and freeze, then when our supply of smoked pork gets low we thaw out 4, smoke them, then vacuum pack them in smaller packages and freeze again. We then take the packages out of the freezer as needed and put directly into boiling water still in sealed packages. Comes out juicy and tasty!
 
JayRob said:
I wonder if freezing actually helps to tenderize the meat too. If items freeze slowly it generally creates larger ice crystals which can break down cell walls in vegetables so if the same thing holds true for meat it might actually tenderize it a little bit as well.....
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this certainly works with salmon. Frozen makes far better lox than fresh. I freeze my butts all the time.
 
I picked up two on sale for 1.79/lb and threw them in the freezer a cpl weeks ago. Never had a problem thawing and/or cooking in the past.
 
I use a food saver and freeze them all the time. I took one out a month ago and it was dated 10/2/2013 and it turned out perfect!
 
Great info, guts, thanks!!

Hey, Steve , what tupe of bags are you using to throw it in to boiling water? When we got our vac sealer about 14 years ago, I swore I saw them doing that on QVC or something. I tried it once and if I recall it melted the bag. So, I never tried it again or did any research on it.
 
Do it all the time, freeze them then put them on the wsm. Most time I don't thaw them, just put them on frozen and never noticed any difference in taste.
 
Jeff;
Boiling water will not melt a plastic bag...

Like others here, I regularly freeze ribs (in the cryopac), Boston Butt, Brisket, etc. I also use my vacuum pack for pulled pork, brisket, ribs, etc after they are cooked. I notice NO loss of product quality whatsoever.

Keep on smokin',
Dale53:wsm:
 
Jeff_B said:
Do it all the time, freeze them then put them on the wsm. Most time I don't thaw them, just put them on frozen and never noticed any difference in taste.
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I have never heard of smoking a frozen pork butt. I would think the center would not get cooked all the way or the outside would be overdone by the time the center was finished. Can you tell us more about using this method?
 
I've cooked them frozen, and partially frozen with nary a problem.

Here's my notes from 2010 on a 10 lb. frozen butt:

Ran the temp at 245 hood for 5 hrs., then opened up some to 345 for about another 4 hrs.
After 9 hrs. the internal was 195
 
Jeff Holmes said:
Great info, guts, thanks!!

Hey, Steve , what tupe of bags are you using to throw it in to boiling water? When we got our vac sealer about 14 years ago, I swore I saw them doing that on QVC or something. I tried it once and if I recall it melted the bag. So, I never tried it again or did any research on it.
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A tip I learned from here is bring the water to a boil, lower the bag in and bring it back to a simmer, cover it, and leave it alone for 25-30 mins, simmering.
Any vac type bag could melt if left in direct contact with the bottom of a boiling pot.
To your OP. I used to buy whole pigs and cows butchered, and held them over a year in the freezer, and they tasted just as good as fresh.


Tim
 
My wife says she uses "Food Saver" brand bags and they state their bags are made to be safe putting in boiling water, and will not melt. We've never had any problem reheating our frozen pulled pork this way.
 
Smoking a frozen pork butt works fine. The real work of tenderizing the meat takes place long after the meat is cooked through.

Overcooked exterior/undercooked interior would be a much bigger concern with frozen tender meat like filet mignon or pork loin.
 
Seal them with a food save or equivalent. Will not freezer burn or dry out. I usually only keep them frozen until my next smoke, then I load the WSM to the gills, and freeze what doesn't get devoured.

Here is a quick tip........it you freeze your leftover meat in a foodsaver type of bag, when you are ready to eat it, just a small prick on one end, then into the MW until it gets hot. Meat will be fresh, tasty, and retain it's moisture content. If you put it in the oven, overcooking and drying out can occur. Be careful when warming already cooked meats........thay are already cooked and just need to be warmed.
 
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