A Nice Problem to have...but I've got a few questions for the Experts

[Carter]

Hi Everybody,

My wife and I are having a party this Saturday(It's now Wed, 8:00pm Eastern).  We've got about 18 adults coming (and about 4 small children - barely out of baby food).  I've got my butcher to set aside two Butt's for me.  I don't know the weight yet, but I've seen one of the shoulders and it was about 15 pounds or so without the skin or fat cap removed.  We're going to cut them tomorrow to remove the Picnic.

I was going to save these questions until I had them and had a final total on the weight for both of them, but a very nice problem arose today.

My neighbour came over and told me it's his wife's 50th birthday this Saturday and they're having about 15 people over.  "Would you mind doing one of those Pulled Pork things for her for her birthday?"  he asked.  "The last time you did it she loved it.  It was amazing."

How do you say no to that?

This will give me 3 Butt's to do in the Smoker.

Let's say, for argument's sake, all three end up being 6 pounds each - or 18 pounds total.

1.  The last time I did one 6 pound Butt, it took between 9 and 10 hours or roughly an hour and a half a pound.

Is that likely to change significantly for three Butt's?  How much time should I be looking at?

Any ideas here would be really helpful.

2.  I can probably fit two Butt's on one rack (or maybe not - I'm not sure yet).  That means they will be on top of one another.

Is this a problem for dripping fat?

Should I be rotating the racks periodically?

3.  Will the box be able to get over 200 degrees with all that Meat?

4.  I was thinking of doing 4 hours of hickory.  I like hickory.  Anybody think it might be too strong?  Should I do a longer smoke for the extra quantity of Meat or does it make a difference?

5.  I'm going to FTC it for a couple of hours before pulling it.  I really don't want to be pulling this when my company arrives. 

Can I pull it, then put it back into foil, back in the towel, and back in the cooler to keep it warm?  This is safe for an hour or so isn't it?  Just curious?

6.  Am I nuts to try to do three of these things in my little 4 rack OBS?  I can still bail out as I told my neighbour I couldn't commit until I did a little research (which is what I'm doing now).

I'd hate to say no if it can be done though.  It was such a nice compliment and it is his wife's 50th after all.  What better way to say "I love you" than with a pulled pork sandwich dripping with BBQ sauce.

Any ideas would be helpful.

Thanks

Carter

P.S.  I'll give more details as the event unfolds (Rubs, Sauces, Sides, Rum Punch, Pictures, etc.)

[Gizmo]

I'll commit board heresy and say, smoke in the BS for 4 hours and if necessary, put them in a foil pan, 1/8 inch of apple juice or other liquid, stick a temp probe in the butt, cover with aluminum foil and finish in the oven if temperartures are a problem.  The BS is just an oven after the smoke.  If time is is a problem (look out for the stoning on this one), crank up the heat in the oven.  For pork butts, many cook them at 350 deg for things like carnitas (not the smoking crowd mind you), the time is shorter, and they are still shreddable.  Of course you can test this out tomorrow to test the theory and make a few more people happy.   :D :D  Samples for the neighbor hood.   I did a test last weekend between pure BS and combo BS/Oven.  Could not tell a difference but then I am not a chef or have an expert's taste buds.  :(

[Carter]

Thanks Gizmo.

I may end up with this in the Oven or indirect heat on the Gas BBQ to finish things up.

I'm trying to figure out right now when I'm planning on sleeping.

Carter

[Arcs_n_Sparks]

I'm trying to figure out right now when I'm planning on sleeping.

Heck, you need to figure out when you are planning on drinking......   :D

Arcs_n_Sparks

[Habanero Smoker]

I've done 3 butts at one time, and I can't give you any times. It rare that I will attempt to smoke butts or briskets to finish just in time to serve. I usually smoke/cook them ahead of time and then reheat.

As for the smoking/cooking, you will get up to 200°F, but it will take awhile. Because the recovery time will be slower, it will lengthen you total time. I would preheat to 250°F, and leave the butts out at room temperature for an hour or so, prior to loading the BS.

