I'm new to the bullet, just bought my first at the beginning of the summer. I have made ribs 4-5 times with good results. I tried the championship injection recipe and followed it to the letter with one exception. No bone in butts were available so I used two 8 pound boneless. I followed the temp very carefully and at 18 hours I still only had an internal temp of 182. It never did get to 190 as the recipe indicated. Is this normal? Did I do something wrong? The meat tasted good but was a bit tough on the outside. I did not have time to cover in foil and put in a cooler. I had hungry poker players waiting!
pork butt question
- Thread starter Carl
- Start date
K Kruger
TVWBB 1-Star Olympian
What were the cooktemps?
What do you mean 'tough on the outside'?
Roasts must be rested after cooking. 25-30 min for an 8-lb roast. Longer isn't required.
Internal temps might indicate 'done' but they aren't the cause of done. Done for pulled pork is when thne meat is pretty much fall-apart tender. Did yours fall apart? Did it pull?
Welcome to the board!
What do you mean 'tough on the outside'?
Roasts must be rested after cooking. 25-30 min for an 8-lb roast. Longer isn't required.
Internal temps might indicate 'done' but they aren't the cause of done. Done for pulled pork is when thne meat is pretty much fall-apart tender. Did yours fall apart? Did it pull?
Welcome to the board!
Rick Soliman
TVWBB Pro
Carl,
What were the temps in the cooker. Seems like they were 200 or below for that to take 18hours.
What were the temps in the cooker. Seems like they were 200 or below for that to take 18hours.
With the internal fat in a butt, temp measurement, while usually quite accurate, can be deceptive at times. If you can stick a meat fork in and twist with little resistance it's done. This is a good back-up when the temp just doesn't seem to be correlating with the cook time.
Paul
Paul
The temp at the lid was a steady 235 to 255 for the entire cook except when it dipped to 215 at hour 5 and took about 45 minutes to come back up. I also increased the temp to 275-280 for the last two hours to try to speed the process up. The outside was a little chewy (even a little crunchy in places) and did not seem as moist on the inside as the pictures I looked at from some of the posts on this site. I made sure there was always water in the pan also. Thanks for the feedback guys. Great website, very helpful.
K Kruger
TVWBB 1-Star Olympian
I'm thinking overcooked, though it's hard to know without pics or first hand experience. The lack of a rest can contribute significantly to disparities between inner and outer meat texture and tenderness as well. (Resting is not optional. It's essential.)
If the interior portions were pullable, i.e., if they shredded, but were not especially moist, then overcooking was the problem. Conversely, if the meat does not shred easily it is undercooked (though csn still be tender, depending).
Sometimes butts plateau a second time in the 180s. Left alone to cook for a while, they will become tender, moist, pullable--even though the internal doesn't budge. If one waits for the internal to rise instead of checking the meat directly they can overcook. Paul's suggestion is foolproof. A done butt--moist, tender, pullable--will always feel soft, the meat will always yield easily to the twist of a fork or the tip of a probe, irrespective of internal temp.
If the interior portions were pullable, i.e., if they shredded, but were not especially moist, then overcooking was the problem. Conversely, if the meat does not shred easily it is undercooked (though csn still be tender, depending).
Sometimes butts plateau a second time in the 180s. Left alone to cook for a while, they will become tender, moist, pullable--even though the internal doesn't budge. If one waits for the internal to rise instead of checking the meat directly they can overcook. Paul's suggestion is foolproof. A done butt--moist, tender, pullable--will always feel soft, the meat will always yield easily to the twist of a fork or the tip of a probe, irrespective of internal temp.
Chad Harwick
TVWBB Member
<BLOCKQUOTE class="ip-ubbcode-quote"><div class="ip-ubbcode-quote-title">quote:</div><div class="ip-ubbcode-quote-content">Originally posted by Mike_M:
I've never been able to get butts to 195/200 without using foil. Now I don't even bother waiting to see if they plateau. I cook to 160, immediately wrap in foil & they are always 195-200 within the time frame that they should be. </div></BLOCKQUOTE>
I do the same. 160/165 and foil. If they are in the foil it will soften the bark up a bit and speed up the cooking. But yes, I am also a believer that you NEED to rest the butt. At least 30 minutes.
I've never been able to get butts to 195/200 without using foil. Now I don't even bother waiting to see if they plateau. I cook to 160, immediately wrap in foil & they are always 195-200 within the time frame that they should be. </div></BLOCKQUOTE>
I do the same. 160/165 and foil. If they are in the foil it will soften the bark up a bit and speed up the cooking. But yes, I am also a believer that you NEED to rest the butt. At least 30 minutes.
<BLOCKQUOTE class="ip-ubbcode-quote"><div class="ip-ubbcode-quote-title">quote:</div><div class="ip-ubbcode-quote-content">Originally posted by K Kruger:
I've never been one for foiling butt during cooking but foiling certainly speeds it up. </div></BLOCKQUOTE>Glad you said that because I've never foiled a butt.
Sounds overcooked, Carl. Listen to the old timers, use the fork test.
I've never been one for foiling butt during cooking but foiling certainly speeds it up. </div></BLOCKQUOTE>Glad you said that because I've never foiled a butt.
Sounds overcooked, Carl. Listen to the old timers, use the fork test.
<BLOCKQUOTE class="ip-ubbcode-quote"><div class="ip-ubbcode-quote-title">quote:</div><div class="ip-ubbcode-quote-content">Originally posted by K Kruger:
I've never been one for foiling butt during cooking but foiling certainly speeds it up. </div></BLOCKQUOTE>
but u do believe in resting for a few hr, just not foiled, is that correct?
I've never been one for foiling butt during cooking but foiling certainly speeds it up. </div></BLOCKQUOTE>
but u do believe in resting for a few hr, just not foiled, is that correct?
