First Butt


 
G

Gary Donaldson

New member
I have had a 5lb butt on for about 4 hours, and just now realized that I had the wrong probe connector inserted into my AccuRite Digital Thermometer. I had been holding steady at around 240 plus or minus a few, but now that I inserted the proper probe into the unit, I am only getting about 190! I immediately opened all bottom vents to 50%. I had been running with only one vent at 25% to maintain the false 240. About 15 minutes later the cooker is now at 215, and the internal butt temp is 148. I am worried about how long the meat sat at the low temp. Should I continue, or scrap and try another day?
 
Thanks, Kevin. I imagine that this is going to add significantly to my total cook time. How much longer should I expect? Cooker is now at 230, butt at 150.
 
That will depend on the cook temp you're shooting for now. If you're figuring on cooking ~240-250 grate then probably you lost about 2 hours tops. You can erase some of that by cooking at a higher temp, all of it by cooking higher still. Butts I do at ~275. Feel free to cheat your temps higher if you wish.

And welcome to the board.
 
Thanks, Kevin. I'm a real rookie at this... I hope to get better with time. And, I do greatly appreciate the help available here. I'll let you know how it goes...
 
Kevin, just wanted you to know that all turned out great! The pulled pork was a huge success. After my little "adventure" with the temp probe, I ended up targeting 260-270 for an additional 7 hours, until the internal showed 190. I let it rest for about 90 minutes, and wah-lah! Now I can't wait until my next BBQ opportunity... Thank you very much for your input. I don't know what a rookie like me would do without the great help in this forum!
 
Terrific.

Very soon 'rookie' will no longer apply.
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Welcome Gary,
After a short "training" period you will find that BUTTSONTHEBULLET are so easy you will be amazed. I do mine at 250-275 because the fat is the cushion. Besides,275 isn't that high for butts. When I cook them I always have something else to occupy my time because,frankly,it gets boring watching the WSM do it's thing. Also keeps you from overadjusting vents if the temp varies a few degrees.
 
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