Oven-finished pork butt + foil drippings = unbelievable! Better than slow-smoked!


 
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Dan Wicker

TVWBB Fan
Had Monday and Tuesday off this week, and I volunteered to smoke a pork butt for my wife's office of 14 people this coming Friday (for her to reheat in a crock pot at work). I thought I could get away with slow-smoking the biggest butt I could find, which was a little over 8 lbs. Trimmed it, smoked it overnight at 250 for 14 hours. I had a couple of bites myself for breakfast this morning and thought it was pretty darn good. Mr. Brown is my standby recipe and the bark turned out great, but unfortunately the chewiness will be gone by the time it gets reheated in the crock pot.

But anyways, I only got around 4 pounds of cooked meat. My wife insisted that I smoke another butt out of fear that 13 women and 1 man could make quick work of 4 pounds of meat. No problem. I figured I could do the quick-smoke method (smoke at 275-300 until 160 internal, foil, and oven cook at 300 until 197 internal). I was a little worried about the bark not forming up, but the bark will soften anyway in the crock pot.

Results? As I figured, the rub spices were still there, but the bark wasn't. No big deal. Moisture was off the charts, though. But after pulling, I saw at least a 1/2 cup of juices still in the foil, so I dumped them all over the meat. HOLY FLAVOR BLAST, BATMAN! No need for sauce! Easily the best tasting butt I've made yet. The bark will be missed, but the drippings really transformed this into something very special!

Here's hoping they all enjoy it on Friday!
 
Hey Dan, that sounds fantastic. How big was the second butt and how long did it take to smoke then finish??? Details man please. I am a convert to high heat brisket and chuck. Once it is foiled, it makes no difference where it is cooked as no more smoke absorption will occur.
 
Yep! I have been foiling for years because of the desire to hold juice. I taught my daughter's boyfriend to cook butts and included the part about going to the oven after foiling. I have expoused this method several times in the last several days.
 
Originally posted by Don Irish:
Hey Dan, that sounds fantastic. How big was the second butt and how long did it take to smoke then finish??? Details man please. I am a convert to high heat brisket and chuck. Once it is foiled, it makes no difference where it is cooked as no more smoke absorption will occur.
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The butt was around 6.5 pounds pre-cooked, but I trim a significant amount of fat off my butts since it's a pretty unappetizing texture - at least a pound of fat removed before smoking. I smoked it over a mix of apple and cherry for right at 3 hours and then it spent 2 hours in a 300 degree oven to get to 197 internal.

I wonder if I can get the same results with the slow smoke method by sitting the butt in a foil pan, maybe in about a half-inch of apple juice. That should enable me to get a good bit of chewy bark, as well as lots of drippings to mix in. Or is it more the braising process in the foil that creates the juices?
 
Don't bother with the apple juice.
There will be plenty of juice from the rendering process.
I cook almost all of mine in a pan and foil the last couple of hours.
You keep mentioning a temp that it is done, that is wrong to go by. It is done when it is tender not necessarily at 200 degrees.
Stab the meat with a temp probe in multiple places and when it slides in with very little resistance it is done.

My last few cooks have been over nite low ans slow. It seems like less work.

Good luck,

Dave
 
Dave, thanks for the hints, but calling my method "wrong" is wrong. I'm well-read on these forums and I'm quite familiar with the method of probe-stabbing like warm butter. I use it for brisket. I simply posted what temps worked for me for the pork butt, no more, no less.

Not to mention, but it's also quite illogical to repeatedly probe-stab a foiled piece of meat, allowing the steam to escape and therefore slowing down the braising process.
 
well then,
I are sorry to call you wrong.
With that said you do give any newbies that may be visiting the wrong impression on when done is.

Sorry for the name calling,

Have a Merry Christmas

Dave
 
Thanks for the sarcasm, much appreciated.

With that said, any newbies that try this method might get the same results and they might not. That's pretty much how all recipes work - results may vary, right? What I say isn't gospel.. and same goes for you.
 
Dan,

I just noticed you are from Ga, where is Woodstock?
i lived in Vidalia home of the world famous Vidalia sweet onions.
Great pecans in the area too.

I mean no disrespect, fluctuations and meanings get all twisted when typing instead of speaking.

I sincerely mean Merry Christmas,

Dave
 
When you bring the pork into the oven, does it give your kitchen/house a smokey smell (aroma)?? My wife doesn't care for the smoke aroma.
 
