butt ?

[JR Mounlio]

how much of the fat should i trim off the bottom if any? first time doing a butt and there seems to be tons of fat. thanks

 

[Jeremy_S]

JR,
Well i assume you are taking a butt and cooking it fat side down since you say the bottom. My recommendation is to leave the majority of it there and get rid of it after cooking. If you are cooking fat side down it can protect the meat from the heat. To me your post is vague since there are other questions I would like to ask... like are you cooking directly on the grate or are you cooking in a foil pan which depending on the fat content could create too much braising liquid in my opinion.

I like to take two boston butts and orient both money muscles in the same direction and deal with the fat removal and cutting/slicing/pulling after the cooking.

 

[Ernie D]

I used to trim, but now I just leave it. To me, it's easier to remove after it is softened up in the cook. I like short easy prep work. IMHO If your going to trim, get it close to the meat so you at least get good bark that you can eat.

 

[TravisH]

If you got a whole butt then you should at least trim off the fat cap and false cap.

Read - Pork Butt Selection & Preparation

Trim as much as you want. There's lots of fat inside as well so it's not like it's going to dry out.

Personally, I take off the fat cap and false cap and then any other huge fat pieces mainly to get as much bark as I can.

 

[Michael Spurling]

I trim off a fair amount of the fat cap - I just did 2 butts a week ago. I still leave enough fat on the butts to help w/ the cooking.

 

[jason.yee]

i dont trim any of it before the cook. i just peel it off with my hands after the cook when im pulling.

 

[JR Mounlio]

thanks