It must be my fault?


 
A

Adam B

TVWBB Member
So, 2 weeks ago I did my first ever pork butt. It was a 4lb. "enhanced" butt from the local chain grocery store.I smoked this butt on my performer and I must say, it might have been the single best food I had ever tasted. Juicy & smokey heaven is how I would describe it. Because it was sooo good, I knew I had to have more, and decided to pull the trigger on a 22 WSM so that I wouldn't have to monitor it and make adjustments every 20 minutes.

This brings me to "smoke day". This time I followed most peoples recommendations and searched out a "non enhanced" 12lb butt that was split into 2 6lb pieces. I applied Blues Hog rub to 1 of the 6lb pieces and set in ref. for 36 hours.

I fired up the new WSM and followed the minion method to get me started. I could not have asked for it to "work" any better. Temps rose to 250 deg. and stayed there for the entire cook. I did have to add some fuel at the 6 1/2hr mark.

What's the problem you ask? IMO the finished product was a let down. Very little smokey flavor(apple chunks were used, as before) and it also seemed to be very dry as compared to the 1st.one I did on the performer.

Butt was placed on lower grate, and after a few hours, beef ribs, baby back ribs, and ABT's were placed on top grate and allowed to "drip" on top of the butt. I thought this might add even more flavor.

As I said above, I think the WSM worked as good as it should and kept temps in the smoke range for the entire 10hr cook. I did pull the butt off at a temp of 185 because I was running short on time. Wouldn't leaving it on for a while longer to reach 195 actually dry it out even more?

Sorry for the long post, but I am interested in the "butt experts"
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opinion as to what would cause the finished product to be so dry. It must have been something I did wrong, but I followed the same prep for both butts.

The other 6lb. butt is ready to go when I am confident that I can get back to the taste I experienced on the performer.

Thanks in advanced for any ideas/suggestions you have.
 
Adam,just a couple questions. Was the butt tender at 185*? At that temp,there may still have been some fat left that hadn't rendered,resulting in the dryness. Always cook to TENDER,not a set tempurature. Every butt is different and some get tender sooner than others.
Another thing,did you let it rest before pulling? It drives my wife crazy,but I let them sit for at least a half hour before I shred them,sometimes even longer. If it didn't rest enough,all the juices run out,and you get a dry end result.
Also.how many chunks did you use? Apple is a milder wood than hickory,and if you didn't use as much,or smaller chunks to try to compensate for larger chunks last time,that might account for the less smoky taste.
Anyway,the only thing I can tell you is to cook that other butt,and even more until you get it right! Butts are very forgiving and really hard to mess up! Don't get down on yourself. EVERYONE messes up something when they start! Luckily,most of the mistakes are edible!
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Phil & Anthony,

When I checked the temp and it registered 185 with my thermopen, it sure seemed tender as the probe slid in with little resistance. I used about 10 small chunks of apple. I might try a little stronger wood in the future. I foiled and rested the butt for about 45 minutes.

Do you think the "dryness" is actually from being undercooked, thus not allowing the fat to render?

Thank you guys for the suggestions, any other ideas you have are sure welcomed, and rest assured I will be trying this again!!

P.S., although a bit disappointed, the pork is still edible, just needs a little extra sauce.

Thanks, Adam
 
My 2 cents is that it was undercooked. When using my offset, I usually let them go to 200, then foil and rest for an hour or so. Then after pulling, I douse with apple cider vinegar and some of the sauce I am going to use, foil the pan and let it sit for another 1/2 hour before serving.

Did you test in several places for tenderness and temp? I've had some butts go for 18 hours before they were ready. Each piece of meat is different.
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Keep on trying!

I just saw Best in Smoke on FN and watched Chris Lilly, the KING of pork shoulder lose because his wasn't up to par! The meat and time did him in.

Bet the next time it will be perfect! And definitely try hickory for Butts and use the Apple for Ribs.
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Adam the Butt was under cooked and that is why it was dry. Even though it seemed tender with the probe sliding in, it needed to go to at least 195* and it won't be dry. Sounds odd I know but getting it to 195* and letting it rest in foil for at least 30mins is key.

Something else to remember, the meat will stop absorbing the smoker at 140* so if you are above that, you can kick up the temp from 250* to finish it up. It won't affect the texture. Some members pull it off completely and finish it foiled in the stove. I don't do that but I have just opened the vents and let more air in to kick up the temp to 300* and finish it which is what I did yesterday (posting photos in the photo section shortly).

Give it another shot and you'll be thrilled with the results.
 
I'm with the underdone crowd.How easy was it to pull? Apple is a mild wood try adding some oak or hickory next time.
 
Id be willing to say undercooked too. Ive had butts tough to pull at 195. Personally, Ill do butts 8-9 hours, wrap in foil and take to the finish. usually in the oven so I dont have to tend a fire anymore. Ironically, it seems no matter what, they are done after being foiled for 2 hours in a 275 degree oven.
 
Call me crazy but I think the fact that this was the first cook on a new WSM could have had a little bit to do with it. The main thing is to try again. While butts are about as forgiving as anything you will cook we all get ahold of a pig with an attitude sometimes.

