Need to hold pork for a few hours

[Guest]

I got a little anxious and probably started my pork butts too early tonight. Ideally I'd like to wrap and put in cooler at 2pm and take to party and pull by 4pm....But they may be done at 11am..what can I do in the meantime? Hold in oven?? I know I can't keep them in the cooler for 5 hours...so what are my options?
Thanks!

 

[Jim Groom]

Keri C. suggested a method for that if I remember correctly. Basically, she put them in Oven Bags, mashed them down, sealed them and then put them in ice water to cool them down. Put them in the fridge until a short time before serving and then heat them back up by placing the oven bags in hot water.

Let me search and see if I can find that post. Any one else remember seeing it?

 

[Jim Groom]

<BLOCKQUOTE class="ip-ubbcode-quote"><div class="ip-ubbcode-quote-title">quote:</div><div class="ip-ubbcode-quote-content">Originally posted by Jim Groom:
Yep, found it

"Posted July 21, 2006 08:12 AM

I still prefer the good old boilin' bag method, myself. If I'm cooking one butt, I usually see no reason not to go ahead and cook four. I usually remove the bone, put the cooled whole butt in the bag, seal it, smash it down a bit so that it's a bit flatter, and then chill it fast in ice water.

30 - 45 minutes per bagged unpulled butt in slowly simmering water at the max. If you've already pulled it, it won't take that long, like Doug said above.

Keri C " </div></BLOCKQUOTE>

 

[K Kruger]

If I'm doing a couple or three butts then I don't have a problem getting 5 hours out of coolering them packed with towels. An alternative is to wrap the butts in double HD as usual, then return them to the WSM and shut all the vents. The cooker will slowly cool as the coals extinguish and the butts will stay hot for quite a while. (Don't do this if it's cool out or raining.)

If you want to monitor temps during the rest lay your probe flat on a flat side of a butt before foiling--don't put the probe in the butt as it's the surface temp one wants to monitor. Place that butt in the cooler (or WSM) with the side with the probe on it away from the other butt(s), i.e., don't mash the side of the butt with the probe on it against the side of another butt.

You want the temp not to fall below 130. Serving temp is best from 145-155 at minimum so if the temp is below that when you unwrap them to pull the meat reheat it briefly after pulling.