Try A Little Tenderness

Hobbes

Good morning! I am a relatively new owner of a Big Green Egg (just about one year). I have had mixed results overall. My biggest problems have involved achieving results anywhere near close to what I could find at a good BBQ joint. This is especially the case with baby back ribs, pulled pork and beef short ribs. Instead of tender meat, I get dry, inedible results. The pork shoulder I attempted over the Independence Day weekend was fairly typical. It was a 3-lb. cut of pork. I applied dry rub and let it sit overnight. The next morning, I prepared the Egg for indirect cooking, added soaked applewood chips, put in a drip pan filled with apple cider vinegar, put the pork butt on the grill, closed the lid and let it sit uninterrupted for 8 hours (at just about 220 degrees). I removed the pork, and it was as hard as a rock. No way I could have used a couple of forks to shred/pull it. It was just plain tough. I've had similar problems with baby back ribs and beef short ribs, as noted. I prepare the grill as the recipe instructions indicate, using indirect heat, with a very low temp (hovering around 200-225), and after several hours (for the ribs) or 4-5 hours (for the short ribs), I get miserable results--tough meat, not tender. This is really frustrating. When I tried these same cuts of meat with my old Weber Grill, I had decent results. With the Egg, I have not experienced any success. Please tell me what the heck am I doing wrong?

jeponline

What was the internal temp when you pulled it?  8 hours for 3 pounds may be way too long.

Legume

I'm guessing these were all undercooked.  Get a good thermometer (like a thermopen) and cook to internal temp as well as feel.  Pork butt should come off near 200-205, short ribs similar for me usually.  As far as feel, if it's not tender when you probe it, it won't get tender by pulling it off.

fishlessman

bump the temps up to 250 on the dome, 200 dome is like 180 at the gril level. skip the water pan as well, its also keeping the cooking temps down at grill level. i think your undercooking, keep probing until it slides right in without any effort. check your dome gage in boiling water and get a thermapen, not really needed for these particular cooks but it helps when things dont look like its going right. if your dome temp is 200, your grate temp is 180, how is the meat going to cook to 200 internal, keep that in mind. the rules for cooking a butt time wise only apply to 7 to 8 pounders, the rule is stupid

Photo Egg

First, welcome...
Second, most cooks are NOT done at some "hour" mark given in a recipe guide. Food is done when it hits desired temp or tenderness.
A 3 pound cut of pork is very small and not all cuts of pork are suitable for low and slow for pulled pork. You are living in a fantasy world if you believe buying a grill/smoker make you a BBQ Master. We have all messed up cooks in the past. Rare times, you can blame it on a cut of meat but you can't blame the grill. You control the temp and how long you cook your food. My first attempt at making pizza dough was a complete disaster...It was all my fault because I was attempting to use wheat flower instead of all purpose or bread flower. My mixer was almost jumping across the counter. I'm not a baker and did not understand the differences between the two when baking. Seemed like a little error but was SO BIG...lol
Spend some time researching one cook at a time. 3 pounds of pork that was hard as a rock was severely over cooked. You must not rely on a recipe telling you to cook something for 8 hours and it will be perfect.
If you want great pulled pork, start with butt or shoulder in the 8 pound range or larger. Not a small, trimmed, lean pork roast that was intended for braising in a pot with veggies. AND keep it simple...No water pan full of juice or water soaked wood chips and mop sauce. Salt and pepper or simple dry rub,onto the Egg with 3-4 chunks of wood (I prefer mild apple and cherry most of the time)
I pull ribs off the grill when they have pulled back from the bone and are tender when I stick between the bones with fork or probe. Never judge cook by time alone.
Let us know how your next cook goes.

PS, I come from a Weber kettle grill background as well. There is a learning curve with any cooker. Just keep reading the forum and asking questions. You will be fine after a few good cooks.

Hobbes

Thanks, all. Yes, I believe the small size of the shoulder may have been my first problem!

tarheelmatt

Welcome my man first of all!  

A few issues with your plan.  My notes below.  

1 - Don't soak your chips. 

2 - Don't place any liquid in drip pan.  

3 - 220° is kinda low.  It will take forever for that mass that needs to get to roughly 205°.  Bump that temp up to 250°-275°.  For a 3lb, you go go even higher if you want, but I'd wait until you nail a low and slow first.

4 - Get a good thermo.  The butt should be getting in the 190-205° range to pull a butt.    

JRWhitee

All the above is excellent advice. I do not cook anything below 250, when I first got the egg 10 years ago I tried baby backs at 225 a couple times, both were tough. They have never been tough at 250 or above. Most of my low and slows are between 250-275. Try an 8lb Butt at 250 - 275 next time, pull it at 200 IT and show us pics. I bet it comes out perfect!

nolaegghead

Calibrate your dome thermometer in some boiling water.   Cook above 250F. Check the internal temp of the meat periodically.  When it's around 200F, check for tenderness.  When it's tender, it's done.  Your problem is undercooking.

Try a little tenderness:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TXmLjbTBcdU