Does a 10lb Picnic roast for pulled pork really take 25hours?

Topo Gigio

Hi All. I went to the butcher to buy a pork butt for my first pulled pork. He took out the whole shoulder to show me. He cut it - the picnic side with the skin and the butt side with fat cap. I had visions of Dizzy Pigs web site of the process of picnic and butt done together. In my excitement I bought both pieces. The butt 5 lbs and the picnic 10lbs. Now that I'm home I started thinking 2.5 hours for 10lbs is 25 hours. Originally I was thinking 5 lb butt, start at 9:00PM Friday finish around noonish, wrap/cooler till ready to pull at family BBQ event. Now with a 10lb picnic I would have to start at 3PM Friday (I don't get home from work until 5:30PM - I'll try to sneak out earlier if I have to), finish at 4PM Sat - no buffer if it takes longer - I have to leave the house at 4PM to go to the BBQ event. Does anyone have experience with the picnic. Will it take 25 hours or more? I don't think I have a choice but to freeze the picnic and just do the butt. Which is what my original plan was anyway. If I can do both great. Any suggestions?[p]I've read Elder Ward's instruction about 6 times, Tim M's site, TNW, Dizzy Pig. The egg and lump are ready to go. One more sleep. Wish me a constant temps. through Friday night.

Nature Boy

Topo Gigio,
Keep your dome at 250, and I am thinkin you are looking at about 18 hours or so...maybe 20. Load her up real good on fuel, and plan on finishing up a few hours early to give you some leeway. [p]Wrapping in foil at 170 internal will get you there even quicker. Indeed, I wish you constant temps, and a smooth cook! Have fun with it.
Chris

Mike in MN

Topo Gigio,
Any plans for seasonings and rubs? This is very important, as it will set the tone for the finished product.[p]I recommend using the recipe for JJ's rub. It's pretty EZ to make, and if you don't have the exact spices, substitute something that comes close (Old Bay Seasoning has a few of the ingredients in it) I use an Italian seasoning as a substitute for some of the herbs the recipe recommends. It doesn't have to be precise, and if you like or dislike certain ingredients, adjust accordingly. Anything close will work.[p]Slather with plain yellow mustard, add plenty of the seasoning, let it sit, and throw it on....indirect, with or without water in the drip pan. Hey, if you like garlic, stuff some chunks in knife slits throughout the meat. I also add basil leaves with the garlic chunks. Don't open the dome until the end to possibly mop. If you MUST look, cautiously remove the daisey wheel and use a flashlight to look in from the top...just don't upset the setting on the daisey wheel. [p]Get the smoke going like mad in the beginning, with little to none towards the end. I prefer the sweet, light woods (Maple, Apple, Pecan, Cherry) Some members go for the gusto with Mesquite and Hickory.[p]Maintain a constant temperature of 225° or so, and things will be just fine. When it's done, it will be well worth the effort...and it is an effort. When the internal makes 195°- 200°, pull it off the grill, (it should be falling apart) wrap in foil and towels/cooler it up, and let it sit for awhile. It will maintain heat if well wrapped for 3-5 hours, and it won't bother the meat a bit![p]Makes my mouth water thinking of it.[p]Oh ya, we like pictures and updates! Have a great weekend![p]Mike in MN
[ul][li]JJ's Rub[/ul]

Big John

Topo Gigio,
I cooked two 10 1/2 pound butts a couple of days ago maintaining 225 degrees at the cooking grid. It took 17 hours to reach 200 degrees internal temperature. They were "melt in your mouth" tender. [p]Big John

Mark Backer

Big John,[p]I know this has been asked ad-nauseum, but I'm relatively new here. Has anyone found a fairly consistent temp spread between grid temp and dome temp? What I mean is, on Egg X, when grid temp is 225, dome temp is 240 or 250 or 260? I don't have a guru or anything, and when all you lo and slo pros talk about 16 hours at 220 grid temp, I'm left a-guessin'.[p]Thanks for your help in advance.[p]

Marvin

Mark Backer,
I believe that most folks are talking "dome temp". Very few people actually measure the actual grid temp, which, as you say, is 10-30 degrees cooler. Have fun.

WooDoggies

Mark Backer,[p]Like Marvin said, there can be a little margin between your dome and grid or a huge margin.[p]Your setup and how much meat you have in the cooker will be big factors between the two. For example, if you're cooking 2 butts over a brisket (meat mass is a huge heat sink) then there might be a big difference as opposed to cooking a chicken direct on a raised grid.[p]Over a long period, like an overnight cook, the two tend to even out to roughly the same temp.[p]If you have an extra polder, place it at the grate level of your next cook or with cooks with varying setups. You will learn a lot about the variations and how they change over time......... and you will learn a lot about your cooker...... which is a good thing. :~)[p]Cuppa Joes,
John[p][p]

Mark Backer

WooDoggies,[p]I haven't gotten too adventurous yet. I have only done one-tiered cooking, and if it's a lot, it's usually two butts (8 lbs or better each) over inverted plate setter with drip pan and grid at egg lid level. [p]I will try the two temp checking approach this weekend and see what I get.[p]Thanks woo![p]By the way, do you guys have some sort of wierd new egger initiation at Eggfest where you are gonna tie me to a tree or shave my head or something? If so, I may have to attend in a costume and under an assumed name. [p]If not, I'd say you should look for this guy...[p][p]

WooDoggies

Mark Backer,[p]I'd stand clear of that fella....... he's nothing but trouble.[p]Being an egger, you will have to wear your nametag pocket protector, practice your endless egg vocabulary with words like eggcellent, eggactly, eggstrodinary and the like, and be able to talk nonstop about the virtues of your egg, all of the wonderful foods you make, how much of a better cook you are now, how you drive your neighbors batty with the aromas and how you continue to wow your family and friends with your newfound talent.[p]As for the initiation, that's a bit hush hush but I can say it has something to do with shaving a certain body part and making you walk backwards through the Avenue of Eggs while fellow eggers spray shaken PBR's all over your humiliated body....... at least that's what they did to me.[p]John[p]

Mark Backer

WooDoggies,[p]I actually catch myself dropping "eggstrordinary" and "eggsellent" and such. Frightening. [p]As for the shaven reversed parade of pbr shame, I've gotten worse treatment at home. I say bring it on!!

