Best Way To Freeze a Pork Butt?


 
C

Chris in Mi

TVWBB Member
Considering smoking a whole butt this w/e for a family reunion that's in a couple weeks. What is the best method? We do have a vacuum food saver or can just use the 2g ziplock freezer bags.

Pull it first then freeze? Or freeze whole, and pull it after reheating?

Probably would reheat it using a crock pot. Or is there a better way. Figure crock pot due being able to let it be on its own for a while.... And considering smoking now due to possibly "running home" for an open house (good friends sons) and not being able to monitor the butt the last few hours. So the easier to reheat the better.

So any and all advice is welcomed and needed!!!

TY!!!
 
Chris, I would pull after the butt has rested in a cooler for a few hours and then freeze in the foodsaver bags. Less change of freezer burn. To reheat, a crock pot would work fine. Remember to also put some apple juice in the crock pot. Helps to keep the PP moist. Good luck and enjoy the reunion.
 
For food safety wise I would pull it then layer it on sheet pans in the fridge, then when it's cool vacuum bag it.
Crock is alright ( but keep an eye on it, cause it can overcook and dry out) or use the oven @ 325 add some liquid and keep stirring till it reaches serving temp.( a little more time consuming but your guests will appreciate it)

Tim
 
Reheating Method

timothy said:
For food safety wise I would pull it then layer it on sheet pans in the fridge, then when it's cool vacuum bag it.
Crock is alright ( but keep an eye on it, cause it can overcook and dry out) or use the oven @ 325 add some liquid and keep stirring till it reaches serving temp.( a little more time consuming but your guests will appreciate it)

Tim
Click to expand...

Allowing the meat to cool prior to vacuum bagging will also reduce the amount of moisture pulled out of the meat during the vacuum process.

I have made up vacuum bags, put the pulled pork into those bags and then put the bags in ice water - don't let the water into the bag :cool:.

Then I vacuum sealed it. When I was ready to serve, I put the sealed bag in boiling water and heated the meat up. I'd limit the amount of pork in each bag to about a pound - otherwise it takes too long to heat.
 
I tried to reheat a vacuum bag with a lite simmer and it opened the bag an let water in to my brisket 1 time,keep the meat in the largest size possible to retain the natural flavors when pulling,the crock pot will work fine for reheating coarse fresh is always best but not always possible
 
TY all!!!

My wife pulled the pb out of the freezer yesterday, so hoping it will be thawed by tmrw evening. Was only in there since Mon evening, had I considered smoking it ahead of time wouldn't have thrown it in there.....

Still not 100% sure if we will hit the reunion (TY for the wishes!), or our good friends son's open house, or both.... Darn summer just gets crazy busy!!! Downside is it will ha about a 2hr drive back for the open house, stay for a few, then back to the reunion....

Maybe spray a little apple juice on the pork before sealing it? Any crazy thoughts on that?

TY again!!!
 
I've done both with equally good results. When I get a good deal on butts, I'll cook up a few for freezing. Typically, I'll separate them out into a few large chunks (like ~2 lbs each, a size that will fit nicely into my 1.5 quart crockpot) AND I'll pull a few pounds worth to seal in 1/2 pound pouches (perfect size for taking to work for lunch and making the office jealous). As others have suggested, I add a bit of apple juice/cider and a few splashes of Carolina-style vinegar sauce to the crockpot when reheating.
 
Mike May said:
Allowing the meat to cool prior to vacuum bagging will also reduce the amount of moisture pulled out of the meat during the vacuum process.

I have made up vacuum bags, put the pulled pork into those bags and then put the bags in ice water - don't let the water into the bag :cool:.

Then I vacuum sealed it. When I was ready to serve, I put the sealed bag in boiling water and heated the meat up. I'd limit the amount of pork in each bag to about a pound - otherwise it takes too long to heat.
Click to expand...

This method has always worked for me. Place the bag in the boiling water for 2-3 minutes. Then cover and turn off heat. let sit for approximately 30 minutes and you should be good. Keep the amount of pork per bag down to no more then 2 pounds.
 
TY all!!!

Smoker is up to temp, the butt is on, and the waiting begins!!! Lol Got it on at about 7, so hoping it will be done by no later that 2ish tmrw....

We probably will go the crock pot route if we are able to make the family reunion, only because of the amount of pp to reheat. I am guessing we will need both crock pots as well.... We do a pot luck style dinner Sat evening.

Though it will probably be a good idea to package it in smaller amounts as you guys have suggested just in case we aren't able to attend the reunion.

Now for a couple pics!!!!

Waiting for the blue smoke:

7FCD2E40-FD67-4EE9-A7E6-7948E8DBB94D_zpsa60gvdtq.jpg


And a pic of the butt, all rubbed and ready to go:

E4F801F2-BE13-42FD-A41E-6A138FA4DB8A_zpsyrx7kzgg.jpg


2 chunks each of Apple and Cherry. Rub is per a recipe my wife found online, but can't remember exactly where now.... Lol We still have some left to mix in, and another sealed bag for one more large butt.

TY again!!!

Ps: I am still loving my Maverick wireless thermometer!!! Holding at about 235* pit temp, and butt is up to 46*! Lol
 
TY again to all!!!

Smoke went pretty well.... Butt was on just after 7pm last night. When I got up at 8:30am this morning temp was still holding well, butt was at about 187*. About 10:30ish the internal butt temp started to drop a little, but the pit temp was still about 230*ish and holding..... Went out and found very few coals left.... Should have looked sooner!!! Lol Did the hot squat and got more coals going. Butt was ready and pulled it off at about 1pm.... Bone pulled right out. Could have trimmed the fat a little more as not all of it "melted away", though that could have been due to the slight coal issue....





Have 3 vacuum bags full of pp in the freezer now. Will update in a couple weeks if/when we have some great pp!!! Tasted awesome while pulling, can't wait for a plateful!!! Lol
 
MikeCantell said:
I tried to reheat a vacuum bag with a lite simmer and it opened the bag an let water in to my brisket 1 time,keep the meat in the largest size possible to retain the natural flavors when pulling,the crock pot will work fine for reheating coarse fresh is always best but not always possible
Click to expand...
Waring makes heavy duty vacuum bags that have a zip-lok-like closure. Much more secure than a zip-lok though. The bags have a one-way valve you use to pull a vacuum. Waring makes a vacuum gun to go with these but a Food Saver with the proper attachment, or even a Pump-N-Seal, should work. They're designed for food service, boil-in-bag use so I'm pretty sure they won't pop open when put in boiling water. (I've used them for vacuum packing for dry storage and for the freezer but haven't tried cooking in them.)
 
Reheating the pp turned out great!!! Used the crock pot, adding a little apple juice periodically when I would stir the pp.

TY again to all!!!
 
You must log in or register to reply here.

 

Back
Top