Welcome to the EGGhead Forum - a great place to visit and packed with tips and EGGspert advice! You can also join the conversation and get more information and amazing kamado recipes by following Big Green Egg to Experience our World of Flavor™ at:
Facebook  |  Twitter  |  Instagram  |  Pinterest  |  Youtube  |  Vimeo
Share your photos by tagging us and using the hashtag #BigGreenEgg.

Want to see how the EGG is made? Click to Watch

cooking pork butt on Friday for Sunday

skihorn
skihorn Posts: 600
edited November -1 in EggHead Forum
My church youth group is coming over Sunday afternoon for swimming/skiing etc. I was going to serve pulled pork. However, I just snapped that we are going to be away Saturday evening and night. Therefore, I plan to put the pork on Friday and take it off sometime Sat afternoon.

I have read threads about this before, but I want to make sure I have the consensus. I go ahead and pull all the pork while it is still hot, put in ziplocks and refrigerate until Sunday. Correct? Any suggestions for re-heating?

Also, is there any difference in cooking between a butt and a picnic shoulder? In order to get as much on my XL as possible I was thinking of doing maybe three picnics and one butt. Since the picnic is taller it has more meat for the same amount of grill space. I have yet to do a picnic. I assume just use the same method and pull at around 198 to 200. Any downside to doing picnics?

Thanks in advance!
Freddie
League City, TX
· Share on FacebookShare on Twitter

Comments

  • Carolina Q
    Carolina Q Posts: 14,831
    I seem to be in the minority around here, but I have yet to find a way to reheat pulled pork so that it is even remotely as good as fresh off the cooker. Not even close. If it were me, I would put the meat on saturday night.

    I hate it when I go to the kitchen for food and all I find are ingredients!                                                                                                                                                                                                                           

    Michael 
    Central Connecticut 

    · Share on FacebookShare on Twitter
  • skihorn
    skihorn Posts: 600
    Unfortunately, I am gone Sat evening thru Sun morning. The good news is these are kids who will eat anything. Plus,here in Texas pulled pork is not that common (brisket is king) so their standards probably aren't as high as yours, coming from the Carolinas where pulled pork is more of a staple. EDIT: I just noticed you are currently in Conn. I assume from your name that your roots are from the Carolinas.

    Freddie
    League City, TX
    · Share on FacebookShare on Twitter
  • danv23
    danv23 Posts: 953
    I have cooked butt for 36 hours using a bbq guru. What I think is key is keeping the drip pan loaded with apple juice which you might have to replenish only 3 times. The guru won't overcook on ramp mode and in my large i never had to load more coal for any of my 36 hour cooks.

    The Dude: This is a very complicated case, Maude. You know, a lotta ins, lotta outs, lotta what-have-you's. And, uh, lotta strands to keep in my head, man. Lotta strands in old Duder's head. Luckily I'm adhering to a pretty strict, uh, drug regimen to keep my mind, you know, limber.

    Walter Sobchak: Nihilists! *uck me. I mean, say what you want about the tenets of National Socialism, Dude, at least it's an ethos. 

    Cumming, GA

    Eggs - XL, L, Small

    Gasser - Weber Summit 6 Burner

    · Share on FacebookShare on Twitter
  • Carolina Q
    Carolina Q Posts: 14,831
    Freddie, I spent plenty of time in NC so I like to think I know a little about that style of Q. My handle here is cuz I just LIKE it. :)

    I started to make some crack about the world coming to an end when Texans start cooking pork. haha. S'okay, I suck at brisket. :)

    I hate it when I go to the kitchen for food and all I find are ingredients!                                                                                                                                                                                                                           

    Michael 
    Central Connecticut 

    · Share on FacebookShare on Twitter
  • brisket30
    brisket30 Posts: 122
    I have cooked a pork butt and then reheated a couple days later in a crockpot. I added some water mixed with some of the dry rub I put on the butt the day before. It was moist and delicious.
    · Share on FacebookShare on Twitter
  • skihorn
    skihorn Posts: 600
    danv: Interesting. I will be cooking on my XL so it should go long enough. However, I don't have a bbq guru.

    Freddie
    · Share on FacebookShare on Twitter
  • skihorn
    skihorn Posts: 600
    CarolinaQ: Well, if it makes you feel better, pulled pork is still pretty unusual in this neck of the woods. It was all the posts on here that made me want to try it.

