Boston Butt Pics and Question

[projump]

 I set my digital 4 rack bradley at 210 degress, inserted a digital meat probe and after cooking for 18 hours the internal temp was only at 170 degrees. So I took it into the house, put it in the oven set at 330 degrees and 30 minutes later the internal temp reached 195. I then did the FTC for 2 hours and then consumed a large quantity of it. WOW, it was superb, very tender and tasty.
    Does anyone know why it wouldn't reach 195 degrees after 18 hours?

[Smudge]

I don't suspect equipment problems. Granted, we don't know a lot of pertinent information about your particular smoking session, such as outside temps, etc.

But to me it always seems a thick piece of meat will plateau in the smokehouse, and you become convinced it isn't going to finish. 170 is a typical temperature for this to happen, IMO. This is near the point where magic occurs in a pork butt, when it approaches the temp which will transform it into falling apart tenderness.

All I can say is that it takes time, and after not moving temp-wise for so long, it will begin to work its way up to the target temp much quicker than expected once the magic has transpired. 

[Smudge]

BTW, congratulations on your successful smoke.

[West Coast Kansan]

Seems like you were pretty well on target.  From the photos perhaps this was going to stay at 170 for a while longer as more of the internal fats broke down. 

It would be interesting to know how your bradley behaved during the smoke - thinking the temp swings low to high.  From the measurements i have made, as long as there is a good amount of meat that is still considerably cooler than the set point the Bradley digital displayed temp will always read higher than the actual temp in the tower. 

Very similar experience to my digital unit, which is why I use 220 and then as it gets over the 170 point i will raise the set point to 230 until finished.  The oven temperature is not really as high as whats displayed so ... i have convinced myself not to worry.  Getting good results IMO for sure.

[projump]

Thanks for the replies and comments.
   The outside temp was very mild, mid fifties overnight and mid sixties in the day.
The box temp ranges from about 192 to 212 or so when set at 210. Next time I'll set it at 220 and bump it up a little toward the end as per West Coast. It was interesting that in almost no time in the house oven set at 330, the temp went to 195.
     I was very pleased with the end result of the meat, Mm Mm good.
                                                       Thanks and Smoke On!!!

[West Coast Kansan]

Your house oven was about 120 degrees hotter than the bradley. 

At the 170 degrees internal temperature the house oven provided a temperature difference of 160 degrees (oven to IT meat temp) in comparison to the Bradley of probably about 30 to 40 degrees difference between the tower temp and the IT of the meat. 

That kind of heat energy difference will slam into your butt pretty fast.  The difference is the behavior of the meat as the energy is absorbed very slowly in the bradley or real fast in the house oven. 

Low and slow is preferred- until company is at the door and my plan didnt work (just no power for recovery in Bradley like the chunk wood smoker). That is what makes all the temperature discussions so interesting. Once your Bradley is mapped it is consistent.

Icerat4 has a number of posts on his pork butt methods (it takes some courage to follow the first couple of times). Just have to know how your Bradley behaves and then pick the temp and adjust for results until you have it locked in for that particular load type. After that you give the smoker control - seems wrong - but that is it. We sleep and the smoker cooks.

The same performance will happen time after time on your Bradley. For my machine 220 is right on target - (with 2 butts, about 14-15 pounds of meat usually) for the result that I like. It is surprising but the additional time between doing one or two butts at a time is really pretty small. May as well do two while your burning pucks.

[Gizmo]

Pro, I will add a few cents in here from some non-experience but read on a non-bradley site.  As you have seen, there are many variations to smoking that can yeild great results.  You can also turn out some pretty tought but tasty results as well.  I have read that the wider the gap between the cooking temperature (to a point) and the internal temperature you are wanting to achive, the easier it is to reach the desired temperature.  They had suggested a 60 degree difference.

The one thing I have noticed so far on the Bradley Digital, is the temperature on the oven set temperature and the digital oven temperature read out, tend to be significantly lower than the actual box temperature in the area that the meat is at.  As the temperature of the meat increases the more balanced the box temperature is.  The internal box temperature probe is located low in the box near the heating element which accounts for some of the variation.  Lack of a stirring fan and more accurate temperature control also contribute.  Load (amount of meat) in the box will also add a final component.

