Smoking Pork days before I want to serve....then crock pot?

[PowerDr]

I want to smoke a pork shoulder for the family but I want to make it a couple days ahead because of time.  I have seen some posts about doing this and then putting in the crock pot the day of the meal to warm up.  My question is how to keep it from drying out?  I heard that you can add some broth but I don't really want to change the flavor, I love the flavor when it comes out of the smoker and we shred it and eat it right away.  I would love to keep that flavor and just warm it up a could days later.  I thought about seeing if I can catch the juices and add that to the crock pot.

Thanks,

[Habanero Smoker]

You could capture the juices, but I would separate the fat from the juices before adding it back into the pulled pork. There are a few ways to capture the juices. You can tightly foil the butt after the bark has set. What I mean by "set", is when the bark is developed enough so that when you scratch it with your fingernail, or rub it with your finger the bark does not come off the meat. Or you can place the butt in a foiled pan, and after the bark is set, tightly cover the butt with foil. When you foil the butt, keep in mind that it will cook faster, so keep an eye on the internal temperature. You don't want it to go over 204°F.

When I make pulled pork ahead of time, I will shred it as soon as I can handle it once it is out of the smoker. After shredding; this is when you should add your captured juices that have had the fat separated, mix in well, and place the pulled pork into sealable plastic bags, remove as much air as possible before sealing, and place in the refrigerator. When you get ready to reheat the pork, you will find that the pulled pork is almost like a solid piece of meat, so take the time to break the pork up a bit before placing it in the crock pot. I find that I generally have to add a cup of low sodium chicken or vegetable broth, or you can use plan water. I generally reheat on the high setting, and after 30 minutes or so, I stir the pork up, until it loosens more from itself, and it reheats more evenly. After stirring, you may find that you will need more liquid. At this time you can turn the crock pot setting to low (or leave it on high and keep an eye on it), and continue to reheat until it is at a proper temperature.

Because the pulled pork has been shredded ahead of time and the bark has intermingled with the meat; that smoke flavor from the bark has distributed, and "aged", it might have a slightly different taste. I feel that the taste is better. If you want to maintain the flavor you get that is more similar to eating it right after it has been smoke, you could try keeping the butt whole, or in large pieces, and shred it just prior to placing it in the cock pot the add the juices, and other liquids if needed. Though I find shredding a cold butt more difficult to do