Please Double Check the Pork Butt Plan


 
Here's the outcome, I pulled the pork off at 9:30 this morning, foiled it and let it rest for an hour.

Thinking that the pork for this pork was destined for the trash due to the high heat, my hopes were dwindling fast. I read Chris's article awhile back where he said that the shiny new interiors will reflect the heat back into the chamber and make it run hot and not to be to overly concerned until the unit was seasoned. This was also mentioned in various places here as well.

I pulled the pork earlier today and it was actually GOOD! I was presently surprised. As indicated by some, next time I will use WATER to see how that affects the cook.

Here is one question though, Chris mentiones that one reason that it may run hotter is if you have "to much heat and not enough meat". Using the minion method, can you have to much UNLIT charcoal to start with? I used 10 Stubbs briquettes to start the process, thinking this would create a slower burn with lower temperatures.

Later this week, I plan to get another pork butt the same size and use water in the pan and if there are any suggestions on the minion method as far as the quantity goes, I will give that a try.

It has been an interesting process and I appreciate everyone's patience with me during this "learning" period. Thanks again.

Spencer
 
I'm happy to hear that the results were good. I suspect that I speak for all of us when I say we're only too happy to be able to help.

We obsess over the process but in reality, there is a fair latitude in what produces good results. The more you use your WSM the more skill you will develop getting the results you want. Even with all of our suggestions (some of which may conflict because there is no one "right" way) there is no substitute for experience.

I suggest you start a log and note everything you can recall about the smoke. Include comments about what you would do differently next time. That will best leverage your experience toward improving your results. I've been doing that and often review notes before starting a smoke.

Of course, frequent practice will help.
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UPDATE

It is a month later and I wanted to update everyone on the second try of the pork butt. The people that read this might remember that I was having some trouble with the temps due to a new WSM and I got the great idea to use a clay saucer. The smoker settled at 330 degrees and the pork was ok, however I still felt defeated.

I went back to the store yesterday and bought another pork butt the same size as I tried before. I started with a new 15 lb bag of Stubbs and that filled the charcoal ring 3/4 full on my 22.5 WSM. I placed four fist sized hickory chunks in the charcoal.

Since I learned my lesson last time, I foiled the bottom of the water pan and left the inside unfoiled as explained in the video. I put 2 gallons of water in the pan and assembled the rest of the smoker.

I prepared the meat the same as before. I also used the Maverick ET-732. I used the minion method and only lit 10 briquettes. When the temp reached 200 degrees I closed the vents to 50%. Eventually it stabilized around 250 degrees. I was in heaven.

I was able to keep it in the 240-260 range during the cook. I did add a half gallon of water in the middle of the cook, but I don't think that it really needed it. I took the pork off at 196 degrees. I checked the charcoal and there was about 5% remaining. I put the lid on and kept the smoker probe in after I took the meat out. I want to see how long the WSM will hold temp for on a bag of Stubbs. It was in the 90's today in Florida and we did have a thunderstorm go through during the cook. The WSM was under a porch so it did not get wet. It has been almost 12 hours since I have started this and the Maverick is telling me that it's still at 250 degrees. I would imagine that if I stuffed the ring with 1 1/2 bags of Stubbs, it may run into the 16+ hour mark.

My experience was much better this time and I'm very satisfied with my purchase. After the last go around, I thought I had made a mistake, now I think it was the best decision I ever made. I hope this post helps someone else out in the future.

Again, I appreciate everyone's help with this "learning experience"....

Spencer
 
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