First boston butt smoke!! How does it look so far?? (5 hours in)


 
T

TomSanderson

New member
Hey everyone! Well, this is my first pork smoke on the wsm 18.5, and I think I might be addicted already! I'm smoking a 6lb boston butt for pulling, and it's been on for about 7 hours at this point. I've smoked a few turkeys and a ham on the wsm, but nothing else until now.

The temp was a bit high for the first hour, around 275, but I was finally able to get it down to the 250 range. For the last few hours it's been at a nice 235 or so. I used hot tap water in the pan.

For the meat itself, I kept it simple: I used the "Big Bald BBQ Rub" on it, with yellow mustard to help it stick. I didn't mop it during the smoke, but I suppose I still could if anyone thinks it would help.

It seems to be stalled right now at 169 degrees. It;s been at that temp for about an hour or more. I know some people like to wrap at this point, but I've heard so many other people say not to, as you get a better bark without foil. Confused on what to do.

Ok, here is a pic at about the 5 hour point, can you guys take a look and see how you think it's doing? Thanks!!



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Looks great so far and I say let it ride. Once it hits 190 or so then it's just a matter of waiting for it to get tender. At that point a probe will literally slide in like it's butter. I don't baste mine but I guess that's a matter of preference. And welcome to the forum. This is a great place to see what other BBQ'ers are doing and to get some great tips.
 
Certainly gets my stamp of approval. It looks delicious! I usually mop my butts, but since I've never done one without a mop, I guess I really don't know if it makes a difference. Do you plan to sauce it after it is pulled?
 
I think you're doing fine. I lived in the BBQ wilderness that is VA for 20+ years, so it's great to see another WSM doing its part to improve the commonwealth. ;)
 
Welcome aboard. The pork butt looks good so far. I recommend leaving the lid on and forget the mop or the wrap. Pit temp anywhere between 250*F +/- 25*F is fine ...even if you get a short spike... it just adds character. You're gonna love this if you just let it go (don't peek) until you hit your target temp.

What kind of wood are you using? How much? When did you add it?
 
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Thanks for the welcome guys, and the comments!! I've been reading the forum for a while, and finally decided to jump in.

V-Rocco: By saucing, do you mean saucing it right before I 'wrap and rest it', after it comes off the WSM? Or do you mean saucing it once I chop it? I was considering the second option but I'm very open to advice.

Dwain: I used apple, as it was what I had on hand and seemed to be a good choice based on what I've seen here. I used 4 fist-sized chunks at the very beginning of the smoke. I also added 2 small chunks at about 6 hours in. I probably shouldn't have added the extra two chunks, but since I'm a noob, there's still nothing cooler than seeing the wsm billowing away like a steam locomotive! Hopefully the taste wouldn't be too smoke heavy.

Larry: What part of Va did you live in?

Thanks again to everyone that chimed in so quickly, this is quite a great forum to be a part of!!

Tom
 
Apple is a pretty mellow wood that goes great with pork. Adding the extra cpl chunks late in the game probably won't hurt too bad. I'm a less is more guy when it comes to wood.

I use wood like a very strong spice (though apple isn't so strong). I usually add one piece at a time, every hour for about the first three hours. I prefer seeing the thin blue smoke (TBS) vs the "billowing away like a steam locomotive" kinda smoke in an effort to avoid what I call the "ashtray effect" but you'll figure out how much smoke you and your family and friends like. (Cook to their tastes and they'll ask you to cook more)

I look forward to the results.
 
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That's great advice Dwain! I'll try the one piece at a time method next cook. I'm sure once the novelty of all that billowing smoke wears off, I'll prefer your method.
 
Looking great so far!

Love to hear all the other suggestions! I love to use a mix of Apple and Pecan, smoke until I hit an internal of 160 or the color I like and then foil it until I hit 190 or 195 or so...

Keep it up! Can't wait to see the finished product!

CM
 
Hey guys, I think I 'might' be running into a little trouble. The stall has now lasted for 5 hours - it's been at 169 since 4:30pm. The wsm is starting to run cool, at around 214. I'm going to add maybe 10 briquettes or so and see what happens. Any other advice? I'd really like to avoid foiling but...
 
That's what I'd do too, wrap in foil and toss in oven to finish it. Save any juices that may accumulate in the foil, de-fat it and toss some back in when you pull. um-um-good….

5 hour stall is pretty long time, I think longest I've seen butts stall was 2.5 hrs, maybe 3. Check for doneness by using skewer/probe - your therm could be acting up.

Keep us posted Tom! :)
 
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TomSanderson said:
Hey guys, I think I 'might' be running into a little trouble. The stall has now lasted for 5 hours - it's been at 169 since 4:30pm. The wsm is starting to run cool, at around 214. I'm going to add maybe 10 briquettes or so and see what happens. Any other advice? I'd really like to avoid foiling but...
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At this point it has taken all the smoke it's going to and the WSM has simply become an oven running out of fuel. If you're running out of daylight and charcoal, you have a cpl choices: add fuel and get the fire going or finish in the oven. You also have a choice on the foil: don't have to wrap if you don't want to - or you can wrap it - the choice is yours.

The stall is more pronounced the lower the pit temp is. If you were cooking at a higher pit temp the stall would occur at a higher temp and be shorter. I like to run at 250*F +/- 25*F. ...but the guys at Chef Steps say "The shoulder should reach a core temperature of 167 °F / 75 °C and be held at this temperature for at least six hours" to get the most tender meat. So... according to them you're right on track though you still have a ways to go.

This is a great lesson learned. Be sure to keep a cook log: notes on type and how much charcoal you used, type and how much wood used, water or no water, oven finish or not, and results based on yours', your family's and friend's comments. That way you can fix what you didn't like and repeat what you did.

I do recommend always starting with a full ring of charcoal until you get an idea of how your cooker burns fuel. You can always close the vents and save/reuse any unspent fuel. It's just a way to ensure you don't run out mid cook.
 
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TomSanderson said:
Hey guys, I think I 'might' be running into a little trouble. The stall has now lasted for 5 hours - it's been at 169 since 4:30pm. The wsm is starting to run cool, at around 214. I'm going to add maybe 10 briquettes or so and see what happens. Any other advice? I'd really like to avoid foiling but...
Click to expand...
If your numbers are accurate, you have a long way to go for pulled pork. Better add a lot more than 10 coals. At 214, you are hardly cooking the butt. Get the heat up to 300 or you'll be waiting all night.
 
Well everybody, I pulled it off and I'm finishing it in the oven. Slightly disappointed, but I'm hoping it will still be good. I 'think' it looks good. I took a pic when I pulled it off; my phone died so I'll post it in a few minutes as soon as it powers back up. Gotta love the iphone, always dies on me at the worst moment, lol.

I have the oven set for 300. Does that seem too high to finish it off?
 
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