New Smoker Startup

[icerat4]

Pulled Pork Ingredients



7-8 lbs. Boston Butt – bone-in

1 Large Bottle Yellow Mustard

2 Bottles of Grill Mates Pork Rub

1 Bottle of Apple Juice and Spray Bottle

1 Box of Tin Foil

1 Box of Cling Wrap

Internal Temperature Gage



Tom's Pulled Pork for the Weekend



Thursday



1.                 Slather yellow mustard all over Pork Butt

2.                 Coat Butt with Pork rub

3.                 Wrap in Cling Wrap plastic

4.                 Put in fridge over night



Friday at around 4:00p.m.



1.     Remove butt from fridge and remove wrap; coat butt with more Pork Rub



2.     Let butt sit 1-2 hours at room temperature



3.     Start the smoker with 4-5 hours of whatever smoke you will use



4.     Place butt on middle shelf



5.     Make sure the slider is all the way to the right on high with top vent open all of the way.  Shut the door and wait until the butt has been smoked for 3 hours



6.     Open the door and check the water in the bowl; fill bowl with water if needed.



7.     When the butt has been smoked for 3 hours, spray apple juice all over the butt. 



8.     when smoke is done at the 4-5 hour mark, put new water in the bowl and then spray the apple juice on the butt again.



9.     Shut door and GO TO BED!!



10. At around 7-8 a.m., check the temperature.  If it is not 195 degrees, do not remove.  Spray some more apple juice on the butt and wait until it reaches 195 degrees



11. When the temp reaches 195 degrees, remove the butt from the smoker and spray again with apple juice.  Then wrap it in foil and place a dishtowel or regular towel around it and place in a cooler or microwave.



12. Wait at least two hours to take the butt out of the foil and remove the fat.



13. READY TO EAT!!


       Hope this helps.Your cooking temps are way to high.205-215 max for the hole time.Internal temps at 195 is the best time to take them out.then ftc them.this is a 100% sure way of doing these.Ive done at least 65 or so of these since ive gotten my bs.Kirk at chez bubba helped me out alot to get the same great results each and every time.Use this recipie and all is good.

[kruserm]

icerat4 in step 5 you indicated to move the slider all the way to the right.   I am assuming you dont leave it in this position during the whole 3 hour smoke, do you?  If not, what is the target cooking temperature before you call it a night and check it in the morning?

Thanks for the help.

[bubbagump]

Rat,

How are you maintaining 205-215 box temp. all night with the slider all the way to the right? Before installing my PID there was no way I could hold that low of a temp with the slider maxed and the vent open, not even close.


Bubbagump

[icerat4]

With my vent all the way open and 2 7-8 pound butts in. the heat in my box never gets past 220 til the next morning.When the actual temps of the buts rise to the 185-190 area.14-15 pounds at one time take my bs that long.Kirk at chez bubba does the same thing.Dont worry it wont go past that temp.I was scared at frist to leave it go that way but ive had no problems.Done plenty that way maybe 65 butts or so alot .All done the same way with the same results.Maybe its just me and kirk who also does alot of butts have the same heat element.I am telling you at 7-8 the next morning my box temp is 215-220 tops.Every time.Its a beautiful thing .I was worried too but kirk told me not to and thats how i came to this for sure butt recipe.Hope this helps out.

[kruserm]

I have a DB so I wonder if the same rule would apply with setting it at its highest temp for overnight.  I would sure hate to ruin a couple of butts.

[Oldman]

I have a DB so I wonder if the same rule would apply with setting it at its highest temp for overnight.  I would sure hate to ruin a couple of butts.

Set your DB to the temp you want. It will make it happen for you. You want 220 F then set it for 220F.

[Gizmo]

I was afraid that 190 overnight would be too long and wanted to keep the process from having to start all over.  Good to know about the 160.  Looks like some more experimentation to get R done right.

[icerat4]

If your box temp and meat temp on the butt is 190-195 you could leave that butt in there for hours more .A butt has enough fat to keep it wet for a long time .And if done low and slow in the 205 215 range .During the whole prosses .There will be no problems the meat inside is soft and mushie.

[Fozzie]

Barbecue Basics for the Clueless

Hi all.  I've been reading this forum for a couple of weeks and just smoked my first boston butt with my new 4 rack digital smoker.  I thought it was pretty good for a first try but I want to master only a few basic items, boston butt and brisket.  Unfortunately I haven't been able to find the barbecue basics to create an outstanding butt or brisket.  I would appreciate any help with the following questions or a point in the right direction.

1.  How do you use the vent?  I know you turn the slidder but why?  Does the smoke get stale if it stays in the box too long?  Are you trying to reduce the moisture in the box?

2.  Why is temperature swings a bad thing & how does temperature influence the end result?  I've read that the meat starts to break down above a certain temperature but how do you know when its ready?  I've seen butt considered done at 175 to 195 degrees.

3.  Why do you only smoke for a couple of hours?  Is it because you don't want too much smoke flavor or does it become a waste when the meat reaches a certain temperature?  If its a temperature thing, should I smoke at a cooler temp?  (I smoked my first butt yesterday for 6 hours at 200 degrees with hickory and I wished it was a little more smokey.)

