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Pork Butt Disaster
Comments
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I have done butts that way with a few exceptions. First, if you foil at 160, the butt will normally sail right on through the stall. So I'm a bit surprised APL's book mentions it.
Perhaps more importantly, I would finish it well above 200. When it's been injected, I finish it at 205-210. It was probably undercooked. Or you may simply have had a bad piece of meat."I've made a note never to piss you two off." - Stike -
JohnInCarolina said:I have done butts that way with a few exceptions. First, if you foil at 160, the butt will normally sail right on through the stall. So I'm a bit surprised APL's book mentions it. Perhaps more importantly, I would finish it well above 200. When it's been injected, I finish it at 205-210. It was probably undercooked. Or you may simply have had a bad piece of meat.Southern California
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You don't want to pull it until it's ready to be pulled. I suppose 193 may be enough on occasion, but in general I don't think it's high enough."I've made a note never to piss you two off." - Stike
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JohnInCarolina said:You don't want to pull it until it's ready to be pulled. I suppose 193 may be enough on occasion, but in general I don't think it's high enough.Southern California
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What was the brine? Any salt in it.?Green egg, dead animal and alcohol. The "Boro".. TN
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OK,
Agreed. I should have been more specific about the protocol I followed. I didn't pull the pork at 193. I removed it from the cooker and put it in a cooler for an hour. After that I re-seasoned, put it back on the egg for thirty minutes, then glazed it with a BBQ sauce and put it back on for another thirty minutes. All of that was directed in APL's recipe. By the time it was done and I tried to pull the pork, it was most certainly above 200. I don't think it was a temp problem.bicktrav said:JohnInCarolina said:You don't want to pull it until it's ready to be pulled. I suppose 193 may be enough on occasion, but in general I don't think it's high enough.
It's strange then. Honestly I think it must have simply been a bad butt.
"I've made a note never to piss you two off." - Stike -
henapple said:What was the brine? Any salt in it.?3 cups apple juice1 1/2 cups water6 tablespoons brown sugar3 tablespoons kosher salt (I used iodized sea salt)1 teaspoon Worcestershire Sauce1 teaspoon Maggi Seasoning or Japanese soy sauce (I used Tamari)Southern California
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JohnInCarolina said:OK,
It's strange then. Honestly I think it must have simply been a bad butt.JohnInCarolina said:You don't want to pull it until it's ready to be pulled. I suppose 193 may be enough on occasion, but in general I don't think it's high enough.Southern California -
Let me start with the fact that I have never brined a butt, injected a few for experimentation but that's a different issue. Based on all I have read thru some adult beverages, it certainly sounds like a "bad" butt as mentioned by @John. That said, I have never encountered one that couldn't be salvaged with cooking up into the low 200's like you did. So, get back on the horse and give it another go. The journey is the best part for me. FWIW-Louisville; Rolling smoke in the neighbourhood. # 38 for the win. Life is too short for light/lite beer! Seems I'm livin in a transitional period.
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Not a disaster, just a speed bump on the road map of eggin! Bet you nail the next one,Hendersonville, TN.
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I've never brined one. Doesn't sound like enough salt to soak up the fat. An awful lot of water though. Could it have cooked the inside eliminating the stall?Green egg, dead animal and alcohol. The "Boro".. TN
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Maybe next time try the simple route. Just put some rub on and let it cook straight through at 250* - 270*.
Cooking on an XL and Medium in Bethesda, MD. -
The more I think about it and drink it seems like the water may have steamed the butt.Green egg, dead animal and alcohol. The "Boro".. TN
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henapple said:The more I think about it and drink it seems like the water may have steamed the butt.Southern California
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Ragtop99 said:Maybe next time try the simple route. Just put some rub on and let it cook straight through at 250* - 270*.Southern California
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I think the water steam cooked the butt also.
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Perhaps I'm showing my naivete, but I don't see the reason for a brine or any injection really in a pork butt or even foil for that matter. I've always just put a rub on and let it go and always comes off perfect. Between the natural fat and the moisture retention of the Egg, both just seem like an unnecessary step. I wonder if your results would have been better with just a standard rub, constant temp and let the Egg do it's business.
