should i brine a pork butt or not

[KyNola]

Score one for Rich!  Way to go man.  Sounds like you knocked it out of the park.  You only made one error that I can see.  You gave some to the folks next door.  From now on when they smell that smoke rolling they will be standing at the front door looking for their part! :D :D :D

Just kidding, nice job and way cool to share with the neighbors.

[Tenpoint5]

I was amazed at how easy the bone pulled out of the butt too.  That sounds a little wierd.

Anywhere else but here it would be weird!! Well done. Now to take it to the next level with some yellow sauce or vaunted vinegar sauce from over on the recipe site. Or better yet make you a batch of Bacon Jam and smear some o'that on your buns. ;D ;D

Welcome to the Addiction My Friend!!!

[Quarlow]

Yes one day I will get a bone in shoulder roast and then I can pull the bone from the butt too. :o ;D ;D But for know I settle for boneless which isn't quite as much fun to describe.  :D :D :D

[BuyLowSellHigh]

Way to go Rich!  Yes, you now have the addiction. 

You'll know the wife has caught the consumption side of the bug when you the get used to the rhythm, start looking too relaxed and out of concern she starts asking if the butt is okay .. when will it be done .. how is looking, etc.  Then you have it made!     ;)

[Caneyscud]

  My wife asked me why I was spending so much time with the smoker lately.  Said that I could probably use that time helping her clean up around the house..........   Better go stare at the smoker for a half hour or so.   hee hee

Good God Man don't let her find out how easy it is to use the smoker!!! It will ruin it for the rest of us. It is very very hard to control the temp and smoke when dealing with a smoker. It takes continuous observation and adjusting to ensure the proper outcome.

Should I?

[KyNola]

  My wife asked me why I was spending so much time with the smoker lately.  Said that I could probably use that time helping her clean up around the house..........   Better go stare at the smoker for a half hour or so.   hee hee

Good God Man don't let her find out how easy it is to use the smoker!!! It will ruin it for the rest of us. It is very very hard to control the temp and smoke when dealing with a smoker. It takes continuous observation and adjusting to ensure the proper outcome.

Should I?

Swear him in Sarge!

[Rad Rich]

Swear me in, swear me in

[Slamdunk]

All u guys talking about butts has me thinking I've got to try it again. My first was not that great - although everybody else liked it. Don't know why, it just seemed like a lot of work for an average meal.

I've since been out to a local restaurant with Quarlow and Ross P and I ordered some butt and really enjoyed it. As Qaurlow stated in an earlier post, pulled pork isn't that popular up here in the Northwest so we don't get to experience it very often. I reallly don't know/haven't tasted a good Pulled Pork.

Stay tuned.

I'm going to research it a bit before I try it. Can anybody steer me to a post for a butt for two?

[BuyLowSellHigh]

I'm going to research it a bit before I try it. Can anybody steer me to a post for a butt for two?

Here's a link to my favorite butt thus far.

For starting I would suggest 4 hours of smoke, either hickory or oak (I used 5, but then I like smoke).  If you have less than a full butt (~ 9 lbs bone-in) you might even cut it back to 3 hours.  If you want a light smoke consider a different wood choice, like apple.

I like to trim all the surface fat or fat cap.  For a rub, a good starting point is the Renowned Mr. Brown.  I like to season with the rub about 12-24 hours before the start of cooking, wrap in plastic and refrigerate.  Take the butt out and let temper at room temp for about 2 hours, then slather, apply more rub and start the cook.

If you slather I highly recommend the molasses route.  This increases the surface sugar and gives a really nice bark. If you don't want to use molasses plain old cheap yellow mustard (CYM) works well also.

If you use mustard then I would recommend increasing the sugar in the rub.  Another good rub option with a higher sugar content is Alton Brown's 8:3:1:1 dry rub

Cook naked shooting for a cooking temp of 225 °F to an IT of 195 °F, then FTC for 2-4 hours.  I rotate once after the smoking period.  Expect about 1.5 hrs per pound, but a small boneless butt may take less time per pound, and a bigger bone-in butt (or a stubborn one) may take more.

I like to pull by hand wearing a pair of disposable food gloves.  When you come to bark that resists shredding into small pieces, set it aside. When all is pulled chop the bark pile finely and mix in evenly with the pulled pork.  Then I like to season the whole thing with Vaunted Vinegar sauce using 1 cup of sauce per 5 lbs of pulled pork.  At that level it is a mild seasoning that compliments the richness of the pork very well.

Expect a final yield of about 50-55 % of your raw meat weight.

[Caneyscud]

Swear me in, swear me in

Here ya go!

