I'm going by and picking up 8 butts this afternoon for the NCSU tailgate this Saturday. I prefer whole shoulders, but the time needed to cook is so much less with butts.
I did make a pretty pivotal decision this weekend as well. I always inject my pork with apple juice to make it super moist inside. Doing so though, creates an incredible mess while chopping or pulling. I havent had any issues with it drying out, so I'll most likely only be injecting my whole hogs going forward.
I also used a Makers Mark 46 Cask Stave to add some flavor to the meat. Holy hell, the smokey smell was excellent and you could taste a hint of the bourbon in the flavor of the meat.
Alright. I'm pulling the trigger this week and doing some Pork Butts. I'm reading that I need to do a dry rub the night before and put it in the refrigerator, take it out and let it come to room temp. Then smoke 4-6 hours on Saturday.
I'll buy the smoker tonight and assemble it and plan on doing a burn off on Thursday to get rid of any lingering chemicals and what not.
tsy - can I be your friend?
How long does a 6-8 pound pork butt take on a smoker? I've never actually done one and I'll be giving it a go in a couple of weeks when I go visit my parents. When I do it at home in an enameled cast iron dutch oven I usually go about 6-6.5 hours for a 6 pound butt at 300 degrees and it comes out perfect.
Also, I've tried fat side up and down, and I think fat side up works best in the pot because it allows the bottom of the butt to stick to the bottom and get a nice crunchy char to it, whereas when the fat side is down it doesn't stick. I thought it would help keep it more moist if the fat side was up but I didn't really notice a difference in that respect. What do you usually do on a smoker?
I wouldn't think bringing the meat up to room temp when slow cooking really matters at all. I let steaks, pork chops, tenderloins, etc. come to room temp so that they aren't cooked on the outside and completely raw on the inside. But with smoking, you really don't have the same concerns because after 6 hours that ish is going to be cooked.
How long does a 6-8 pound pork butt take on a smoker? I've never actually done one and I'll be giving it a go in a couple of weeks when I go visit my parents. When I do it at home in an enameled cast iron dutch oven I usually go about 6-6.5 hours for a 6 pound butt at 300 degrees and it comes out perfect.
Also, I've tried fat side up and down, and I think fat side up works best in the pot because it allows the bottom of the butt to stick to the bottom and get a nice crunchy char to it, whereas when the fat side is down it doesn't stick. I thought it would help keep it more moist if the fat side was up but I didn't really notice a difference in that respect. What do you usually do on a smoker?
Apparently HT has brisket on sale this week? My wife called and asked if I would pick one up for this weekend.
Since I've never done one before, any suggestions?