Thirteen Hour 8.5lb Pork Butt

joshpounds90

I've been obsessing over perfecting pulled pork and trying out different rubs. This one was inspired by a post I saw awhile back featuring a "gunpowder" rub. I bought the first one I saw on Amazon, (no offense to) Jess Pryles Hardcore Carnivore BLACK Beef Seasoning. The activated charcoal intrigued me. I didn't hesitate to put it on the pork butt because A.) I've seen others use this stuff on pork and B.) it says on the label that it can be applied to any red meat. Anyway, I applied a liberal amount while preheating my BGE for indirect 225-250°F (I made sure it never crept up above 300° during my whole cook) with drip pan under the grate full of an apple cider vinegar, red pepper flake, salt, pepper mixture.


Originally, I intended to Texas Crutch at 160°F internal but I started this butt at 9:15PM and ended up having to add a new load of charcoal at around 2:30AM, so once I had it back on the grate and back up to temp., I decided to just let it ride.
This is what it looked like after nine hours:

At around 8:00AM, it stalled at 190°F internal for about an hour and a half. Finally, at close to 9:45AM, it hit 198°F so I pulled and wrapped in butcher paper. I then wrapped that up in a beach towel and shoved it into my Yeti, and zipped it up to rest for two whole hours.

When two hours was up, I unwrapped it.

I used a latex glove over one of my garden gloves to shred it by hand and was not displeased! This might be my best work to date. It's extremely moist and there isn't an ounce of inedible meat. Also, there doesn't seem to be any fat left on it. I'm impressed by the intense flavor and am now a big fan of the activated charcoal (gunpowder) rub. Not sure if I will Texas Crutch again anytime soon. LET IT RIDE.

johnmitchell

That looks fantastic 

lousubcap

Great result right there.  Patience rewarded.  Nice ring as well.  Congrats.  

buzzvol

Looks great!

joshpounds90

This is that melt-in-your-mouth kind of pulled pork.

4TheGrillOfIt

Excellent result.  If I am not in a hurry I never wrap pork butt.

Psycho_RDMC

How did you get the temperature down to 225? I can't get mine below 250 without it choking out the fire.
Thanks

Langner91

That looks great!

Did you fill your medium all the way with charcoal to start?  I am surprised you had to refill after 5'15".

xfire_ATX

I bought her Rub a while back, forgot about it.

Used it on some Beef Tenderloin Steaks in Sous Vide- maybe that wasnt the right attempt.
Used it on some sliders the day and its good.

Is available at the HEB by me and its pricey but will surely put it on the brisket thats up and coming.

gonepostal

Looks really good. Will have to give that rub a try. 

RyanStl

Looks fantastic.

ryantt

WOW!!!! That’s some of the best looking bark I’ve seen on a butt ever, and great job getting a nice ring on it!

joshpounds90

Psycho_RDMC said:

How did you get the temperature down to 225? I can't get mine below 250 without it choking out the fire.
Thanks

Use less charcoal? Bigger lumps but fewer pieces maybe. I like Fogo lump the best. And I usually start with the bottom vent only a quarter of an inch open with the top mostly closed. Only the small vents on top should breathe.

Mark_B_Good

Nice, that's a long cook for that size butt, obviously due to the lower temperature in the dome ... but that will pay dividends for sure.