Okay first butt. Using for pulled pork. See if I'm right. 210 degree cook for 1 1/2 -2 hours per pound. smoke for about 4 hours. I have maple apple hickory and jim beam. Which ones would you use? thanks for any help. you all are awsome.
I'd use HICKORY ;D
Don't go by time...
Get it up to 195 IT (some will say more, some will say less. The bone will slide out EASY when it's done).
I would do more than 4 hrs. I know others say meat does not take smoke after 4 hrs but I disagree. I personally think it is because the cabinet temp does not get back up to 210* to 220* right away. I did two butts this weekend with 6 hours of smoke and I think it could have used more. As for wood. I have done apple, hickory and oak and like them all. Pecan really has me hooked on brisket.
What has been mentioned before is that meat will not Absorb smoke past an IT of 140*, BUT
It sure can make the bark taste great!
When you pull your pork you will want to distribute the bark back in with the pulled part so
that everyone gets some love from the smoke.
Is it a proven fact that meat does not absorb smoke after four hours? Or is there an IT* after which the inner meat does not absorb smoke? Just wondering.
I have always heard an IT of 140*
Dang ole piece of meat can't tell time! ;D
Smoke Ring – The "smoke ring" is a reddish/pink coloration just under the surface of the meat. It's formed by a chemical reaction between the nitrogen dioxide in the smoke and the myoglobin in meat (which creates nitric acid and colors the meat). A good smoke ring is prized in BBQ because it usually indicates that the meat was successfully cooked slowly at a low temperature. The smoke ring gradually forms until the meat (just under the surface) reaches 140°F, then the formation stops. The thickness of your smoke ring depends on how long it takes for the meat to reach this temperature. Knowing how a smoke ring forms gives us two practical applications:
1. To maximize your smoke ring take the meat directly from the refrigerator to the cooker. Conventional wisdom instructs you to bring the meat to room temperature before cooking, but starting straight from a cooler temperature will give your meat more time to develop a smoke ring.
2. Since smoke ring formation stops at 140°F you only need to worry about generating smoke for the first 4 hours of cooking (roughly). After that the meat will not be absorbing any more smoke flavor or coloring. After 4 hours, just concentrate on keeping a steady low temperature until the meat is done.
http://www.brokenarrowranch.com/Recipes/Tips-Smoking.htm
CRG has posted a fairly good description, but note it is not the smoke that produces a "smoke ring", it is the nitrogen dioxide that is produced by burning organic fuels such as wood, charcoal, natural and propane gas. You can get a "smoke ring" in your kitchen gas oven without using smoke. Outside the barbecue circuit it is referred to as pink ring.
Also as in the description the 140°F pertains to the surface temperature, not the internal meat temperature. But you don't need smoke penetration to get more smoke flavor, especially with something like pulled pork, in which the meat is shredded and the bark is distributed throughout. Although the smoke will not longer penetrate, it will continue to adhere to the surface of the meat, though as the surface of the meat gets hotter less smoke will adhere. I would like to point out that smoke flavor is a seasoning, and I don't like it overpowering the other flavors.
okay Its is on started at 7:30 2 butts @ 4 lbs each on same rack (not touching each other) oven set @210 4 hours smoke set oven for 9 hours. Can pull early and FTC if needed. All I have is a reg meat thermometer to check IT. Slathered with mustard and rubbed with Famous Daves Rib Rub, then i rubbed on some brown sugar. Will I be ok with this? guess we will find out!
oh and the vent at half open.
Good luck! Let us know how it turns out..
Don't panic when the butts stall in the 160° range.. That's when the magic happens.
You can bump up the cabinet temp if you like. Sometimes I run almost 250° in my Traeger.
butts are down to 3 hours ohh they look so good. And smell great. I'll try and post some pics later if can figure out how.
Welcome to the club, Mailman. Fortunately, the only 12 step programs are rub recipes :-)
Oh man. Nice pups. Love labs. Had to put my dog down the day before Christmas. I'm partial to the yellows.
