16 lbs. of Pulled Pork

[Habanero Smoker]

For pulled pork, mushy equals overcooked. A lot of people like it that way. I don't, and I can see you don't either. For butts the finished product is a combination of cooking temperature, time, internal temperature, and ambient temperatures. I've found that the lower the temperature you cook at, the lower the internal temperature can be to get a good finished product. When I'm cooking pork butts at a temperature of 200°F I start checking for doness at around an internal temperature of 175°F. To check for doness use a fork and stick it into the thickest part of the meat, and twist the fork. If the fork is easily inserted into the meat and twist easily, the pork butt is ready to be pulled. I've found the lower the temperature you cook at the lower the internal temperature will be, and the better the texture.

I have a dual element modified Bradley, and the temperature is controlled either by my Stoker, or DigiQ II. In the Bradley I always cook butts at a constant 200°F, and take the meat out of the smoker when the internal temperature is around 175°F - 180°F. When cooking this slow, I only leave 1/8" fat cap, and when you shred the meat you will come across some pockets of fat that needs to be discarded. I never FTC, and generally just foil while it is resting, and pull it as soon as it is cool enough to handle. I've been cooking butts in my Bradley for over 10 years at a temperature of 200°F, and the average temperature I take my butts out of the smoker is around 176°F - 177°F.

[tailfeathers]

Much like what Habs said, I do pulled pork at 205F and it will generally pass the fork test somewhere around 180 IT. I agree, the lower the cook temp the lower the IT of the meat will be when done. I like to time it  so I sleep through  the stall and put the maverick on my nightstand to monitor things. They say patience is a virtue, unfortunately it isn't my strong suit so being asleep through the stall period lessens my aggravation!!

[mywifeishot]

Thanks for the information.  I'll try it again.  I poked it with my finger and it felt soft at least 12 hours earlier but I got hung up on that internal temp not being over 190 and just kept waiting even though my visiting mother in law was saying it was done a complete day earlier. 

How about modifying the Bradley so that I can control it with my phone?

[Wildcat]

For pulled pork, mushy equals overcooked. A lot of people like it that way. I don't, and I can see you don't either. For butts the finished product is a combination of cooking temperature, time, internal temperature, and ambient temperatures. I've found that the lower the temperature you cook at, the lower the internal temperature can be to get a good finished product. When I'm cooking pork butts at a temperature of 200°F I start checking for doness at around an internal temperature of 175°F. To check for doness use a fork and stick it into the thickest part of the meat, and twist the fork. If the fork is easily inserted into the meat and twist easily, the pork butt is ready to be pulled. I've found the lower the temperature you cook at the lower the internal temperature will be, and the better the texture.

I have a dual element modified Bradley, and the temperature is controlled either by my Stoker, or DigiQ II. In the Bradley I always cook butts at a constant 200°F, and take the meat out of the smoker when the internal temperature is around 175°F - 180°F. When cooking this slow, I only leave 1/8" fat cap, and when you shred the meat you will come across some pockets of fat that needs to be discarded. I never FTC, and generally just foil while it is resting, and pull it as soon as it is cool enough to handle. I've been cooking butts in my Bradley for over 10 years at a temperature of 200°F, and the average temperature I take my butts out of the smoker is around 176°F - 177°F.

Ditto. I learned this method from Habs several years ago. It is hard to screw up a butt and there are several methods that work just fine. It is my humble opinion that Habs method gets the best results.

I disagree with the statement that you can't taste the mustard. The mustard does leave a flavor, it just does not taste like mustard out of the jar. I generally use EVOO because I like the taste a little better but once in a while I use the mustard just to have a little different taste. Since I'm not a big fan of sweet meat, I have not tried the molasses. I rarely use sauce on my pulled pork now that Sop n Sauce is no longer available. Can't find anything that compares with it.