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First pork butt attempt today (high heat)


 
C

ChristopherCG

TVWBB Fan
Well, after months of waiting (and research) I'm attempting my first pork butt. I bought a 7.5lb bone-in boston butt from shop rite. Looks like it has nice marbaling and a decent fat cap. I am going to use the quick cook technique from the kickassbbq web site. I am using RO lump charcoal and some apple and pecan wood chunks.

Wish me luck. I'll post some pix later on (if I don't screw it up!).
 
Good luck, Chris. You've got a beautiful day for it at least. Will be curious to see how it goes. I'm on hour 18 of a low and slow shoulder picnic cook.
 
So far I'm really struggling to maintain 350 as measured through my Maverick probe in the vent. With all vents open temps fall to about 300. If I prop door open it climbs right back up as high as 375. Can't seem to find that sweet spot where I can just walk away.

I packed the ring prett tight with RO then lit about 3/4 of a chimney. Temps eventually climbed to 350 and I put butt on in pan. It held 350 for about 30 min but then began to fall rapidly. I've been fighting with it ever since. Maybe I should have lit more. I've checked all the vents and they aren't blocked by any fallen chunks. Not sure what the deal is.
 
Christopher it might just take a bit longer to do to the lower temp. Not to worry I'm sure it will be fine. Not sure if you are using water or not but that might be the issue you are having. I would use a empty foiled pan for what you are doing. Vince B
 
I am using a foiled empty pan. No water. After a while it did settle down. I had to leave the door open a bit to get it to hold 350. Then it started to creep higher. Now i have all vents open and door on normally and it's holding 350ish.

I'm about 2 1/4 hours in and the meat is reading about 110 on the maverick. When it gets to 160 do I foil just the top of the pan or do I foil all around the meat and put back in the pan? Does it matter?
 
<BLOCKQUOTE class="ip-ubbcode-quote"><div class="ip-ubbcode-quote-title">quote:</div><div class="ip-ubbcode-quote-content">Originally posted by Christopher_C_ G:
I am using a foiled empty pan. No water. After a while it did settle down. I had to leave the door open a bit to get it to hold 350. Then it started to creep higher. Now i have all vents open and door on normally and it's holding 350ish.

I'm about 2 1/4 hours in and the meat is reading about 110 on the maverick. When it gets to 160 do I foil just the top of the pan or do I foil all around the meat and put back in the pan? Does it matter? </div></BLOCKQUOTE>

From reading the kickassbbq site he foils while it is still in the pan.
 
<BLOCKQUOTE class="ip-ubbcode-quote"><div class="ip-ubbcode-quote-title">quote:</div><div class="ip-ubbcode-quote-content">Originally posted by paul h:
Chris, what pan are you talking about? The water pan or a pan that the butt is sitting in? </div></BLOCKQUOTE>

Sorry, I meant the pan the meat is sitting in according to the kickass site. I did as suggested above and foiled the pan the meat was sitting in. It's at about 182 degrees right now.

I wound up lighting another chimney and dumping it in when the coals were half lit. I was starting to get low on fuel when I foiled. The meat was reading around 152 when I foiled at the 3.5 hour mark. The bark was looking pretty decent so I went ahead and foiled it a bit early.

Almost supper time. Hope it tastes good. A lot of work today messing with the vents.
 
Well, it got up to 195 so I took it off grill. It's resting in foil and a towel in the microwave. I stole a piece that fell off when I was transferring from pan to foil. Tasted really good. We'll see how it pulls in about 30 minutes. I have a Carolina mustard/vinegar sauce to go with it. I've got some pics too I'll post later.
 
Chris:

Next time when you are doing a high heat cook with lump, don't pack the charcoal ring so right - just kinda dump the bag in and keep it loose. You should get a bit higher temp without propping the door open.
 
Well, the results were fantastic. I was a bit skeptical but once I took a peek under the foil when the temp hit 195 I was very excited. I took it out of the pan and wrapped in foil and then in a towel and put in the microwave for an hour. After the hour I pulled it into nice slivers. I was really happy with the end result. My kids even liked it too. The bark was very good indeed. I've posted some links below to some pictures.


Rubbed and ready for the grill - here
After 3 hours in the smoke - here
When temps hit 195 I brought inside and wrapped in foil - here
Pulled and ready to server - here

Some observations: gotta get the cooker at the right temp from the start. Don't pack the ring so tight and use a full chimney of lit coals to get things going. (I only used 3/4 of a weber chimney).

When applying the rub, I did not get it all the way covered on all sides. I missed a few spots so my bark didn't form all the way around. Silly mistake.

I did inject the meat but not nearly enough. There were spots that were a bit dry and others that were nice and moist. Probably because I rushed and didn't inject all the way around.

I may consider removing the fat cap altogether next time so I can get more bark all the way around the butt. I may also consider dispensing with the aluminum pan again with the intent of getting more bark to form.

All in all not a bad first run. Thanks for the help guys.
 
I tried the pan method but have been doing with nothing and great results.

FYI the butt is made of many different muscles, some more moist than other.

It's hard to tell a big difference for me with or without injection, IMHO!
 
<BLOCKQUOTE class="ip-ubbcode-quote"><div class="ip-ubbcode-quote-title">quote:</div><div class="ip-ubbcode-quote-content">Originally posted by Glenn W:
FYI the butt is made of many different muscles, some more moist than other.

It's hard to tell a big difference for me with or without injection, IMHO! </div></BLOCKQUOTE>

Good to know! I did notice a wide spectrum of meat in the pulling process. It took me a while to really pick through and pull out the best pieces.
 
Also if the butt bone is to your left and the cap down the half on your right is the sho-nuff goooood stuff!

I pull it first, pile on one side the pull the rest and toss all meat together so all is good!

If needed for your taste sprinkle your rub in the pile as well, most of the time it is not needed for my taste but some like it extra spicy!

Next time you do a butt make your favorite bbq beans in a alum pan and put under the butt for 2-3 hrs! mmmmm mmmmmmmmm good!
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