LBGE
Cedar table w/granite top
Ceramic Grillworks two-tier swing rack
Perpetual cooler of ice-cold beer
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KennyLee said:Perhaps I'm showing my naivete, but I don't see the reason for a brine or any injection really in a pork butt or even foil for that matter. I've always just put a rub on and let it go and always comes off perfect. Between the natural fat and the moisture retention of the Egg, both just seem like an unnecessary step. I wonder if your results would have been better with just a standard rub, constant temp and let the Egg do it's business.Southern California
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@bigtrav totally get it. We're always wanting to experiment and try new things. I guess for some things.....pork butt being one of them.....simpler is just simply better. Now, tougher cuts or cuts with less natural fat, etc., I can see the injection and foil. I normally foil ribs for a short period of time also with great results.
If you reach out to him and get a response, post it up. I'd be curious to hear what he says.
LBGE
Cedar table w/granite top
Ceramic Grillworks two-tier swing rack
Perpetual cooler of ice-cold beer
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I would question the accuracy of your thermometer. Try putting it in boiling water to see if temp is above 212. If so then your but was too low and not cooked long enough.Dunedin, FL
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Hey. It's APL.. Gotta try it. Next time cut the butt in half and try it again. Let us know.Green egg, dead animal and alcohol. The "Boro".. TN
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+1 with KennyLee. Cooking a butt straight up with rub gives amazing flavor, moisture, easy to pull, etc. etc. I cannot see brining or all the other cooking steps to complicate what should be a simple cook.XLBGE, Small BGE, Homebrew and GuitarsRochester, NY
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KennyLee said:
I normally foil ribs for a short period of time also with great results.
I only use foil on a pork butt if I have seriously underestimated the time and have to get it done in time for dinner. I know lots of people like to foil ribs, but just like the pork butt, there is no real need for foil to create tender, fall off the bone, ribs.Cooking on an XL and Medium in Bethesda, MD. -
Have to voice some disagreement here. Last couple of butts I've done have followed Charlie Tuna's method of injecting and turbo. The butts have been absolutely phenomenal. Maybe they're much better low and slow but I'd be surprised. I'll probably give APL's recipe a shot the next time I do one."I've made a note never to piss you two off." - Stike
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All I can offer is that I have tried speeding butt cooks both by a period in foil, and by cooking them around 325. Removed when internal is around 200F. While the bark has been passable, so far the meat is stiffer, and less pullable. Not rubbery, but not completely falling apart. I suspect that tho collagen break down is fast at 180 and above, it still may take more time than the turbo method allows.
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Did you use a Thermapen? maybe I missed that detail..It sounds like the butt didn't cook enough to me - temperature is always good guideline, but all meat cooks differently. Some get pulled ten degrees cooler, some ten degrees hotter...Was it bone in? If so, did the bone slide out very easily?Large BGE and Medium BGE
36" Blackstone - Greensboro! -
Used a leave in thermometer to monitor temp. I monitored it up to 193 at which point I removed it from the cooker, added a rub, put it back in for 30 mins, then glazed it with BBQ sauce and let it go another 20 mins. I was not monitoring the temp for those final 50 mins of the cook because there were no more temp targets laid out in APL's recipe, just the time prescription.MaskedMarvel said:Did you use a Thermapen? maybe I missed that detail..
It sounds like the butt didn't cook enough to me - temperature is always good guideline, but all meat cooks differently. Some get pulled ten degrees cooler, some ten degrees hotter...Was it bone in? If so, did the bone slide out very easily?
Yes, it was bone-in. No, the bone did not slide out. It didn't even really wiggle. That was my first clue there was something amiss.Southern California -
I'll check this. It's a good point.yzzi said:I would question the accuracy of your thermometer. Try putting it in boiling water to see if temp is above 212. If so then your but was too low and not cooked long enough.
Southern California -
yea, calibrate to check actual temps.secondly, make it simple.Do your pre cook stuff( rub/marinate etc)clean your egg completely, make sure all holes are open and no ash...build a good fire with bigger charcoal. aim for 225-240 templet it cook off and add the buttsthe tmp may initially spike to 250-280 but will fall back down if you have the daisy wheel right and ventilation clear in the fire ring/grate.try to add wood for smoke as needed early, mop as needed ( not really needed for the moisture as the egg keeps it all in if you dont open lid constantly) wrap at 165 with foillet them stay until they reach 205 IT and pull them off add more foil, a towel and put in cooler for about 3-4hours. ENJOY. Ive done 10 this month and no issues. It rained last night and the two i did were perfect all the way through.The beauty of the egg is that moisture is easy to keep and you can do the most simplist of recipes and it turns out awesome. no need to go crazy.Beaufort, SC
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