Butt on Kettle

[GGross]

I've used the snake method for ribs very successfully and have a lot of confidence in the snake keeping the kettle between 225 and 250. I'm going to have a large gathering on Saturday for my sons graduation celebration from High School and was thinking of doing a butt however it would break the golden rule of cooking for others, and that is "Don't do first cooks for when entertaining and stick to what you know"

That being said here are my concerns/questions with doing butt on kettle. I find the snake I use for ribs is lasting about 4 hours and it's almost half way around the kettle so I wondering how long I need for a butt and how long I can out of the snake. I guess if I run out of fuel I could re-fuel or wrap with foil and throw in the oven or move to gasser. I could also look at doing the day before and chop it up and re-heat for celebration.

I guess main questions are:
How long to budget for time of cook?
Internal temp for butt?

 

[Greg Y]

I put the snake almost all the way around and use a pan of water in the middle and plenty of soaked smoke wood on top of the snake. It burns for 12-15 hours at 250 degrees F this way, and you will need pretty much all of that time unless you foil it halfway through.
You want to get the internal temp to at least 190, but don't be afraid of 200. The main thing is to cook it until you can stick a fork in, twist it, and feel almost no resistance.

This thread might get more attention if you post it in the barbeque section. Some of the experts (I'm not) will help you out.

 

[Harold C]

I would do the butt the day before, especially because you want to be able to enjoy your son's graduation. I have found that pork butt reheats beautifully. You could even just pull it off a little early and finish it for an hour in the oven the next day.

 

[GGross]

I would do the butt the day before, especially because you want to be able to enjoy your son's graduation. I have found that pork butt reheats beautifully. You could even just pull it off a little early and finish it for an hour in the oven the next day.

If done the day before Is it best to shred it right after the cook or just as well the next day after it's reheated

 

[Harold C]

I'd shred it the next day after reheating.

When I do butts, I slice them up into single person servings (one big chunk) and freeze them. Pull a piece out, defrost it, nuke it, and I've got really good BBQ that's easier than going through a Mickey D's drive thru. The stuff reheats (and freezes) really well.

 

[GGross]

I put the snake almost all the way around and use a pan of water in the middle and plenty of soaked smoke wood on top of the snake. It burns for 12-15 hours at 250 degrees F this way, and you will need pretty much all of that time unless you foil it halfway through.
You want to get the internal temp to at least 190, but don't be afraid of 200. The main thing is to cook it until you can stick a fork in, twist it, and feel almost no resistance.

This thread might get more attention if you post it in the barbeque section. Some of the experts (I'm not) will help you out.

I'll try that

 

[Brad Olson]

If done the day before Is it best to shred it right after the cook or just as well the next day after it's reheated

I prefer to shred and mix right after the rest period so the inside meat picks up some smoke and flavor from the bark while it sits in the fridge. However, if some of your guests aren't that fond of smoke you might want to keep some of it off to the side so it remains mild.

 

[R L Bagwell]

G, just smoke it 2-3 hours, or 'til it gets to 165*, spray it with some apple juice, foil it tightly, put it in a 300* oven and bake until it hits an internal temp of 200* - take it out, double-foil it, wrap it in a towel, and place in a cooler - I've used that process a number of times; it'll hold its temp - no peeking mind you - in a cooler for a good long time - I've had mine taken out and opened up after 4 hours in a cooler, and the butt was STILL steaming hot.

Just my two cents -

Regards,

Rooster