Pork Butt Advice


 
B

BradyB

TVWBB Member
Hello,

I am going to be doing some pulled pork only for the second time for a birthday party. The first time I did not cook it long enough and it was so tough to pull apart. There will be about 15 people there. How big of a pork butt should I get for this many people? I will also have to do the quick method using foil. Any ideas as to how long it might take?

Also, I went to Bucky's BBQ in Greenville, SC recently and they had this vinegar based pepper sauce there that was delicious. It was not super thin and had some thickness to it, but not too much, and seemed to have some mustard in it. I would love to try and make something like this to go with the pork. Any suggestions as a good starting point for this type of sauce?

Thanks everyone
 
What other food will be served? Will this pork be the only meat? How many adults?

The yield for pulled pork is about half the uncooked weight.

At 1/4 lb each, you'd need at least 7.5 lb of butt.
At 1/2 lb each, you'd need at least 15 lb of butt.

If this were the only meat for a party of adults, I'd go more towards 1/2 lb each. "Better to have it and not need it than to need it and not have it."

You could cook this 1~2 days in advance. Pulled pork reheats well. Any leftovers make for good sammiches later.
 
Hi, I would go larger on the butt. You can never have too much PP on hand. Freeze any leftovers, they are great for any recipe requiring meat (tacos, sandwiches, soups, etc., etc.).

If you liked the vinegar/peppery sauce, check out the "Renowned Mr. Brown" recipe on this website. I've used it several times with great success. The recipe calls for a mop sauce. At the end, I've added ketchup and brown sugar to the leftover mop sauce (a little bit at a time) until I'm happy with the consistency and it makes a thin, tasty sauce to serve on the side.

I would target your internal temp to reach between 195-205............when you can easily wiggle around the bone and remove it, it should be done. A large butt may require 12 hours +........I usually smoke them at between 225-250 on a WSM 22.

If you plan on a 12 hour cook, I would start 15 or 16 hours prior to your guests arrival. You can always foil and cooler the finished butt for 4 hours + and still have hot PP upon their arrival.

Last time I did it, I started around 9pm and cooked overnight until about 9-10am the next morning........foiled/coolered until about noon when the folks started arriving

Best of luck......report your results, inquiring minds like to know!
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Yo B-If they sell it, I could be convinced to pick you up a bottle or so of that sauce.
I prefer a butt with the bone still inside. After 8-9 hours you can use the bone to test doneness. If you can't pull the bone out easily it isn't done. When it's done, the bone will slide out like a large pork pop sickle. I would then stick the butt in a tupperware, wrap in towels, and stick in a cooler for an hour or so. It should shred easily after that.
 
Thanks for the tips. It is all adults and this is the only meat. We are also having mac n cheese, collard greens, roasted asparagus, coleslaw (for the sandwiches), fried green tomatoes, and shrimp cocktail. I will check out the "Renowned Mr. Brown" recipe for the mop and fiddle around with that maybe for the sauce. My brother lives in Easley, SC just outside of Greenville. I don't think they sell it, but I never really checked; that might be a good option. I'll have to have him check on that for me.

What if I smoked the butts this coming saturday (the party is on saturday May 8th). I have the time to do it during the day this weekend. Would it last in the fridge that long or should I more likely freeze it and then just reheat it the day of the party? I wanted to try and avoid foiling if possible so I can get a nice bark on it.
 
Brady, if this weekend works for you then do two 9-10 lb butts since you have the smoker going. Pull it, freeze it, and reheat. It will make party day easier. Honestly, don't worry about foiling some, I tend to smoke with no foil and then throw in a cooler foiled until I am ready to pull. The bark is fine. As for sauce, I can't help you there. Good luck
 
Here's Bucky's menu - http://buckysbbq.com/menu.html

You're talking about their "Hot Pepper Sauce"?

Here's a "Classic" Carolina Vinegar Sauce that might be similar. Add extra peppers to taste.
Ingredients:
•1 1/2 cup cider vinegar
•1/2 cup ketchup
•1/2 cup water
•1 tablespoon sugar
•1 teaspoon salt
•1/4 teaspoon red pepper flakes
Preparation:
Mix thoroughly. Place in an airtight container and refrigerate for several days, allowing the flavors to blend.

