10 lb Pork Shoulder - Some questions to make it awesome!

aturco

Hello Fellow EggHeads!

I haven’t cooked in a while and the local supermarket had a sale on pork shoulder, I bought a 10 pounder for under $8, couldn’t resist that. I have a LBGE. I live right outside of Philadelphia, its cold here not windy though.

So I just cleaned out my egg and loaded it with lump, I had a few questions and wanted to get input from the pros, here I go:

1)      Temp – I don’t think I want to go Turbo since its such a big piece of  meat (10 lbs). I see a lot of posts for 225, 250, 275, 280. Seems like the LBGE’s sweet spot for low and slow is around 250-275, thoughts?

2)      Timing – I am thinking 1 hour per pound, should I be thinking 1.5 hours per pound?

3)      Overnight – I was thinking of firing up the egg around 9:00 tonight, getting it all set up to the right temp, etc and then putting the shoulder on it around 11 or so. This way it would be done for the most part when I got up tomorrow around 7:00 – 8:00. Thoughts on overnight cooks? I don’t want it to get all dried out. I could throw it on tomorrow too early and pull it off around 6-7.

4)      Plate Setter – legs up or legs down? What is the ideal setting for a piece of meat this big. I also have a V-rack that I can put the shoulder in. Thoughts on using that?

5)      Drip pain – do I need one? If so should I fill it with water?

6)      Bought some Weber Hickory chunks – should I soak these before using? Do I mix them in with the lump?

A lot of questions I know. When I got the egg a couple years back I had some really good results and the last couple times not so much. Shoulder got dried out. I have a brand new dome thermometer now, that may help. If you get a chance let me know your thoughts…links to your pics would be helpful too!

Thanks

Alex

smbishop

I could type it all up myself, or you could read this. 

http://playingwithfireandsmoke.blogspot.com/2002/02/pork-pork-shoulder-butt-picnic.html

jtcBoynton

Here are my comments for you to consider:

aturco said:

Hello Fellow EggHeads!

I haven’t cooked in a while and the local supermarket had a sale on pork shoulder, I bought a 10 pounder for under $8, couldn’t resist that. I have a LBGE. I live right outside of Philadelphia, its cold here not windy though.

So I just cleaned out my egg and loaded it with lump, I had a few questions and wanted to get input from the pros, here I go:

1)      Temp – I don’t think I want to go Turbo since its such a big piece of  meat (10 lbs). I see a lot of posts for 225, 250, 275, 280. Seems like the LBGE’s sweet spot for low and slow is around 250-275, thoughts? Any of those temps work fine from a cooking perspective.  A lot of people report that large eggs are most stable temp wise at 240 and above.

2)      Timing – I am thinking 1 hour per pound, should I be thinking 1.5 hours per pound?

Approximate cooking times for pork butt/shoulder:

225º:  2 hours a pound

250º: 1.5 hours a pound

275º:  1 hour per pound

350º:  30-45 mins per pound

3)      Overnight – I was thinking of firing up the egg around 9:00 tonight, getting it all set up to the right temp, etc and then putting the shoulder on it around 11 or so. This way it would be done for the most part when I got up tomorrow around 7:00 – 8:00. Thoughts on overnight cooks? I don’t want it to get all dried out. I could throw it on tomorrow too early and pull it off around 6-7.

You can easily get a butt cooked in time for a dinner by starting in the morning.  Avoid all of the potential issues of overnight cooking if you can.  

4)      Plate Setter – legs up or legs down? What is the ideal setting for a piece of meat this big. I also have a V-rack that I can put the shoulder in. Thoughts on using that?

I go legs up, spacer for an air gap, drip pan, grate, butt on grate. No need for v-rack.

5)      Drip pain – do I need one? If so should I fill it with water?

Drip pans are fine, but NO WATER.  It just introduces the possibility of temp fluctuations without any benefit.

6)      Bought some Weber Hickory chunks – should I soak these before using? Do I mix them in with the lump?

I am still waiting for someone to demonstrate that soaking does any good for a long cook.

