Pulled Pork

Unknown · July 2004

I cooked my first Pulled Pork. I Just got my BGE so I really didn't know what to do. I put a 10lbs Picknick cut onto a webber V roast rack and placed that dir3ectly into an aluminum drip pan. Then started my fire, and placed it onto my grill and closed the top. Set the Wheel to half and the damped to abot 1/2 an inch. The temp creeped up to 220, and keeped going up. I tried to close the damper more and more but my temp crept to 300 and wouldn't go down. Went to sleep with the wheel slightly less then 1/2 and damper opened just less than 1/4. In the morning I was at 280. The meat was at 203 internal temp after only about 10 hrs of cooking so I took it off and pulled it. Tasted great, I had planned on about a 20 hr cook. I have no Pizza stone yet, nor fire bricks, and I really don't know what to do with them if I did. I'm fairly sure that my fire and temp ran away from me in the early going because of the 1/2" open damper instead of 1/4" opening, would have bricks abd stones helped? Please offer me suggestions as I really want learn to do this right. Also are there any Eggfests in Southern Calif ? Of BBQ contest where I can see how others are using their BGE?

eggor · July 2004

Stebo,
sorta like my previous posts I don't think I can help to much on how to do one right but my first attempt @pulled pork went about the same, and it was really good. if you get some help on this one I'll be looking for the tips also [p]Scott

Drivr · July 2004

Stebo,
some kind of mass between your pan and the fire would have helped. What I do for the low and slow is get the fire started and when it starts approaching 200 close the daisy and the lower vent to 1/4" or less and let it creep the the 220 I am shooting for. But hey if it tasted good then thats all that really matters![p]Jason

StubbyQ · July 2004

Here's the big secret with BGE. Start slowly and let the temp come up a little at a time. The trick is to not to overshoot your intended pit temp. Go to 175°, stabilze, then 200°, stabilze, then 225°, stabilze. If you let it run away and it gets too hot shut all the vents until it comes back down. The Egg is such a proficient thermal device that it takes a long time for it to come back down. So don't overshoot to begin with.[p]That said, the best thing you could do is get yourself a BBQ Guru. It will help you maintain even temps throughout the entire cook. You can also go to bed and not worry about your fire going out. Great invention.[p]Call Shotgun Fred at the BBQ Guru and get you one. You'll never be sorry.

James · July 2004

Stebo,[p]It sounds like you did "real good" for your first time out. It could have been a lot worse. You did fine. It's all down hill from here...[p]Congrats...[p]

PJ · July 2004

Stebo,
Just did my first butt roast last weekend and it turned out fantastic. Had to have the bottom vent open about the width of a credit card(not much) and the daisy open about half of the small holes but this kept the temp around 220-240. Cooked all night and part of the next day, 22 hrs. in all but still had about half my charcoal left. Great system and great results.
Hope this helps.
PJ

PapaQ · July 2004

Stebo,[p]What size egg do you have? The best investment you could make (even before the Guru) if you have a large is a platesetter. You should do low 'n slow indirect. Your higher temps and direct cook pushed the meat through the plateau too quickly. I really want a Guru, too, but I'm putting it on my Christmas wish list so that I, as a relative newbie, can become proficient with temp control before taking advantage of the Guru's obvious advantages. I compromised on the Maverick thermometers so I can set appropriate dome and meat temps and keep the remote receiver by my bed on all night cooks. It will wake me up if the temp falls out of range or spikes too high. It helps me sleep through the night if I have properly built the fire, is a lot cheaper than the Guru, and allows for learning the intricacies of my eggs. [p]Good luck on you next PP.[p]Paul

Shelby · July 2004

Stebo,
As others have pointed out, you want to creep up on the temp slowly and not overshoot the target temp. Once the egg heats up, it takes a long time to cool down, especially since you're going to have a fire going inside.
Another thing, with the egg being so efficient, if you have a full load of fresh lump, it'll burn well over 24 hours. Keeping that in mind, don't be in a rush to get the meat on the grill. Let the temp stabilize and hold steady for at least 30 mins to an hour. If you see you're temp is a little too high, it gives you time to make some adjustments before adding the meat and the meat won't be getting the higher cooking temps for that time.
Lastly, you need more of a barrier between the meat and the fire. A plate setter, available from BGE or your dealer, is perfect.

Mike in MN · July 2004

Stebo,
As noted, anything between the fire and the meat is good...tin foil helps, an air gap improves on that (between the foil and the meat) and ceramic mass (covered with tin foil and then a drip pan with water+) is best. [p]One of the first things I bought was some cheap cooling racks. They are thin wire racks with legs that fold out. So, I put a drip pan on top of the grill, and put these cooling racks over the drip pan with the meat on top of that. (helpful hint: coat with olive oil for easier cleaning) It solves a couple issues in that it raises the meat up into the dome (a good thing) and it gives you space for a barrier between the meat and the fire. I also use water (and whatever else) in my drip pan. (garlic, jalapenos, wine, coke, vinegar, dressing, olive oil, seasonigs, onion, veggies...you name it!) Adding a plate setter and a pizza stone improves the barrier, and adds stabilization to the temp of the egg. As Mr. egg and the additional ceramic absorbs the heat, it helps to hold everything at a steady temp.[p]I start the egg (fire with the Mapp, and let it climb to about 120°, add wood chunks) and throw the meat on immediately...it is a very slow start to my set temp of 225°. It may take an hour to get the temp up to 225°, but it is easier to control, stabilize, and the meat is absorbing a lot of smoke in the beginning so it's good to keep the temp in the lower range. [p]When you start slow, it is way easier to get the temp where you want it.[p]Remember...if you EVER get the temp above what you are looking for, all you can do is TOTALLY close the top and bottom vents and WAIT....patiently. Burping the cover or the top vent has little effect, and it may hinder the temp drop in the long run, as you are introducing cool fresh combustion air to the fire.[p]By the sound of your cook, you were lucky it turned out. I suspect the next time your finished product will be better. [p]Take good notes for future reference, they will come in handy.[p]Mike in MN

Wyldwood · July 2004

Stebo,
Try www.cbbqa.com. They list the Ca BBQ Association's competitions. There is one on July 24 in southern CA.
Wyldwood

katman · July 2004

Stebo,
Sounds like you did okay for your first cook. As others have said, getting a pizza stone or platesetter help your indirect cooks but you have to remember the added mass increases the time to come up to cooking temp. I used an old roasting pan and v-rack for about 15 years with good slow cooking results. I found that the key is learning how to build a fire that doesn't start out too hot and learning how to set the damper and vent to control your fire. Naked Wiz has some good comments on his site about building your fire. I've used about a half-full chimney dumped in the center of a fairly full fire box in my old large clay egg for many years. Seems to work for my new large ceramic, but I did recently get a "golf club" when I purchased my Guru. Bit slower than the chimney but pretty effective.[p]I've done plenty of long, slow cooks without the benefit of the stone, platesetter or Guru and you can, too, once you learn how to control your fire. However, the platesetter and stone (and bricks) really expand your options. And the Guru is wonderful. Bought a competitor model at the beginning of July and was so pleased with how it controls the ceraminc egg that I ordered a pitminder for my clay egg. I turn them on when I am slightly over my cook temp, put the meat on and go to sleep after they start cycling. Wake up in the morning and the temp is right where it should be.

Pulled Pork

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