There is now sirens and red lights going off.  My newly designed and recently installed "EASY" alert system is working flawlessly.  Rest assured I am committed!  (ok, I left that one open for all ya'll (remember that's plural)).  That other sound you just heard was the arming of the IBD (Intergalactic Bradley Dreadnaught).  It is always prepared at a moment's notice to protect our ocean of plentitude, our intimate halcyonic macrocosm of barbecue.!!!!

We were all newbies once, so we know the enchantment, the inclination and temptation of divulging your adroit application of your smoking enlightenment.  So before you go off bragging and telling everyone how simple it is - remember the Bradley Pledge.

Loose Lips Sink Ships!

Now everybody don't moan at the same time - those that have been forum members for a time knows what is coming next.



Drum roll please -----Time to break out THE pledge.



Never ever forget the Bradley Pledge - Do NOT be guilty are letting out too much information that in the wrong hands could be detrimental to the enjoyment of our journey to smoking nirvana!  Others have said that in the wrong hands, the release of that information could tend to curtail the consumption of adult beverages.


Raise your right hand, step on your left toe, close both eyes and read after me:

The pledge -- "We pledge, under the penalty of having our Bradley melt into nothingness, never to tell our OR especially anyone else's adoring and admiring family (particularly significant others) and friends, the SECRET (the ease) of Bradley Smoking.  We further Pledge to use our Bradleys as often as possible so as to never let our family and friends be without smoked delicacies.  There are just some things that should not be smoked and until we find out what they are, we Pledge to smoke everything we can catch, drag to the smoker, wrap in bacon, and fit into our Bradleys."

Now go about you merry day, but let that little thing in the back of your mind - that little nagging thing called a conscience take over before you utter any word about how easy this is to any rug rats or wife's of the female persuasion, or anybody else, except us, your forum buddies and anybody whom you might be trying to convert to a Bradley Smoker!

AND as Hal has reminded us in the past -

When you begin a smoke...

Always run your finger in one of those greasy smoker crevices (that you never really clean good).  Dab your face and arms a bit.
"This is war.  Act like it.
Awrighten."

[Caneyscud]

All u guys talking about butts has me thinking I've got to try it again. My first was not that great - although everybody else liked it. Don't know why, it just seemed like a lot of work for an average meal.

They don't have to be a lot of work - just a lot of time.  BLSH has you a great route to a great butt - and I am intrigued with the molasses slather.  Unfortunately, however, I live in the middle of Butt Country!   Most of the butts at the grand BBQ joints around are simple affairs with added sauce.  Salt/Pepper and slap in the smoker until done.  Some cook higher and faster than others.  Generally served on a bun or on cornbread with some sweet tomato based sauce or some vinegary sauce.  It is amazing how little smoke flavor you sometimes get at these joints.  As for me, I'm from beef country, so don't have a history going back to my teens cooking pulled pork as I have with beef.  And for whatever reason, I never seem to get the judges what they want.  I think they like a sweeter treatment of pork than what I do.  I usually only apply salt and pepper just before putting in the smoker.  My wife is from West TN, so she grew up with pulled pork, and that's the way she wants it, and she wears the pants in my family!  I will however, pour as much smoke as I can on it.   The bark to meat ratio is quite small with a butt - so to make up for that, I want a good strong and smoky bark.  I've got another couple of ideas of how to serve pulled pork - but I have experiment a couple of times to see if they work. 

[Rad Rich]

Thank you for the swearing in.  I not only stepped on my left toe but I had my left hand on the bradley while I said the pledge aloud. When I was don I swear I saw a tear fill down the side of my lbs.  I have smoked four weekends in a row.  Gonna do some salmon this weekend.  It should take me all day.......   I'll be good and thirsty while I'm. Doing all the work staring at the smoke.

[KyNola]

Thank you for the swearing in.  I not only stepped on my left toe but I had my left hand on the bradley while I said the pledge aloud. When I was don I swear I saw a tear fill down the side of my lbs.  I have smoked four weekends in a row.  Gonna do some salmon this weekend.  It should take me all day.......   I'll be good and thirsty while I'm. Doing all the work staring at the smoke.

Rich.......you are definitely one of us! :)

[Caneyscud]

oh, and it helps to keep a spray bottle full of water handy.  Not to put down blaze ups but to spray on your face and in your armpits just before the wife walks to where you are so it looks as if you're sweating profusely from the intense heat and unbearable exertion - sacrificing your comfort, forsaking pain - just to prepare some smoked goodies for her just because she is who she is!

[Slamdunk]

Thanks BLSH ! I'm going to give it a go when the weather up here warms up a bit.