Boston Butt variables

kwdickert

A month or so ago, I made the best fall apart boston butt i've ever eaten (cooked to 195F internal). It was falling apart as I took it off the grill. Then it sat in my faux cambro for four hours. Just melting soft ya know!?

Two weeks ago I tried to duplicate this event and it DID NOT happen. I cooked to 195F internal and let it rest for three hours and it was still a little tough. I chocked it up to probing the wrong area AKA not the center and moved on. Also note that I used a drip pan but no water. In this situation, I had an issue with an internal probe and ended up opening up the egg a lot as I had to resort to a folding digital probe. I think this had something to do with my problem. I wonder if it caused me to lose the moisture that helped my previous boston butt fall apart.

Fast forward to this weekend, I cooked another two boston butts this weekend to 205F internal. I took an 8# and cut it in half to cut down on cook time and double up on bark. While those two things happened, again, I used the drip pan with no water and ended up checking the grill with my folding digital probe often towards the end of the suggest time of cook. Again the meat was not falling apart coming off the grill and although it was cooked to the upper end of temp, it was still not tender like I wanted it. I only let it sit in the cambro for one hour as I was HONGRY at that point haha. 

Thoughts? Do shorter time in cambro and # of times opening the egg to check temp, result in dryer/tougher butts?

BTW, I did run into the drippings burning up a bit. I'm definitely going back to adding water to the pan. With the use of a big thin foil pan, the water doesn't seem to evaporate so it works pretty well. 

I was somewhat happy with Saturday's results but I'd rather it always be as good as the first time. 

Any insight is helpful!

These are the pics from Saturday

DaveRichardson

I would chalk it up to the individual cuts of piggy goodness more than technique.  As I like to say, butts will be butts!

Depending on the musculature of the cut and the fatty content, each one will cook differently.  Anywhere from 195 to 205 should put you in the good-to-go range with pulling.

I have taken a liking to adding an injection to my butts to add in a little more moisture.  Also, sprinkle a little apple juice or coke into the meat pile to add in a little more moisture......

Carolina Q

You are overthinking this. Put the meat on, indirect, drip pan, no liquid. Set the dome temp anywhere 250 and 350 and let it go. When the meat temp gets to about 190-195, start checking for doneness. The meat is done when a probe can be inserted in multiple places with no resistance or when the bone can be pulled out by hand. I haven't checked my final done temp for a butt in years. 

Butts don't need to rest unless they are done before you are ready to eat. 

350* cooks will be quicker, but otherwise, little difference. Smaller butts may cook faster, but they may not. I once had two 5 lb butts and cut one in half as an experiment. Put all three pieces on my large and they all finished at the same time. 

Butts are very forgiving. Just let them cook long enough. And if you don't, you can always slice 'em.

kwdickert

Thanks guys. The most recent one pulled pretty well but just wasn't falling apart. Just curious. I'll just leave it on next time til it's falling apart. Either way, it tasted good! I had more than my share of bbq sandwiches. New revelation is to add a few sweet and spicy pickles on top.

jtcBoynton

+1 to the comments of  @Carolina Q 

Make sure to have an air gap below the drip pan.  

Each butt comes from a different pig.  The differences in food, exercise, and genetics all contribute to differences in the muscles of an individual pig.  Some of what you are seeing is due to this and not how you cook them.

kwdickert

The probe i was using is an old weber style digital one and it showed 10 degrees higher than my javelin digital folding probe which is extremely accurate. Looks like i'll be getting a new leave-in probe

kwdickert

Just an update, I did another butt. 9.5# cut into two. I used a water pan this go round and i cooked without a leave-in prob. It made a huge difference. Falling apart coming off the grill just like the first time I did one. This one was the best so far though 

Mikee

After putting in the butt, I'll let it go for 7-9 hours before getting a temperature reading; some of that depends on the temperature I am cooking at. Raising the dome will let the heat out but since the ceramics are hot it recovers quickly since a Thermo Pen only needs a couple of seconds to get the temperature. I'll check several more times after that. What I am looking for is for the temperature to rise after the 'stall' which can take hours. The Thermo Pen does two things: it allows me to see the temperature and allows me to judge how tender the butt is. If the probe slides in easy and the temperature is 195* and above, then I pull it.

kwdickert

Mikee said:

After putting in the butt, I'll let it go for 7-9 hours before getting a temperature reading; some of that depends on the temperature I am cooking at. Raising the dome will let the heat out but since the ceramics are hot it recovers quickly since a Thermo Pen only needs a couple of seconds to get the temperature. I'll check several more times after that. What I am looking for is for the temperature to rise after the 'stall' which can take hours. The Thermo Pen does two things: it allows me to see the temperature and allows me to judge how tender the butt is. If the probe slides in easy and the temperature is 195* and above, then I pull it.

That's what i did. The water pan made a dramatic difference in getting my butt to fall apart compared to my last few butts with the same conditions other than water pan. I also removed the probe because it was causing a slight leak at the lip and making my temperature move around too much. Anyway, i just came back to say that while some people say it doesn't matter to have a water pan, it matters to me. 

Anyone with the science behind why a 13x9 aluminum pan 5" deep almost full of water doesn't evaporate at 275-300F, i'd love to hear it. I was surprised that it was still there after 8 hrs or so.

jtcBoynton

Evaporation is influenced by relative humidity. With high humidities, the evaporation rate is reduced.