    Freddie
    League City, TX
    · Share on FacebookShare on Twitter
  • skihorn
    skihorn Posts: 600
    Thanks Brisket. I take it the pork was already pulled when you were reheating?

    I don't have a crock pot big enough for the almost 40 lbs of pork that I will be doing. However, I can put it a large pot with a lid (with liquid and dry rub as you suggest) and put that in the oven on very low.

    Freddie
    League City, TX
    · Share on FacebookShare on Twitter
  • jostheim
    jostheim Posts: 53
    This may not be feasible for your cook, but my best luck with reheating any BBQ has been using a foodsaver.

    http://www.amazon.com/FoodSaver-Advanced-Design-Vacuum-Sealer/dp/B000AANXDG/ref=sr_1_2?ie=UTF8&qid=1308803057&sr=8-2

    My theory as to why it works so well is that when you vacuum seal it you seal in all the juices, and the fact that the foodsaver bags are good to be put in boiling water (even in the dishwasher).

    I keep the foodsaver bags sealed and put them in boiling water for 15 minutes (this is kind of like poaching, if the water is at 212F, then the food can't get higher than that). Since the bag is sealed no moisture escapes and the BBQ comes out juicy. That is my theory at least.

    Foodsaver is $$, but it keeps meat fresh at least 2x's as long and is great for leftover BBQ and other things (chili, jambalaya, etc.).
    · Share on FacebookShare on Twitter
  • Feeding Frenzy
    Feeding Frenzy Posts: 87
    danv: Did you find the nuclear plant butt? A 24 pound butt? Butt for 36 hours? :blink: What temp were you cooking at? Usually (generally) 1.5 hours/pound, give or take?? I am confused!!
    · Share on FacebookShare on Twitter
  • Feeding Frenzy
    Feeding Frenzy Posts: 87
    skihorn: You will get far less yield meat wise from the picnics versus the butts. You are better off putting four butts on. Honestly. They will fit easily in the large. The picnics are almost half bone, plus if you want a bark, you have to remove the skin. They pull the same, but you will get much more edible meat from the butt, but not the picnic. Butts all the way IMO!
    Also, cook, pull, chill, seal, reheat. In THAT order. Cook & pull, chill contents, then seal, and reheat when needed (in the vac seal bag). Good luck!
    · Share on FacebookShare on Twitter
  • JTA
    JTA Posts: 3
    I have much less experience that most here. But, in a similar situation here is what I did and the results were pretty good.
    Cooked the pork, cooled and pulled. Put the pulled pork in foil trays (large ones from Sam's Club)and then in the freezer to drop the temperature quickly. Just before the meat froze, I moved the trays to the fridge. When it was time to reheat I fired up the egg, added one can of coke to the tray of pulled pork and reheated.

    Turned out good, not quite great but real good.

    Jack
    · Share on FacebookShare on Twitter
  • skihorn
    skihorn Posts: 600
    Feeding Frenzy: Thanks, I did not know that.

    Freddie
    League City, TX
    · Share on FacebookShare on Twitter
  • skihorn
    skihorn Posts: 600
    Jack: Thanks. I had heard about the freezer trick but had forgotten it.

    Freddie
    League City, TX
    · Share on FacebookShare on Twitter
  • skihorn
    skihorn Posts: 600
    jostheim: I should have asked for that for Father's Day!

    Freddie
    League City, TX
    · Share on FacebookShare on Twitter
  • eggzlot
    eggzlot Posts: 93
    ever consider doing a hot and fast butt? Not sure when you are home Sunday morning and when people are coming over, but if you cook at about 350 temp (where the meat is, so maybe about 380 or so dome) you can get an 8-9 lb butt done in about 5-6 hours.

    Comp teams do it all the time, I went to Myron's school and learned how to do it there too.
    · Share on FacebookShare on Twitter
  • danv23
    danv23 Posts: 953
    I normally get 10lb butts and cook 2 of them at 220 dome temp.

    The Dude: This is a very complicated case, Maude. You know, a lotta ins, lotta outs, lotta what-have-you's. And, uh, lotta strands to keep in my head, man. Lotta strands in old Duder's head. Luckily I'm adhering to a pretty strict, uh, drug regimen to keep my mind, you know, limber.

    Walter Sobchak: Nihilists! *uck me. I mean, say what you want about the tenets of National Socialism, Dude, at least it's an ethos. 

    Cumming, GA

    Eggs - XL, L, Small

    Gasser - Weber Summit 6 Burner

    · Share on FacebookShare on Twitter

Categories