A lot of questions I know. When I got the egg a couple years back I had some really good results and the last couple times not so much. Shoulder got dried out. I have a brand new dome thermometer now, that may help. If you get a chance let me know your thoughts…links to your pics would be helpful too!

Most important thing is to cook it to the proper internal doneness - determine by feel.

Thanks

Alex

Good cooking!  Just get a stable temp and don't chase temps and you will do fine.  Remember doneness is determined by feel - time and temp are just rough indicators of when to start checking.

lousubcap

@aturco - the information above will get you there.  I'm with @jtcBoynton 's comments other than #3.  Your plan to get everything dialed in for a couple of hours then load the protein this PM will definitely work as long as you are stable.  This approach gives you the morning to sort out where you are and adjust to get within the FTC window.  I couldn't determine your desired eat time but take that number- and dial it back a good 4-6 hours (and  more if needed) and once you clear that cook finish time you are in the window.  
Once there you are home-free with regard to when to pull and serve without stressing to finish the cook.  FWIW-
Edit: when the bone pulls clean you are finished-generally low 200's*F.

jtcBoynton

In defense of comment on #3:  Individual timings will of course vary. I normally light the egg at 7am, put the butt on at 8am (down here in the south, a 1 hr warm up is plenty - may not be enough in the chilly north).  Normally a 7-8 pound butt cooking at 280-290º gives you a target time of 4pm.  Dinner at 6:30 or 7pm gives a 3 hour window if things don't progress as planned.  If things are lagging at 4pm upping the temp into the 300's really helps.  I can't remember the last time this schedule didn't work for me.  If you are a late riser, live in the artic, eat early, or cook huge butts the timings will have to be adjusted. If you eat dinner at 5pm (like my folks always did) this timing will not work well.

aturco

Thank you all for the great responses! Just fired up the egg and pulled the meat from the fridge. Will most likely put it on around 8:15 once the egg stabilizes. I will check and later and let you know how I make out. I am hoping to set and forget it. Shooting for 250. Thanks again. A 

aturco

Hello All...checking back in with some results. First how about that game, one for the ages!
So, put the 10 pounder @ 8 and pulled it at 8. Beautiful bark all around, looked good. Problem was it was not fall of the bone, very tough. I did not put it back on the egg. Put it in the over at 250 for awhile but still did not get it fall off the bone. I even put it in the oven today for 4-5 hours and still not fall off bone. I am not sure if it was the meat or me. I did take an internal temp last night and it was at 175...I guess I could have left it on for another couple hours till it got to 195, would have been probably 11:00. Will not buy such a big piece of meat next time, maybe a 4-6 pounder. As far as the cook, I had the egg at anywhere from 250-290 throughout the day. At one point, at about hour 4, the egg would not get up above 200, so I took it a part and re-lit it all and it was fine the rest of the cook. 
thoughts? 

thanks
a

lousubcap

No new lessons learned comes to mind.  It's all about the finish temp/feel-time is only a guide.  FWIW-

jtcBoynton

@aturco    Based on the size and cooking temp, I am guessing you pulled it off the egg a couple of hours early - losing the fire cost you some time.  Doneness is based on feel, not internal temp.  Often a pork butt will be done somewhere between 195-205º (I almost always cook to at least 200º).  Most of the full size butts we get around here are in the 7.5-8.5 pound range.  The smaller ones are usually butts that have been cut up.  I prefer working with the whole butt.  Try a 7.5-8.5 pound butt at 275-290º next time and I expect you will have great results.

XLAggieEgger

Looks like you might have hit the stall without knowing it. Use foil to push through the stall next time if you're fine with the bark softening up a bit 

SaintJohnsEgger

I personally won't pull it off the egg until it hits at least 195 IT if I plan on pulling it. But I prefer to pull around 205.  Never had a tough one.

Now steaks are a different story; I'm the King of tough steaks. 

mlamb01

Here's an alternative method I just tried recently involving a sous vide.  Cook at 165 degrees in the sous vide bath for 18 to 24 hours, then egg it with smoke at 300 degrees for 90 minutes.  You get nice tender pulled pork and you get to sleep at night too, with minimal exposure to the cold outside.