4.  Why do the FTC (foil towel cooler) technique?  Is there something to cooling off the butt slowly.

I know these are involved and controversal questions but I'm not content just following recipes.  I could spend a lifetime working all the variables but just want to create outstanding butt and brisket.  If I knew the details on "why" I could find my way there sooner.  Please help.     

[icerat4]

Barbecue Basics for the Clueless

Hi all.  I've been reading this forum for a couple of weeks and just smoked my first boston butt with my new 4 rack digital smoker.  I thought it was pretty good for a first try but I want to master only a few basic items, boston butt and brisket.  Unfortunately I haven't been able to find the barbecue basics to create an outstanding butt or brisket.  I would appreciate any help with the following questions or a point in the right direction.

1.  How do you use the vent?  I know you turn the slidder but why?  Does the smoke get stale if it stays in the box too long?  Are you trying to reduce the moisture in the box?

2.  Why is temperature swings a bad thing & how does temperature influence the end result?  I've read that the meat starts to break down above a certain temperature but how do you know when its ready?  I've seen butt considered done at 175 to 195 degrees.

3.  Why do you only smoke for a couple of hours?  Is it because you don't want too much smoke flavor or does it become a waste when the meat reaches a certain temperature?  If its a temperature thing, should I smoke at a cooler temp?  (I smoked my first butt yesterday for 6 hours at 200 degrees with hickory and I wished it was a little more smokey.)

4.  Why do the FTC (foil towel cooler) technique?  Is there something to cooling off the butt slowly.

I know these are involved and controversal questions but I'm not content just following recipes.  I could spend a lifetime working all the variables but just want to create outstanding butt and brisket.  If I knew the details on "why" I could find my way there sooner.  Please help.     

1.Imo  leave the vent open all the way 2.slidder i dont understand the question 3.Smoke dosent get stale as far as i know . 4. No on the moisture. 5. Temp swings happen all the time the internal temps will be the number your looking to achive  6.190-195 on butts. 7.Most say 4-5 hours is enough on smoke. 8.ftc is an option i do it all the time with butts only.

[winemakers]

Barbecue Basics for the Clueless

Hi all.  I've been reading this forum for a couple of weeks and just smoked my first boston butt with my new 4 rack digital smoker.  I thought it was pretty good for a first try but I want to master only a few basic items, boston butt and brisket.  Unfortunately I haven't been able to find the barbecue basics to create an outstanding butt or brisket.  I would appreciate any help with the following questions or a point in the right direction.

1.  How do you use the vent?  I know you turn the slidder but why?  Does the smoke get stale if it stays in the box too long?  Are you trying to reduce the moisture in the box?

2.  Why is temperature swings a bad thing & how does temperature influence the end result?  I've read that the meat starts to break down above a certain temperature but how do you know when its ready?  I've seen butt considered done at 175 to 195 degrees.

3.  Why do you only smoke for a couple of hours?  Is it because you don't want too much smoke flavor or does it become a waste when the meat reaches a certain temperature?  If its a temperature thing, should I smoke at a cooler temp?  (I smoked my first butt yesterday for 6 hours at 200 degrees with hickory and I wished it was a little more smokey.)

4.  Why do the FTC (foil towel cooler) technique?  Is there something to cooling off the butt slowly.

I know these are involved and controversal questions but I'm not content just following recipes.  I could spend a lifetime working all the variables but just want to create outstanding butt and brisket.  If I knew the details on "why" I could find my way there sooner.  Please help.     

• 1. The vent is to maintain positive air flow out of the generator through the box and to vent moisture both.
  2. temperature swings: a much discussed topic.  I believe the 'kiss' principle applies and as long as the over and under temperature limits are not extreme, no damage will likely follow.  That being said, you do not want to use excessively high heat or you are really not utilizing the low/slow method.  Connective tissues such as collegen break down above some point in the vicinity of 160 degrees.  This breakdown reaction takes time and heat energy.  The butt temperature will likely plateau in that range for an extended period, and this is a good thing.  Think of it as alchemey, where lead turns to gold or tough meat gets tender as the connective tissues dissolve.
  3. smoke time: current opinion per my survey of the board indicates that food really doesnt gain smoke taste above an internal temperature break point.  Likely surface changes in the meat preclude anymore smoke penetrating the interior.  More smoke flavor is a search point should you pursue.
  4. FTC relates to collegen breakdown.  Extend the period where the meat is above the temperature, more breakdown, more tender meat.  Additionally, I believe that juices need a sufficient time to redistribute throughout the meat.
  

my take.

mld

[Chez Bubba]

Not to dis Chez (sorry Chez) but the $240 or so for shipping made me switch to Jacks that had free shipping.  Not much difference in unit price between most of the online sites so the shipping was a huge factor.

Gizmo,

I missed this the first time I read it. Just to set the record straight, if you live in the lower 48, you must have chosen 2nd Day Air for your shipping preference. Regular ground would have only been +-$60 for the west coast, even cheaper mid-country. Admittedly, not free, but certainly not $240.

Anyhoo, no worries, water under the bridge. Welcome to the forum & I hope you continue to enjoy your smoker and participate here. :)

Kirk

[Fozzie]

Thank you icerat4 and winemakers.