I do agree with the others comments about letting it rest before pulling. Very important.
 
Thanks so much for all the input. I will make sure that the next one stays on the smoker till at least 195deg.

I will also use a stronger smoke wood as suggested.

You guys rock!!
 
I like a strong smoke taste so I always add a mix of hickory and apple to butts. I also sometime throw in a few extra pieces when I have to add charcoal. And, yeah, yu needed to cook a while longer. Remember if you are strapped for time you can raise the heat, when it's almost done no one will notice.
 
Hmm. Ive done a few sliced butts, took them to about 185° and they weren't dry at all.
JMO, if that rub had a decent amount of salt in it that 36hr hold might of drawn out a lot of moisture.
The previous " de-hanced" butt might have been a little more forgiving for that amount of a hold time.
Me.. I just rub before I load it on the WSM, Hickory or Pecan are usually my choice for butts.

Tim
 
Several things to mention here in just a little time. As Timothy just mentioned, the butt shouldn't be dry just because it is only cooked to a temp. of 185*. Slicing is how they used to do up in KC if I'm not mistaken, often pulled off the pit at as low a temp of 175* (before a rest), and maybe they still do. I cook in the 235-250 range and most of my butts are pulled off the cooker at about 190*, but sometimes a little sooner, rarely much later. It's all about tenderness though, and I've had plenty of tender pork butts end up a little dry, no matter what the finished IT..185-200*. If a butt ends up a little dry, just thin your favorite sauce and add a little for moisture, or come up with your own more neutral moisturizer using AJ or chicken broth, vinegar, worster, water, etc...I'd say if you liked the enhanced pork butt, it was at least partly because it was enhanced, and there's nothing wrong with that. I've had great tasting enhanced pork, Kroger's ribs at least. You've got to remember that today's pork has been called "the other white meat", and that's partly because it's so much leaner than the pork of yesteryear. Enhancement, if not overdone, can really help with the flavor, and that's really what the pros are doing with Kosmos and Butchers injections, at least to an extent.

If you are like me, and don't like to take the chance with enhanced pork butts, use larger, whole, unenhanced ones. I've had great results with 7-10 pounders, and I can get two of those on the rack at a time in my little 18.5". If you only put one butt on the bottom rack above the water pan, you won't get as much smoke flavor as if you use the top rack or have two on the bottom rack. That's just the dynamic of cooking right above the water pan. I get plenty smoke on two butts crowding the bottom rack, though.

Sorry so long, but next time, if you only want to cook one butt, cook one at least 8 pounds on the top rack overnight. You can add appetizers to the bottom rack the next morning or even use the top rack if there's room. One more thing regarding smoke flavor: Yes, hickory is stronger than apple, but the more moisture the wood has, the more flavor, and if the chunks start smoking or burning quickly, you know they want last that long. Adam Perry Lang suggests not using green wood, but using wood that has at least a little moisture in it. That's definately my preference as well, and that's why it's great if you can find your own local source of wood.

Learning is a lot of fun, especially when you see it first hand, so don't just take my word for anything. BBQ cuts are cheap, so get cookin' and learn first hand!
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OOps...I could've SWORN that the OP said that the butt reached tenderness, but that's what I get for posting before finishing coffee after little sleep. Sorry guys!
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So yep...regarding the HALF a BUTT in queastion, you don't know if a butt is "dry" or not until you cook it long enough to render the fat, and I agree with the others that said it probably wasn't done yet. (Still, cook to tenderness, not a certain temp. I first check butts and briskets at about the 185* mark.)

You'd think that a 6 pounder would be done in 10 hrs cooking at 250, BUT....it wasn't a six pounder. It was half of a TWELVE POUNDER, and in my experience, cutting them in half never really helps near as much as you'd think in cutting the time. You get more bark, but you end up with drier meat, too, since there's more exposed surface area.
 
The original butt was enhanced...They are a touch salty but are designed to stay moist and tender. This could be the biggest difference in the two cooks.
 
Originally posted by Adam B:
Phil & Anthony,

When I checked the temp and it registered 185 with my thermopen, it sure seemed tender as the probe slid in with little resistance....I foiled and rested the butt for about 45 minutes...Do you think the "dryness" is actually from being undercooked, thus not allowing the fat to render?

Thanks, Adam
Click to expand...

I guess I read "TENDER" after all, the other day, so no, the butt wasn't UNDERCOOKED and dry because the fat wasn't rendered.

Yeah, probably the biggest difference was the enhancement, but I'd still suggest trying a larger sized bone-in butt and cooking whole next time.

I wouldn't use Blues Hog rub for pork butts since I think it's pretty low on flavor, but my biggest queastion is why rub 36 hrs. in advance? That's a bit early, and I'm no food scientist, but I'd think that might also account for some unnecessary moisture loss. I rub no earlier than the morning of an overnighter, and have had great results even rubbing right before smoking. I just let the butts sit out long enough to lose their chill so the rub will have a chance to "sweat" before smoking.
 
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