Help with my first butt


 
D

Dennis Russo

New member
I'd like to try 'smoking' a butt on my performer (using this method). This will be my first attempt at bbq as I've mostly done grilling in the past so I have a few questions.

For fuel, I have cowboy lump charcoal - can I use this or should I purchase some kingsford briquetts?

I plan on starting the fire at 9:30pm and hopefully get the meat on by 10pm. Watch it for an hour or two then hit the sack and probably get up around 6am to check in on it. This ok?

If I can find some mesquite chunks (I'm on Long Island so if anyone has any suggestions) I'll use 'em otherwise I may need to settle with chips. Using either, do you need to add more wood during the cook?

Any advice you could offer a newbie would be greatly appreciated!


Thanks,
dr
 
Dennis, I'd pass on the lump, and use something besides the mesquite. Kingsford bb and store-bought hickory would do just fine.

As to your chosen method, that one evidently works fine, but isn't necessarily the best method for just one pork butt. I'd probably try the "Encirclement Strategy", as Chris Lilly calls it. Place a 12" diameter stainless steel mixing bowl in the center of the kettle and fill about halfway with hot water. Create a C-shaped ring of charcoal around the bowl, leaving about an 8" open gap on one side. Fill that gap with lit charcoal, put a few wood chunks on top of the briqs (both lit and unlit), and there ya go. Keep the dampers wide open until cooking temp is reached, then Chris suggests closing them TO about 1/4" open.

Now I admit that I've never used this method, but I have seen it posted elsewhere and it seems to really address some issues when cooking a butt on a kettle. I wouldn't try this unattended at first. You're probably gonna need to adjust the vents a bit, and add some water to the pan. I'd try getting up early and cooking in the 250-275* range so it wouldn't take too long. Don't get a butt too small or too large. Seven to nine pounds will do just fine and it shouldn't take you over about 1.5hr per pound if the cooking temp stays at or over 250*.
 
Dennis,

Yes you can use it, but kingsford briqs are going to burn more consistently. For your first time out, I would suggest picking up a bag.

10pm - 6 am is 8 hrs. That's a long time on a kettle. I think most people are getting around 6 hrs consistently. But it is pork butt, so if you drop temps you can just cook a little hotter later to finish.

I personally do not like mesquite, so I'm not a good help there. For me, I add some wood in the unlit and some on top of the lit once I put my pork butt on and do not add anymore.
 
Hey Dennis,

I'd also suggest the briquettes - I find them easier to work with. I use Maple Leaf since I can get it here in Canada, but I've used Kingsford with success as well. One piece of advice - when you open the lid, do so slowly and kind of move it off to the side instead of straight up. If you just pull it straight up I find the ash gets swirled around and lands on the meat.

I've found hickory too strong for my liking with pork, and mesquite's supposed to be even stronger. I bought some oak chunks a while back and love the smoke they give, which is not overpowering. Just my preference though.

I would advise using a remote thermometer, preferably one with a grate-level gauge (like the ET-732), if you plan on sleeping. The ET-732 has a function to set low and high temperature limits on the grate-level gauge; if the temps go outside of this range the alarm will go off, and you can save the butt! It's a dual probe thermo, so you can insert one probe into the butt.

In contrast to Josh's comment, my 10 lb butts usually take 17 hours on my kettle, however I use a smokenator and try to keep my temps in the 220-260F range.

Hope it goes well! Take a few pics and post 'em here when you do it!
 
Thanks all for the responses. Seems mesquite isn't the crowd favorite. What wood is traditionally used when 'smoking' a pork butt?

Will try to take some pics and post my progress...


Thanks,
dr
 
Hickory, or hickory/oak are the more traditional woods for pork shoulder, and will smoke longer since they're more dense. A hickory/white oak combo is great. However, fruitwoods like apple or peach are great, too. They aren't traditional because they don't produce long lasting coals, and in the case of charcoal cooking on a wsm or a kettle, the fruitwood smoke won't last as long as hickory or oak. These nutwoods do produce more robust smoke, but that's what you want for smoking pork shoulder. You WANT a much deeper smoke flavor for pulled pork, than say ribs or especially, chicken. Here in TN and elsewhere in the midsouth, many a bbq joint will even put up a sign that reads something like "Hickory Smoked BBQ."

I recommend making sure that hickory, oak, or pecan (nutwoods) are seasoned at least a few months, but fresh cut green fruitwood isn't a problem for pork butt. Matter of fact, I don't use fruitwood for smoking pork shoulder anymore if it doesn't still have a good deal of moisture. It'll dry out quick, and I use the older fruitwood for smoking chicken or in the firepit on the patio. This is just my opinion, but I wouldn't BUY any fruitwood unless the seller claimed it still had good moisture. The only wood I'd BUY would be nutwoods like hickory, and that's the main reason why I recommended it to begin with.
 
Dave - ok hickory it is.

Now how much should one add? Do I need to add more as I go or if I add, say, 6-8 chunks, I'll be good to go?


Thanks,
dr
 
<BLOCKQUOTE class="ip-ubbcode-quote"><div class="ip-ubbcode-quote-title">quote:</div><div class="ip-ubbcode-quote-content">Originally posted by Dennis Russo:
Dave - ok hickory it is.

Now how much should one add? Do I need to add more as I go or if I add, say, 6-8 chunks, I'll be good to go?


Thanks,
dr </div></BLOCKQUOTE>

Yessir...6 - 8 tennis ball sized chunks will do the trick!
icon_smile.gif


Good luck!
 
That sounds good to me, but I'll defer to Charles since I've never tried smoking a butt on a kettle. Regarding smoke duration, it seems like a lot of folks want smoke on a butt up til the plateau or somewhere when the meat is in the 160-170* range, but it's just fine if you smoke 'em longer than that. With ribs and chicken I'm in the "less is more" camp, but I'm liberal with the smoke for pork butts. Good luck with it!
 
<BLOCKQUOTE class="ip-ubbcode-quote"><div class="ip-ubbcode-quote-title">quote:</div><div class="ip-ubbcode-quote-content">That sounds good to me, but I'll defer to Charles since I've never tried smoking a butt on a kettle. </div></BLOCKQUOTE>

Whoopsie! I forgot this was for a kettle.
I don't have one and have never smoked a butt on my grill. That said, I'd probably use the same amount of chunks if I did.
 
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