I also found a very specific post on temperatures and what happens to meat and collagen at different temperatures but this post is too long in the tooth as it is.  One of the most important facts there was water evaporates at 212 degrees and that would definitely make for dry eats.

[owrstrich]

that looks good...

i bet there aint none left by now...

i do butts at 200 box till i hit the plateau of about 160 to 180... then if i remember i will kick it up to 210 box...

i dont think i have ever done a load of butts that took less than 20 hours... thats why i can start at 20+ hours prior to grubb time and use the ftc for a time buffer...

i shredd and stirr in some of that valtued vinegar stuff in it...

you gotts eat...

owrstrich

[Habanero Smoker]

When the internal temperature reaches between 160°F-165°F the connective tissue collagen begins to break down into gelatin. If the meat has been at 170°F for as long as you stated, I would have taken it out and FTC'ed it. I only take my butts to 175°F, and they are perfect for pulling. It is not always the end temperature that is a good indication of when you can pull pork easily. How long the internal meat temperature has been in the 160°F-165°F zone is also critical; "low and slow". I smoke my butts at 190°F-200°F to extend the smoking/cooking time. As long as it has been "in the zone" long enough to convert all of the connective tissue collagen, you don't have to go to to 185°F or higher.

Before someone replies, you can't pull the meat at that temperature, you can only slice the butt (I have had numerous replies in the past from members trying to convince me that my method will produce meat that can be pulled). My reply in advance is, I've been doing it this way for about two years. The butt easily pulls apart, and remains succulent.

[icerat4]

Heres mine pulled at 195 .The second butt projump looks to be alittle dry.Was it.Looks like a pork chop cut.See how moist mine look.Did you spray them down with apple juice during the prosess.

[asa]

When the internal temperature reaches between 160°F-165°F the connective tissue collagen begins to break down into gelatin. If the meat has been at 170°F for as long as you stated, I would have taken it out and FTC'ed it. I only take my butts to 175°F, and they are perfect for pulling. It is not always the end temperature that is a good indication of when you can pull pork easily. How long the internal meat temperature has been in the 160°F-165°F zone is also critical; "low and slow". I smoke my butts at 190°F-200°F to extend the smoking/cooking time. As long as it has been "in the zone" long enough to convert all of the connective tissue collagen, you don't have to go to to 185°F or higher.

Before someone replies, you can't pull the meat at that temperature, you can only slice the butt (I have had numerous replies in the past from members trying to convince me that my method will produce meat that [can't] be pulled). My reply in advance is, I've been doing it this way for about two years. The butt easily pulls apart, and remains succulent.

Sorry about quoting everything HS said, but I think it is worth rereading. I'm responding for the purpose of giving a resounding "second" to what he posted. I agree with everything he said and think they are all good points to follow, especially keeping the box temp at or below 200 and holding at ~165 for a while to render the collagen and fat into the meat making it moist and succulent. Right on! You can't go wrong with that method.

[Arcs_n_Sparks]

icerat4,

I don't know; that looks like a meteorite  :D

I foil mine after the smoke, so I do not get the same reentry look...   8)

Arcs_n_Sparks

[MRH]

arcs,

It looks like a moist meteorite though ;D

MRH

[ceeuawlsune]

I am officially hooked on this website.  I have to admit that I cook professionally for a living.  After reading these responses, what has been said about maintaining the pork in the 165 range for an extended amount of time in order to render the fat and redistribute the liquids into the cooked meat sounds, on paper, most applicable.  This FTC method is like using what's called a "combi-oven" after smoking. 

A combi-oven uses a combination of steam and heat to maintain the internally-measured temperature of the cooked product (in this case, the pork) to guarantee tenderness and "doneness" every time.  Critical in a restaurant is consistency.  Does this sound like a fair comparison to the FTC method, which, incidentally, I think is genious. 

I will say that 195 sounds very high.  I was thinking that for butt (2x7#) I'd smoke 24 hours at 210ish and then FTC 4-8 hours.  Does that sound right to anybody?  I'm sorry I'm all over the place, but I have so many thoughts and questions!

[Arcs_n_Sparks]

This FTC method is like using what's called a "combi-oven" after smoking. 

ceeuawlsune,

"combi-oven" is too complicated for most of us. FTC stands for: Follow the Chicks. Right?

Arcs_n_Sparks