I would stay with four hours of smoke. If you used hickory the last time and both you and your neighbors liked it, I would stick with it. I generally use maple for pork. When I did my 3, I put to two smallest on one rack, and of course the larger one on a separate rack. When I loaded them, I placed the rack that had two on top, and the single one on the bottom, during the smoking period. I loaded them that way, just to make sure I had maximum smoke circulation. I rotated the racks at the 4-6 hour period. I have the Raptor/Guru, and the ET-73 with the smoker probe converted to a temperature probe; so I was able to monitor the internal temperatures of all three pieces of meat.

I trim my butts down to 1/8"-1/4" fat; so there is some fat dripping down, but it had no effect on the bark.

[Carter]

Thanks for the tips guys.

Arcs n Sparks - I'm planning to have a beer or two throughout the cooking period.  But I'll be saving myself for the actual event.  I've got plenty of Beer for my guests, and I make a mean Rum Punch (Actually it's the Planters Punch from the Barbecue Bible, but boy is it a beauty.  It's not your average wedding reception punch.  As my wife says, "it's intesting that all your non-punch drinking, drinking friends seem to enjoy this punch so much").

Habs:  What's your technique for re-heating?  I wont have time to vacuum seal or boil in the bag like I read about other people doing. 

I was reading a couple of old posts last night after I asked my question and got some good ideas from a post from Goalieboy29 back last June:  "I beg the indulgence of the Butt Masters - Stupid Question - Multiple Butts", posted June 29, 2006.

I also read up on Food Hygeine that Manxman wrote from Old's recipe forum.

At this point I think I have two choices.

1.  Leave the Butt's in the cooler until an hour before we eat (5:30pm on Sat.).  Pull them (at 4:30) and serve.  This is the less desirable option to me because as Arcs N Sparks indicated, I have other concerns at that point.

2.  Pull the Butt's at 2:30 before my guests arrive at 3:30.  This is more desirable to me, but I want to be able to keep the food warm until 5:30 without drying it out and ensure food safety for my guests.  I was thinking of turning my oven on really low to keep the food warm, but like I said, I don't want to dry out the meat or make anyone sick.

Any tips on option #2?

Carter

[Wildcat]

IMHO I think it is best to FTC for at least 4 hours.  Given your situation, you could probably keep it warm after pulling by placing on foil, spray it down with some apple juice and seal up as tightly as possible then into a low temp oven (say 150 or so).

[Carter]

Thanks Wild.

That's probably exactly what I'll do.

Carter

[acords]

I've had shoulders FTC'd for 4 hours at least, and I still needed ovens mitts to handle them. 

[Consiglieri]

With this volume, I'd plan on smoking the goods overnight, which will ensure you get some sleep.  I've adopted Icerat4's overnight method, but I use apple with another wood (usually hickory or maple or pecan):



Quote from: icerat4 on August 15, 2006, 09:50:09 am
Well i happen to do 2 8 pounders often.And here is my way.Mustard up the pork with any king of yellow mustard.Put the rub on and then wrap in plastic then place in fridge.The next day 1-2 hours before you want to start the smoke take them out of the fridge and leave them sit.Start the smoker at 6-7 pm that same night.SMOKE them for 4-5 hours with alder or what ever wood ya like.Spray apple juice after the 3rd hour of the smoke and there after when you like.Before ya go to bed change the water out.AT about 7-8 the frist one should be done at temps of 195 .Then ftc the 1st one and move the second one down a rack lower.SPRAY apple juice again.A few hours later it should be done at internal temps of 195 remove the second one then ftc that one also.These butts in the ftc should be plenty hot even to pull at 5-6 pm that evening this ftc keep heat a very long time so dont worry about cold food.This is the best and easiest food to do in this bs machine.Make you look like a bbq champ


My thoughts:
1.  Put a brick by your water pan and another on the top rack to help with heat retention and preheat the bejesus out of the box before you start cooking/smoking.  Make sure you let your meat get up to room temp too.  With 3 butts, I might start at 5pm.

2.  Make sure you have a temp probe inside the cabinet to monitor temp around meat level so that you're cooking at 210-220F.  Don't know if you're using an original or digital Bradley, but bear in mind that the DBS' heat sensor is located near the heat element and will not give you an accurate read for temps higher in the tower.  In order to maintain your desired cooking temp in the DBS, you may very well have to set it at 250F or more.

4.  Using this technique it is very helpful to have a remote monitor with an alarm.  Make sure that a temp probe is in the meat on the lowest rack for sure as this piece will likely be the first done.  If it hits target temp while you're sleeping, the monitor will sound an alarm that is hopefully loud enough to wake you up.   To even up cooking times, you can rotate racks when you change the water.

