Pork butt questions

[Dillybars]

Smoking my first Boston butt tonight.  I have an 8 lb butt with jan's rub seasoned in the fridge now.  My plan was to start the smoker tonight around 10pm.   I was planning on 4-5 hours of smoke, smoker temp on the cabinet set to 220.  I figure the temp will fluctuate a little.  I was going to spray it with apple juice periodically, and planned on putting a bit of apple juice in the drip tray before I went to bed.  I hoped to have it ready for dinner?

Am I missing anything?

[GusRobin]

I would change the water after you are done with the smoke part and make sure none of the V tray holes are plugged. The more you open it to spray, the longer it is going to take. I personally (and it is my opinion only) haven't noticed any difference if I spray or not so I don't.

[Up In Smoke]

I would change the water after you are done with the smoke part and make sure none of the V tray holes are plugged

X2 100 percent.
if you have a remote thermometer it would be a good idea to set the min and max temp alarms.
this way if the temp changes while you are sleeping you will know it.

[mikecorn.1]

X3 from up above. I don't waste my time spritzing. You'll loose tons of heat and
Is going to make for a marathon cook.


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

[Dillybars]

So 5 hour smoke is ok?  Can I substitute the little bowl for a larger one?  5 hours of pucks would have the bowl overflowing right?

[squirtthecat]

A 9x13 foil pan from Wally Mart will work fine.  Ditto on the dump/refill and go to bed.

[Up In Smoke]

Again!!!!
Before sleepy night night make sure the V tray is clear and there is plenty of water in the pan.
You could also drop down to 4 hours of smoke, that should do you just fine.

[Dillybars]

I have my temp probe down on the bottom rack and it's showing 200 degrees.. Should I ramp it up so it's 220 at the probe?

[TedEbear]

I have my temp probe down on the bottom rack and it's showing 200 degrees.. Should I ramp it up so it's 220 at the probe?

It takes a while for the chamber temp to reach the setpoint if you're running a 500W single element.  As the meat cooks and gets warmer the chamber temp will rise.  If you increase the temp and go to bed you might wake up to a chamber temp that is way too high.

[Dillybars]

I feel like the pork is building temp too quick.  It gained 20 degrees in an hour.. (130)


I'm afraid it's going too quick.

[KyNola]

A couple of questions. 1. What are you measuring the temp of the butt with and 2. whatever you are measuring it with may be in a fat pocket which get hotter quicker.  Try moving the probe to a different location in the butt.

Finally, I'll bet you're doing just fine.  Butts, along with other meats will have a tendency to quickly run up an internal temp and then suddenly slow.  Your butt is going to hit a "stall" at around 150-160 where the temp is not going to rise for 2-4 hours.  It may drop a degree or two.  Just leave it alone, the magic is happening inside the butt and the internal temp will eventually rise again, I promise.

You've got this.  Just take a deep breath and enjoy the ride.

[Dillybars]

A couple of questions. 1. What are you measuring the temp of the butt with and 2. whatever you are measuring it with may be in a fat pocket which get hotter quicker.  Try moving the probe to a different location in the butt.

Finally, I'll bet you're doing just fine.  Butts, along with other meats will have a tendency to quickly run up an internal temp and then suddenly slow.  Your butt is going to hit a "stall" at around 150-160 where the temp is not going to rise for 2-4 hours.  It may drop a degree or two.  Just leave it alone, the magic is happening inside the butt and the internal temp will eventually rise again, I promise.

You've got this.  Just take a deep breath and enjoy the ride.

I'm measuring with a maverick.  I'm going to move the probe when I swap out the water before I go to bed.

I swear this thermometer is the devil... I can't stop watching it.  I just want pulled pork texture, not pork chop. 

[Consooger]

How did this turn out? We love pictures!

[Dillybars]

I'm sitting at 160 now... Not sure how long it's been there as I just woke up a half hour ago.  I bumped the Bradley up 10 degrees so we'll see how things go.  My maverick was showing temps that would average out to be around 210-215.  Sometimes lower, sometimes higher.

[Up In Smoke]

If 160 is the internal temp of the butt you have hit the stall period, bumping the temp up probably wont give you the results that you are looking for. the breakdown of collagen/evaporative cooling can take 4 to 5 hours before the IT starts to rise again.
As KyNola said, be patient you've got this.