Smoking a pork butt - 1st time plan - thoughts?

[djbourn]

Hello -- and Happy 4th!

I'm planning on smoking 2 pork butts this weekend, and was wondering if any of you seasoned vets (pun intended) could let me know what you think of my plan. Each butt weighs about 6#, and after I apply the rub and let it sit, I was going to put both in the smoker overnight, starting about 12am, then taking them out around 12pm the following day (or when IT hits 190) -- so at least 12 hours if not more. I'm thinking of applying smoke for the first 5 hours and attempting to set the temp on my smoker to a constant 225 degrees. Given I'll be asleep for most of this I'll put a big foil pan with water to catch the spent pucks and provide moisture throughout.

So -- does this sound solid or should I make some adjustments? I'm hoping to have the pulled pork ready to eat around 4pm the day after I start all this. Thanks in advance from a very new smoker!

[GusRobin]

I usually do 4 hours of smoke and it seems plenty. But you taste may very.
I also time my overnight smokes so that the smoke portion is done prior to me going to bed so I can change the water, and make sure the "v' tray is clear of any clogs.

I also put 2 small bread pans with about maybe a 1/4 to 1/2 inch of liquid ( beer, dr pepper, water, whatever) on the bottom rack to catch some of the drippings. When the cook is done, put it into a jar or container and into the fridge. The fat and grease will separate, spoon off the fat and you have some great juice for reheating.

[muebe]

Well you are going to need to give yourself some time for FTC of the butts and you might be cutting it close if you want to eat at 4pm. Even though they are only 6lbs you do have two of them. It is better to be done early then trying to finish the butts when there are guests waiting to eat. So I would say put them in at like 9pm and then wake up at around 4am and see where they are. Make sure you change out the water during the night so there is less chance of a grease fire. And scrape the v-tray so it does not clog up the drain hole. And use a reliable wireless thermometer so you can monitor cabinet and meat temps while sleeping. If temp goes above or below a set temp it will alarm and wake you up(hopefully). I would give them 4 hours of smoke also...

[DisplacedCoonass]

Only things I'll add is to consider your night time ambient temperature.  I just did my first butt's last night and around 1am I had to fire up the smoke generator to stay up near 225.  Also, make sure you give yourself enough time to warm up smoker to your cooking temp.  I allotted 45min in my planning and ended up taking almost double that.

[djbourn]

Thanks for the input guys -- it is MUCH appreciated. And for the FTC -- is 2 hours about right? Just wrap 'em up and put them in a (warmed) cooler?

[Rckcrwlr]

Welcome to the insanity.

I am currently smoking 4 butts.  Started them a 5:30 last night.  Estimating a finish around 1pm today.  3Hours of FTC and I am good to go.

You are on the right path...

Here is mine journey...

http://forum.bradleysmoker.com/index.php?topic=22766.0

[djbourn]

Thanks again for all the help -- I couldn't have done this without these words of wisdom. So now an update!

I put them in at 9:30pm as GusRobin suggested -- and glad I did as it's now 10:15 and the ITcurrently is at about 170....so a little way to go yet. I woke up at 1:30am to check on them and clean the v-plate and change the water (another terrific suggestion -- thanks muebe -- as my water was starting to overflow a bit given I didn't account for the displacement due to the spent briquets and drippings) -- and also added a tray with a bit of water an Dr.Pepper to save the drippings.

After a rousing karaoke rendition of "Can you feel the love tonight" by my neighbors -- seriously, it was 1:30am and they were belting out tunes like you couldn't believe -- I went back to bed and didn't open the door until this morning.

CoonAss you were right on with the ambient temperature -- I live in Colorado and it does cool down at night so I had to monitor the temp and turn it up at night.

FTC is next a little later today (a step I would have forgotten) -- and the butts are looking great so I think I'm doing okay my first time out. THANK YOU all for your input...these will be much better with the input you provided than if I just launched into on my own. I'll post some pics and update you all on the final judging by my family and friends when the process is complete!

;D