Smoking my first Boston butt...need help

TDogg46

Bought a 6 pound Boston butt and attempting it for the first time. Recipe in the BGE cookbook said to place the butt in a baking dish and cover tightly with foil...place the dish on the platesetter and cook at 300 for 3 hours (this temp and time was for a 4 pound butt.) Any suggestions on cook temp/time...internal temp of 190?

Squeezy

Cover tightly with foil .... utter bullshite! Might as well stick it in the oven ... smoke flavor will not penetrate foil!

Are you cooking this to make pulled pork?

Assuming so ... the rest of the instructions are sound although I would place meat on a rack above the pan and have some liquid in the pan, which you could add back into the meat after skimming off the fat.

Rauchbier

I've done all my pork butts at 250* and figure on about 1.75 hours per pound of meat -- sometimes as long as 2 hours per pound.  I also don't advise brining foil anywhere close to the butt until you are finished smoking it.  Then, I'd double wrap it in heavy duty foil, place it in a cooler and let it rest for an hour or more before pulling.

TDogg46

Yes to make pulled pork sandwiches. Honestly have no idea what I'm doing...just found the recipe in the BGE cookbook...will take any advice but was hoping to eat around 6 tonight hahaha!

Squeezy

.... I agree totally with that

reh111

I'll tell you what I did last night- put rub on the butt - wrapped and put in refrigerator for a couple of hours - soaked some hickory chunks for 30 min - started fire and after catching adjusted to about 250 - put hickory chunks on fire and let smoke for about 30 min - put naked butt on grill above plate setter and drip pan with 1 bottle of beer in it - smoked from 5:30 - 9:30 at 250 - at 9:30 I put the butt in a foil pan, poured a bottle of red wine that I wouldn't otherwise drink into the pan and covered with foil - cooked all night - at 8:30 this morning I took it off the fire (BGE was still at about 225) - the bone absolutely pulled out just using tongs - pulled pork apart into chunks - put on soft tortillas with bbq sauce and cole slaw - absolutely amazing - good cooking!!

Squeezy

Nothing like a success story ... where's the pix?

reh111

Not a very good photo but the best I've got - didn't take pics of the process:

Squeezy

Well at least we know it happened ... and most important ... you were happy with it!

hoppy

I agree with Squeezy on this one. Keep the foil far away from the butt. Remember the reason why you bought a smoker in the first place.

How I do mine is place the plate setter legs up, a drip pan on the setter filled with liquid of your choice, rub the butt with the seasonings of your choice, place on the grill at 225 - 250F and smoke for about 2 hours per pound. It is the easiest way I found to make pulled pork. I started out brining the butts for 24 hours in the beginning, but now I just rub mine down with Emeril's seasoning with olive oil. Been using this method for the past five years with success.

reh111

I would never cook it on a BGE just in foil - never suggested that - after about 4 hours of smoking, it is my experience that I've gotten about all I can out of the smoke and the flavor it gives - I think that what I want to do at that point is low temp cook it until it falls apart but I don't want it to dry out - putting it in a pan with some liquid and covered in foil accomplishes that.  But, you know what??? Whatever works for you, as long as it turns out as you like it, it's the right way.

plunkpeach

Kentucky Wildcat Fan

I've never foiled a Boston butt while cooking. 250 degrees till bone pulls freely. Then foil, wrap in towels and let rest in dry cooler. Pretty simple cook

gte1

I followed the basic instructions above of smoking at ~250, but when the meat temp stalls out in the 175-180 range raise heat to 275-300. This will speed up the cook and it did not dry out the butt at all. Pull off at 200 then rest in foil.

boatbum

I used to foil before the BGE.   Would wrap in foil after a couple of hours, do a "get tender" dance around my old smoker, put all kinds of "help it get tender" stuff on the butt ( pork that is ).

Now .... no foil.

On the BGE, cook it on the rack, low and slow till 195 on the probe, simplest and absolutely the best I have ever been able to prepare.

BOWHUNR

I just did a couple of butts Saturday night.  This is what my two seven pounders looked like after 15 hours at 250 dome indirect.  They were injected with Butcher BBQ pork injection and rubbed down with Dizzy Dust.  Pulled them at 195, foiled and rested in a cooler for an hour and a half.

Pulling the first one.

Lunch is ready.

Mike

Omaha, NE

vettman

@Bowhnr.....I just got back on forum after a bit of absence and had to comment on pics.  Very NICE!!!

Hashmaker

This is how I do butts....

Make rub

Rub recipe:
1 tablespoons salt
2 tablespoons sugar
2 tablespoons brown sugar
1 tablespoons ground cumin
2 tablespoons chili powder
2 tablespoons freshly ground black pepper
1 tablespoon cayenne pepper
1/4 cup paprika
1 tablespoon garlic powder
1 tablespoon onion powder

Double amounts for two butts

This next step sounds crazy but it's good...

Rub your butt liberally with bacon grease.

Then rub with rub.

Platesetter legs up with an empty drip pan on balls of foil.

Put butt on grill and cook 250-275 dome temp til the butt reaches 195 degrees.

Remove butt, double wrap in heavy duty foil, wrap in a couple towels and put it in a cooler. I try to keep it in the cooler for a couple of hours.

henapple

Rauchbier said:

I've done all my pork butts at 250* and figure on about 1.75 hours per pound of meat -- sometimes as long as 2 hours per pound.  I also don't advise brining foil anywhere close to the butt until you are finished smoking it.  Then, I'd double wrap it in heavy duty foil, place it in a cooler and let it rest for an hour or more before pulling.

+1

SmokeyPitt

Hashmaker said:

This next step sounds crazy but it's good... Rub your butt liberally with bacon grease. 

@Hashmaker that doesn't sound at all crazy.  Sounds genius . 

Remaxpat

I have two butts smoking away.  I always error on the cool side when I am going to sleep with them cooking.  There is a great article here on the only time I would use foil, but have had some amazing cooks w/o foil so am not sure I want to change anything yet!  This is the best and most scientific explanation of the why we hit a plateau.  Very intersteing info on humidity in cooker and use of liquids.  http://www.amazingribs.com/tips_and_technique/the_stall.html