Temperature in meat wouldn't raise


 
T

Tormod Eikill

TVWBB Member
Funniest thing happened the other day. I was cooking some pork, and when the temperature reached 160 inside the meat, it just stayed there. For hours. My guests came and I had to finish the job in my kitchen oven at 350 degrees.

What has happened here, do you think? Why didn't the meat get warmer?
 
<BLOCKQUOTE class="ip-ubbcode-quote"><div class="ip-ubbcode-quote-title">quote:</div><div class="ip-ubbcode-quote-content">Originally posted by Tormod Eikill:
Funniest thing happened the other day. I was cooking some pork, and when the temperature reached 160 inside the meat, it just stayed there. For hours. My guests came and I had to finish the job in my kitchen oven at 350 degrees.

What has happened here, do you think? Why didn't the meat get warmer? </div></BLOCKQUOTE>

That's called a "Plateau" and it's a good thing..........this is when the "magic" is happening and the connective tissue is breaking down and the fat is rendering and the meat is becoming tender. This is very common in pork shoulders, briskets, chuck roast, etc, while cooking low and slow. The plateau can last many hours without a temperature change and sometimes the temperature may even drop a couple degrees in this process. It is also common to hit two plateaus, one around 160* and another around 180*.

Next time, plan for at least 2 hours per lb of meat you're cooking. Sometimes it will not take 2 hours per lb, other times it could take more.
 
I agree with Larry. My only other question would be is, did you check the temp in several places. I made the mistake of placing my Nu-Temp in one place on a butt. Unfortunately the probe went into a clump of fat inside the butt. Drove me nuts with the temp reading.
 
This is what a butt's internal temp might look like over a 225 deg, 14 hour cook.
If you cook at a higher temp, the stall will occur at a higher temp. Let's say your pit temp is 275, then the stall might be around 170.
butt temp
 
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