Well, as funny as life is sometimes, I now have no labs. Went through some tough times a little while back and lost my job, home, etc. Just now getting back on my feet. Back before everything really hit, my buddy and I had our dogs put out a litter and we gave them away to people who really wanted a good lab but couldn't afford it. All of them went pretty quickly. Then, because of losing my house, I had to give away the best Lab I've ever had (Steeler) because we couldn't bring her with us. She's doing really good and getting hunted quite a bit, so that makes me happy. My wifes grandmother got one of the pups (who now weighs 117 pounds) so I do get to see him quite a bit. The rest are doing really good. Deb from this site has one of the pups as well (Saffron) and Deb has done a wonderful job with her. I also know one of the pups is now working with the Indiana Department of Natural Resources and assists a game warden in stopping poaching of ducks and geese (was on the front page of the local paper with a big spread). So, while I'm really Lab sick right now, I hope to one day soon have another. Tough break with putting yours down. A buddy of mine had to put his down a bit ago. She was 13 and just not doing well. I hate to hear when that happens.
okay the butts are closing in on 9 hrs. Still IT at 160. put timer on for another 30 min and bumped heat to 250. Is this the right move? or just pull and ftc
Yeah, you have to get through 160-170 or they will be tough as a cinder block.
heat probe inserts easily
You need to get to at least 180* IT.
If not, you probably will have chopped pork instead of pulled pork.
Check the IT of your Butt in several locations.
Thanks guys. up to about 170
I personally would go higher than 180.
wont they start drying out?
At 180*, you have just broke down the colligen inside the butt.
That releases moisture back into the Butt.
That is why you will see temps stay the same for a while when it reaches the 170* area.
That stall could last for hours.
After the colligen is broke down the temps will start to rise again.
I take my butts to 190 to 195 or so and Still give them a couple hours with
double foil, wrap that in a LARGE towel, and place that in a cooler.
The temp will continue to rise while they are resting.
I would at least go to 185 to make sure you get past the colligen brakedown.
stubborn butts! wont move off 170. they were both just under 4 lbs. been in there almost 12 hours. wife is saying shes hungry. guess I figured wrong on the time.
Quote from: Mailman on July 05, 2010, 03:14:58 PM
stubborn butts! wont move off 170. they were both just under 4 lbs. been in there almost 12 hours. wife is saying shes hungry. guess I figured wrong on the time.
Under FOUR lbs each?
I no longer use IT exclusively when doing pulled pork. I used to be very religious and always pulled when above 180F but over time and with great knowledge gleaned from Habs, I also look at time in the Bradley. I've had butts that were in the Bradley for 18 hours that hit the 190F mark and they were great. I've had butts that were in the Bradley for 18 hours that only hit 165F and couldn't tell the difference between the two. That's the beauty of smoking......it's truly more of an art than a science, IMHO.
I would concur with SD, and add that I have taken butts as high as 205F and they were not dry.
I'm may be considered the odd man out on butts. I smoke/cook them at 200°F, and only take them to an internal temperature of 175°F, and they pull easily. My theory is that it is not only the final internal temperature, but how long the meat stays in the "zone" at which collagen begins to break down into gelatin. I trim the fat to 1/8" - 1/4", if I don't trim them that close, I will loose a lot of the bark do to too much surface fat. Lately I've been finding that the cryovac butts at Sam's are perfectly trimmed, and I only have to do a little trimming.
When the meat hits 175°F I use the fork test and move the probe in and out slowly to see if there is any drop in temperature. Rarely do I find a need to go beyond 175°F. The meat is always tender, but again I like my pulled pork with a little firmness, and it seems more moist then butts I have taken to a higher temperature. Also I don't like to take them to the point the meat seems to melt in your mouth. If you smoke/cook this way; when pulling you may find a few fat pockets that may need to be discarded.
SD;
Sorry to hear you had to find new homes for you Labs.