Nature Boy

Mark Backer,
Actually your question has not been asked ad-nauseum. In fact I am amazed at how rarely I see it asked. I think people just get comfy with going by dome temp...not realizing that they are actually cooking at 150 for the first few hours.[p]I have been monitoring my grid level for several years, and like Woo says, it can vary quite a bit. Typically, with a load of meat, indirect, the temp differential is 70-100 degrees for the first couple hours. Once the meat is heated the temps begin to even out somewhat. Toward the end of the cook, the difference is usually 10-20 degrees. [p]Cheers
Chris

Mark Backer

Nature Boy,[p]thanks nache. (I don't know how else to spell what would be short for nature, like flair and his posse refer to him). That's kind of what I was shooting for when I asked. I get freaked out sometimes when it creeps up a little early, but the results bear out my contention that it takes someone a lot dumber than me to mess up egg cooking. [p]Appreciate the 411.

Nature Boy

Mark Backer,
That would be Naytch. hee.[p]If I have a big load of animal tissue, I often start my slow cooks at 275 dome. [p]Beers....when the time comes.
Chris

Topo Gigio

Mike in MN, thanks for the tips. For my first, I'm following Elder Wards NC style. I've already rubbed it with his recipe and its sitting in the fridge right now. I'm gonna prepare his vinegar based sauce and put some in the drip pan. Not gonna baste it cause I'm not opening the lid until 200. Planning on finishing early, wrap it/cooler and port it to my event, then pull it there. Then pour more vinegar sauce on it. Haven't had pulled pork since I was last in North Carolina 5 years ago. That's why I bought the egg in the first place.[p]My bro. has my digital camera, so I won't be able to take pictures until I get to the event. I wanted to take pictures from start to finish, but I'll take pictures of the finished product at least.

Mark Backer

Nature Boy,[p]darn it. I should have tried a little harder. Naytch looks just right. (airplane flyin', limousine ridin' son of a gun). [p]That's what I've resigned myself to in shame as I have not been able to maintain a lower temp for some time. After a couple of hours, I can get it down gradually to about 240-250, but I have been disappointed that I couldn't manage my fire and temp like all the pros out there. [p]I feel better now. [p]This weekend's feeds include:[p]Ribeyes tonight for family (one of which is buying an egg next week)[p]Chuck Roast tomorrow night (after finding a recipe tonight)[p]and Pork Loin on Sunday for the Michigan race. [p]Hooray for lump coal and weekends!!

stike

Mark Backer,
go by the dome temp.[p]grid temp on a lo-and-slo is irrelevant, because you'll have indirect mass, drip pans, etc. at the grid and the meat will sit higher up in the dome.[p]these folks'll say at 220, you are really cooking (grid) at 190, and that you'll never get to 200 internal.[p]i do 220, with a grill extender (i.e. up in the DOME, right where the thermometer is), and i have no issues getting to 200 internal

Nature Boy

stike,
Why is the grid temp (the temp your meat is actually cooking at) irrelevant?[p]Just tryin to understand where you are coming from.
Chris

stike

Nature Boy,
well
the position some state is that if your dome reads 220, you at cooking 'really' at 190 or so, because the grid temp is lower.[p]that may be, but i don't cook my butt at the grid, it's over indirect mass, on a raised grid, up in the DOME.
if the dome temp is 220, and my meat is up in the dome, then i'm cooking at 220.[p]

Nature Boy

stike,
That makes sense. If your meat is RIGHT next to your dome thermometer, then that is probably pretty close to the cooking temp. I also cook on a raised grate, but it is not at the same level as the dome thermometer. The indirect shield creates quite a large zone where cooking temps are much lower than what the dome therm reads. Usually 70 - 100 degrees lower for the first part of the cook. The only way to know this is to place a probe at the meat level, which I do with almost every cook.[p]Happy friday!
Chris

stike

Nature Boy,
is your indirect set-up brought up to temp with the egg, or are you putting it on when you put the meat on?[p]ifyou put the mass on cold at the same time as the meat, that would make for a cooler zone, as the mass sucked up the heat...

Nature Boy

<p />stike,
Great points.[p]I don't use any added mass, just a dry foil lined aluminum pie pan. I usually start the cookers a couple hours before I put the meat on. Both to preheat the cooker, and get a good clean established fire. [p]Here is a picture of my setup. The large temperature difference is not really a problem, but it is a real issue that I like to take into consideration, and to compensate for.[p]When I see people experiencing cooking times of 28 hours for a boston butt, it says to me that grid temp was probably not considered.[p]Happy cookin!
Chris

Joder

Topo Gigio,
I learned from all these posts why my butts take about 24 hrs. I do not have a grill extender. I put it on a rack in a pan on a pizza stone on the grill.
That is much lower than the dome, so there must be a big temperature difference.
But I have no complaints. I just plan for 24 hrs. cooks. The math is easy..