5.  FTC will be a huge benefit for you in this project.  you can aim for an early finish time cooked completely in the Bradley.  If it finishes early, you get extra FTC time, which helps "finish" the meat.  If properly wrapped in foil and a towel in a preheated, efficient cooler, the meat will stay hot for hours (I haven't tried 5 hours yet, but at 4, the meat was still too hot to touch for me). If the meat seems to be lagging and you feel the IT has not elevated sufficiently by morning, you can always pop the goods into the oven like Giz suggests.  I admit that I'm one of the pigheaded types that wants the meat to be cooked entirely in the box... But I'll begrudgingly pop the meat into the oven if I ever fall way behind again.

6.  Share your findings in this experiment with us, along with plenty of pics. ;)

Good luck!  Looking forward to reading about your success.

[Habanero Smoker]

Reheating is simple, but with three butts, it will take about 3 half size steam table pans. I get mine for Sam's club; but you can also use one roasting pan. After shredding, apply vaunted vinegar, place in pan(s), as you layer the meat in add some apple juice between layers. Seal pans tightly with foil and place in a preheated oven at 275°F-325°F. Depending on how much meat is in each pan, it can take 20-45 minutes to reheat. If you go beyond 20 minutes you should stir the meat up; and stir again just before serving.

If you had a PID or the Rapture/Guru you could set the BS at 140°-150°F, and use that to keep the pulled pork and other food that needs to stay warm. If you use the BS to keep food warm, any non-smoked foods must be tightly sealed in foil. I use the BS as a food warmer on many occasions, and it works well. You just put out what you need at the time, and you keep the rest warm until it is needed. I do rotate the food, as a precaution so the food near the heating source does not burn.

[Malc]

I have sometimes waited to pull until my guests ar, not the meatrived.  The foodies in the bunch will hover over you and be amazed at why in the world you just pulled hot food out of the cooler.  It is a little stroke of the ego to field all of the questions they will ask.  When they see the pork literally fall apart, they are amazed.  I am a talker, so I love it.  Just a thought.  If you don't mind waiting, it could add something to the experience.  I would not do this for your neighbor's wife's party.  Focus should probably be on her, not the meat. ;D

Malc

[Gizmo]

Carter, I would also throw out the suggestion of a slow cooker (crock pot) if you have one.  Shred at 2:30 and place in the slow cooker set to low or medium heat.  If you are saucing it up more, you could add it as well for extra moisture.

[Carter]

Thanks for the suggestions everyone.  They are a huge help.  Malc, I like your idea.  I like to talk too.

I've actually done a couple of different rubs.  1. A memphis style rub & 2. the Renowned Mr. Brown Rub(which I've never made before).

Holy Cow is the Renowned Mr. Brown peppery (Southern Succor Rub).  I was sneezing in the kitchen just making it.  As I was applying it to the Pork I was thinking, Geez I hope this tastes as good as people say.  It's pretty overwhelming, whereas the memphis style is more chile powder/paprika/salt/surgar based - quite pleasant on the tongue.

Question on Sauce.

I always have to overdo things.  I've got 4 different sauces for people to experiment. 1.  Vaunted Vinegar, 2.  A ketchup based Vinegar Sauce.  3.  A tasty little Mustard Sauce & 4.  A bottle of Kraft Chicken & Ribs BBQ Sauce (I ran out of time to do my own pure tomato based thick BBQ Sauce).

Does anyone not mix their sauce into the Meat first?  I was thinking of putting the Meat out and then letting people apply the sauce of their choice.  I'm using small buns so people will be able to have seconds, thirds, etc.

Could you double up?  A little Vaunted Vinegar with a little Kraft BBQ?  Or is that sacriledge?

I'm getting pretty excited.  It's countdown to cook time.

Carter

[Tiny Tim]

Here's an answer on your sauce question.  It's food, you can do whatever you want with it.  I like Iceman's sauce, but sometimes it's a little spicy for me, so I cut it with whatever is handy (even ketchup).  I usually mix sauce into my pulled pork before packaging it, but I'm also usually the only one that's going to be eating it.  If I was serving for other people, I'd probably leave it pure and let them add whatever they wanted to it.