Dave,

No offense taken, and I agree about typing vs. speaking. I've been a professional internet flamethrower for over 10 years, so I sometimes have a hair trigger.
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Woodstock is about 30 minutes north of metro Atlanta. I've never been to Vidalia, but their onions are simply the best, and thankfully available year-round for us.

Thom, the smoke smell isn't as apparent when foiled, but it definitely smells like roasted meat. Try it sometime and see if she objects. Either way, you win in the end.
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This may be a dumb question...and I may be missing something.. But, if you are smoking at 275-300 on the smoker until 160 internal and then foiling and oven coaking at 300...couldn't you just wrap in foil/put in foil pan and leave in the smoker instead of oven? And, could you do the same low and slow at 250 in smoker and then foil last couple hours to get the juice? I wouldn't mind trying this because I'd like to cut back on the bark a little and increase the juice, too. Thanks!
 
It has been my experience that the bark turns soft when you foil it.
Try putting it in a foil pan uncovered after 160 degrees.
you will get juice and keep half or more of the bark.
It will take a bit longer because the foiling speeds up the process.
You can finish in an oven or leave on the smoker, I prefer to leave it on the smoker, I usually have things to put in the oven any way.

dave
 
Not a dumb question at all. You can absolutely do what you suggested, Dan. I chose the oven out of convenience, mainly. I napped while it was finishing in the oven and the thermometer alarm woke me up.
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You'd probably actually get more consistent temps in the WSM since it's not constantly fluctuating like the on/off cycle of an oven.

Man, that meat was good. Next time I will be sitting the butt in its own foil pan to catch them all.
 
Ok this better work. I am getting ready to put on 3 PB's 2 of them are 5.5lb's and 1 is 7.5lb's. I will be doing them high heat and cooking to 160 and then putting in pans and back in WSM, since it will be already hot. This site has been very, very good to me, so, this better work. Some times I just don't want to do low and slow except when doing Comp. BBQ and looking for that good bark. Will let y'all know how it turns out.
Smoke n in the COLD IN Kansas City

Results: put PB's on at 12 noon, ran WSM at 315 for 4 hours over hickery, then wraped in foil for 3 hours. When taken off the PB;s were very moist and tender. It was just as tender as when done low n slow, the only thing I will do diffrent next time it hit it with heavy smoke, to get more of a hickery flavor, some of it lost when it was put in foil. Bark was no big deal for this since this will be pulled and seal in 1 lb bags for sale. Had no trouble keeping temps up. Foiled water pan(dry) and prop the lid up with a peice of slim hickery to get better air flow. This will be my way of doing PB's in the furture. Might try it in a Comp. to see how it goes over. Thanks for all the info
 
Dan J,
The benefit to the oven once wrapped is that you don't have to "tend" the oven. The WSM holds temps very well and if using a Stoker or other ATC then it will actually keep the heat more consistent than your oven can. On a cold and windy cook 300 is pretty tough to maintain without some sort of effective windblock.

I enjoy the maintenance of the fire and so normally just leave it in the WSM wrapped. Also, just wrapping and keeping at your normal cook temp will speed the process along without the need for cranking up the heat.

I agree with Dan W about the smell in the house. I have wrapped the heck out of it thinking I had it sealed up but the scent still gets out. It isn't strong but is definately there.
 
I don't finish in my WSM after foiling unless I have to, like the oven is busy or something. If I run out of fuel or once the meat is foiled it's usually in the oven.

I'm interested in trying that Dan, I've always just let the butt foil drippings go down the drain. I always save brisket drippings but never butt. Mine seems to be mostly rended fat, so I'd probably defat with a seperator (to each his own in that respect), still, I never thought about salvaging the juice and adding it back into the pulled meat.
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I haven't tried braising an extrnal fat trimmed butt, sounds interesting though, if you try it I'd be interested in hearing your thoughts.

One thought I had about your comments was to add juice to your foiled butts before you put them in the oven. With any luck this would expedite getting to tenderland, give you more liquid to dump over the pulled and WTH add some apple juice to the liquid dump.
 
Well, it should come as no surprise that the BBQ was thoroughly enjoyed by her entire office. Several of them asked what I did for a living. Several claimed I could profit off this stuff. Hmm...
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