Question on boston butt

Unknown

I am a new egg owner and was wondering if any one had any suggestions on cooking boston butt. I was looking for a "smoked" taste. I made one the other night it was very good but was not the taste I was hoping for. Any suggestions would be great. Lori Thanks!!!!!!

The Virginian

lori,
Hi,, Lori and welcome. It will help to know more details on how you made the butt. What temp, any rub or marinade used, hw long cookd, type of lump used, whether any wook was also used (e.g. hickory or apple or oak), and any other details you think might be pertinent. [p]Brett

Sundown

lori,[p]What kind of smoking wood did you use? To get more smoke into the meat chill your butt and put it on when you've stabilized your temp and add the soaked smoking wood at the same time.
If the meat is to the cool side it will take more of the smoke. Then, smoke is somewhat subjective too. My wife is happy with the smoke from just the lump. Hickory is a little too much but she'll eat the food anyway.

Unknown

The Virginian,
I used green egg lump. The roast was about 4lbs and I used apple chips. I cooked it at 220 until thermo hit 160 then raised to 300 until it hit 190. I used a rub I found on line : coated with with yellow mustard, then rubbed with a mixture of paprika, cayenne pepper, oregano. Let it marinade overnite. Lori

djm5x9

lori:[p]Next time use a good helping of chunks mixed with your lump. Chips burn too quickly.

thirdeye

Lori, a little experimenting with fire building techniques and amounts (and types) of wood will provide you with a great source of pleasure and enjoyment of your finished product. Wood flavors, like other seasonings, should enhance the natural flavor, not overwhelm. Everyone has their own tastes when it comes to smoke flavor. Lighter woods like apple and alder have a more delicate flavor than say hickory or mesquite. Oak, for example is very common because it imparts excellent flavor without becoming too strong. With any wood, it is easy to oversmoke and impart a bitter flavor. On lo-n-slo cooks, try setting up your fire with more chips or chunks closer to your small bed of coals so that as the fire spreads, a little more smoke will be generated in the earlier stage of the cook. Before putting your meat on, let the fire settle down and wait for the harsh white smoke to turn to a blue/gray.

Yazoo

lori,[p]Not that this would affect the smokiness, unless it was a very short cook time, but I was wondering why you raised the temp to 300 when the internal was only 160? It might have pushed it through the plateau too quickly and the affected the tenderness. It could have given you more bark too. I might have waited until the internal was at 180. How long did you have it on the egg? [p]As far as rubs and preparing a boston butt, everyone has their favorites. Here's a couple links to lots of rub recipes. I like the Kansas City Rib Rub on pork butt, as well as ribs, but I don't use mustard.[p]http://bbq.about.com/library/recipes/blsbrec8.htm[p]http://www.recipesource.com/side-dishes/rubs/indexall.html

The Virginian

lori,
yep, chunks next time will help with the smoke flavor. I am not a fan of cranking up the heat at the end unless you are running out of time. That pushes the butt through the plateau without giving it time for all the connectitve tissue and fat to melt. But that won't affect the smokiness. [p]Brett

Mike in MN

lori,
When I do Butts, I don't preheat the egg. I get a bit of a fire started, then throw the chips/chunks on the fire and around the inside of the egg. This generates a lot of smoke. I add the cold platesetter, and the drip pan with liquid in it. I put the Butt on, cold, right out of the refrigerator. [p]Adding all this cold mass to the egg really knocks the daylights out of any heat you have generated, and even with the top and bottom vents wide open, it sometimes takes up to an hour to reach 225°. During this first hour when the meat is cold, is when it really absorbs the smoke.[p]As mentioned, wood choice has a big effect on the results. I use a mixture of different types of wood for every cook, depending on what we are cooking. Butts get hickory, apple, maple, cherry, and just a little mesquite. [p]Smoking woods are cheap, and readily available. Just buy a bag here, and a bag there.[p]Mike in MN

Sigmore

Mike in MN,
Dammit Man!! Sounds eggzackly what I do when I do butts. Got 2 goin right now, 150° internal, hasn't crept past 200° dome since I started. Spect that will happen later on when the water pan dries up and fills with hog renderings. HEEEEYAAAAH!