And here's a Mustard Sauce ...
Ingredients:
•1 cup prepared yellow mustard
•1/2 cup balsamic vinegar
•1/3 cup brown sugar
•2 tablespoons butter
•1 tablespoon Worcestershire sauce
•1 tablespoon lemon juice
•1 teaspoon cayenne
Preparation:
Mix all ingredients together and simmer over a low heat for 30 minutes.

I wouldn't keep the pulled pork in the fridge for a week; I'd freeze it.
 
Originally posted by BradyB:
Thanks for the tips. It is all adults and this is the only meat. We are also having mac n cheese, collard greens, roasted asparagus, coleslaw (for the sandwiches), fried green tomatoes, and shrimp cocktail. I will check out the "Renowned Mr. Brown" recipe for the mop and fiddle around with that maybe for the sauce. My brother lives in Easley, SC just outside of Greenville. I don't think they sell it, but I never really checked; that might be a good option. I'll have to have him check on that for me.

What if I smoked the butts this coming saturday (the party is on saturday May 8th). I have the time to do it during the day this weekend. Would it last in the fridge that long or should I more likely freeze it and then just reheat it the day of the party? I wanted to try and avoid foiling if possible so I can get a nice bark on it.
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Small world. Greetings from the metropolis of Easley. You should do this as an over nighter. Here's how I do it: Slather generously with regular yellow mustard, rub your butts with Bone Suckin Dry Rub. Smoke for 9-10 hours or so(i like apple wood). I would start the fire around 10:00 the night before. Meat should be done in the morning around 10:00. Wrap the meat an let it rest until you shred. I know you were talking about a high heat cook, but this is what I would do.
 
Alright, so I contacted Bucky's. They keep the vinegar based sauce behind the counter and keep out a mustard based one and a tomato based one. The tomato based one was not like a Kansas City type sauce. It was still very vinegary (maybe Carolina Red type sauce). I am having someone pick some up and send it out to me. I will have to fiddle around with different sauces. I think I will do smoke them this weekend and freeze. I don't have a Weber just the knock off of it from Sears and would be worried about temperature fluctuations if going overnight. I'll post pics and such if I can remember. Thanks everyone we shall see how it goes.
 
Uh... Two 9-10 pound butts for 15 adults? You're going to run short. By the time you trim, render, remove the bone, obvious fat, etc. you certainly won't get 9-10 pounds of meat. I can just about use a whole processed butt for one turn-in box.

Also, you're assuming that both butts are going to cook exactly perfect. I would do at least a third just for the insurance. Pork butts are cheap.

Russ
 
Search for miss piggy mustard sauce. I still miss henrys BBQ. And that miss piggy sauce is the closest thing to what I consider a proper BBQ sauce for pork.
 
I think it's easy to overestimate the amount needed per person. First off, you're talking about straight meat, no bones or anything else. Next, there's the bun itself, and sides. By the time al is said and done, and average of 1/4 lb per person likely works. Since you always want to make extra, you should be way ahead with two butts.
 
Yeah, my friend is doing either fried green tomatoes or fried okra and another friend is bringing collards. I ended up purchasing 4 pork shoulder picnics about 5 lbs each for a total of ~20 lbs. They have the skin on them, do I just remove that and all the extra fat? I think I will try the Mr. Brown recipe since that seems to be a good one that many people have tried. I'll check out the Miss Piggy sauce. I am going to let people choose their sauce and have my usual kansas city style (or memphis not sure) type sauce I use on my ribs, a mustard sauce and then a carolina red (I think). So at 1.5-2 hours per pound, in theory, these should take around 10 hours?
 
Yes. Remove the skin and thick fat (yield can be substantially less with picnics as a result).

Cook time depends on temp. Plan plenty, they'll hold.
 
Better to have it and not need it than to need it and not have it.
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I definitely would go with that strategy. It's always better to have too much food than not enough. Any extras can be saved or given away as doggie bags.

Pulled pork freezes really well. A vacuum Foodsaver is awesome but a ziploc will work for short term freezing.

It's weird, but I'll make pulled pork for some friends for dinner (4 adults, two kids below 7 years old) and 5.5 pounds is not enough.
 
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