So What Did I Do Wrong?


 
R L Bagwell

R L Bagwell

TVWBB Pro
I decided last week that I'd try doing a butt - for pulled pork - on my Summit gasser; have smoked chickens on it before and they turned out pretty decent. Rubbed and wrapped a 7.5 pounder last Wednesday, left it in the fridge until 5 AM Friday morning, and put it on about 6 AM, with the grill temp running at 265º. I kept my SS smoker box stocked with hickory chunks for the first four hours of the cook - went through about eight a-bit-less-than-fist-sized chunks over the period - and the butt was done (internal temp measured 200º) around 2:30 PM. I wrapped it in heavy-duty foil, then wrapped it in a towel, and put it in a cooler for about 4 hours.

Around 6:30 PM, I unwrapped it, began pulling, and noticed almost NO smoke ring; took a taste and, sure enough, there was almost no smoke flavor whatsoever. Otherwise, it was moist, tender, and tasty, but I'm used to - and prefer - considerably more smokiness in my pulled pork, and have never experienced a similar occurrence when cooking on my WSM.

Any ideas as to why this might have happened, and what I might do to improve the smoke flavor on the next attempt?
 
RL. - I would think it was the wrap. I would just put the meat on and only foil when you come close to your desired temperature.
 
Maybe I wasn't clear - the butt was wrapped only after the internal temp had reached 200 and it had been taken off the grill - it spent about 8.5 hours cooking, and was exposed to hickory chunks smoke for then first four hours....
 
I can't explain it...I guess it's the BBQ gods saying, "What the heck are you using gas for when you have a WSM?" :)
 
Rooster-

I agree with Dwain. Use that fully equipped WSM with the DigiQ2 for your smokes and leave the gas grill for the quick and easy stuff.

Mike
 
I tried using the smoker box on my summit a few times and all it seemed to do was billow smoke out the back, if you look at the size of the vent on the back, there is no hope of the smoke from the wood chips or chunks doing anything to the meat. The vent is so big and there is no way throttle it down, I find it pointless to use the smoker box anymore, but it sure does smell good with hickory chips.
 
Dave O said:
I tried using the smoker box on my summit a few times and all it seemed to do was billow smoke out the back, if you look at the size of the vent on the back, there is no hope of the smoke from the wood chips or chunks doing anything to the meat. The vent is so big and there is no way throttle it down, I find it pointless to use the smoker box anymore, but it sure does smell good with hickory chips.
Click to expand...

Dave, you and Dwain may have a point - guess it's the tightwad in me, not wanting to use the charcoal on a single butt (I generally cook two plus a brisket flat each time, and freeze for future use)...on the other hand, I wonder just how successful I'd be basting with liquid smoke??? (I AM being facetious, BTW, and certainly not blasphemous:p)
 
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