How come? A pig question...

[Rob B.]

Why is it that I read about whole pigs being bbq'ed in 4-6 hours, yet individual cuts such as butts can take 18+ hours? I don't understand this.

Also, is it safe to assume that the 18+ hour butt is going to be a better piece when cooked individually, as opposed to the whole pig butt?

TIA...

 

[Ken Nelson]

I haven’t seen any of the literature you’re referring to, but I’m guessing this is either from somebody with a very loose definition of barbecue (Why do many TV chefs suddenly come to mind?) or it’s the preposterous claims from a less than honest hardware manufacturer targeting an uninformed and na?ve audience.

Under high enough heat – and perhaps by applying steam - it would be possible to cook a splayed out whole hog to a safe internal temperature in a few hours. But there is a world of difference between quickly cooked pork that is merely edible and pork that someone has invested the time in to make it truly tender, succulent, and delicious.

Butts, for example, are tough cuts of meat containing several muscle groups and it takes time to break down the connective tissues inside that dense mass. It’s a process that can’t be done in mere minutes, despite the claims of modern day snake oil salesmen pitching their newest gee whiz cooking technology.

Interested to see what others have to say.

Have a great weekend. I’m helping at a CBJ class tomorrow then doing an overnighter with my son and granddaughter. Looking forward to this weekend!

Ken

 

[Guest]

Absolutely....you can throw any amount of pork over propane and bring the temperature up to safety levels....but that don't make it Q! Low and slow...means tender and flavorful, and propane doesn't smoke. Got to have hours of time over smoldering wood coals or charcoal in my book.

For example, you can build an outhouse in one day, but it won't be no Taj Mahal!

 

[Rob B.]

I could have sworn that I read 4-5 hours on this site, but now I'm seeing 12 hours. But even at 12 hours, the question still applies. I guess it's because of the higher temp of 300*.

 

[DarrenC]

Leaving propane aside for the purposes of this subject,there are a couple of different styles of cooking a hog, and as pointed out here some of them are merely outdoor roasting but not true BBQ.

The cuban pig roasting box, which has the pig in a foil-lined wooden box with a steel fire plate lid on which you build a charcoal fire, uses a heat-induction principle to cook at a rate of about 15 pounds per hour. It is quick and convenient and actually turns out a pretty good-tasting hog, but no smoke ever gets to the pig, therfore disqualifying it as BBQ in my book.

The opposite extreme is pit roasting, which can take a couple of hours to dig the pit, 8 or so hours to burn a huge hardwood fire down to coals, then cooking the hog in the pit at a rate of less than 5 pounds per hour (usually somwhere in the neighbourhood of 24 hours). For purists only!

Most of us are somewhere in between, using a smoker or rotisserie and cooking at a rate of anywhere from 7-10 pounds per hour.

With regards to your initial comparison, remember that most hogs are considered done when the internal temp is in the 170*-175* range, while a butt is cooked to 200*

 

[Konrad Haskins]

I don't know about no 4 to 5 hours. Wilma weighed in at 145# and took the better part of 24 hours. She was as Jim Minion will tell you "very" tasty.