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Butt Fail........could use some expert advice!

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Comments

  • reinhart36
    reinhart36 Posts: 253
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    I'm sure you don't need another opinion, but I do this:

    250F for 12 hours, no injecting, mopping, etc.  Just a dry rub in advance.

    The butt will be falling apart moist goodness, which I then toss with about 3/4 cup of redwine vinegar and ~1/4 cup sugar. 


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  • Gator_Man
    Gator_Man Posts: 138
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    What everyone else said and you don't a water pan! G M

    I'm from North Carolina summer and Okeechobee Florida winter.

    I'm only hungry when I'm awake!

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  • msloan
    msloan Posts: 399
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    man this forum is awesome!  i have read so many great suggestions and ideas….i truly appreciate all the great feedback and now I'm fired up to cook my next butt!
    gettin lucky in kentucky!   2 XL eggs!
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  • Carolina Q
    Carolina Q Posts: 14,831
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    Well, the only thing you did that I do is use an egg with a platesetter. :)

    No injection, DEFINITELY no mustard, no rub in advance, never heard of Bone Sucking rub, I mix my own. I don't soak wood chunks or use apple/peach. Usually hickory only, sometimes oak if I have it. Between the rub and the hickory, my butts turn a lovely shade of black. :) No water in drip pan and no foiling.

    Butts don't need to rest. I never do FTC unless it's done before I want to eat. Usually, I pull right away and eat then. Yours would have been better off cooking 30 minutes longer (probably more) instead of resting in foil. 

    I don't care what the internal meat temp is. It's just a target, usually around 200°. But if I feel any resistance when I insert the T-pen probe, I keep cooking until I don't.

    All butts are different. I have cooked 2.5 pounders that took just as long as the 5 pounder sitting right next to them. For that matter, the whole butt may even finish at different times. With this one, one end was done, the other not quite. It was dark, it was cold out and I was hungry. So I pulled half of it right there on the grid. Had dinner and then pulled the rest when it was done.  :D
    image

    Practice makes perfect. But regardless, sounds like your guests enjoyed it!

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

    Michael 
    Central Connecticut 

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  • Ladeback69
    Ladeback69 Posts: 4,482
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    I agree with everyone that you don't need to spritz. The motto is if your looking, your not cooking. I did two butts last weekend; one on Saturday to 195 for pulled pork and one on Sunday at 185 for sliced pork. I put them on and had the dome at 300 to 350 and grid 260 to 300. They were both at 9lb and took about 6.5 to 7.5 hours. I injected them both. One with white cranberry juice and some Three Little Pigs rub. The other I just injected
    XL, WSM, Coleman Road Trip Gas Grill

    Kansas City, Mo.
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  • Cowdogs
    Cowdogs Posts: 491
    edited April 2014
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    Pineapple is a bad choice for a 12 hour marinade.  
    See link below and read section on Enzymes make meat mushy.

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  • msloan
    msloan Posts: 399
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    Cowdogs said:
    Pineapple is a bad choice for a 12 hour marinade.  
    See link below and read section on Enzymes make meat mushy.

    thanks for the link!
    gettin lucky in kentucky!   2 XL eggs!
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  • JRWhitee
    JRWhitee Posts: 5,678
    edited April 2014
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    Since I read the whole thread I wanted to add my 2 cents. +8, 9 or 10, I lost count, with the others. No Foil, No Spritz, No injecting, No water pan just a plate setter and a drip pan on spacers. For a good Butt with good bark you can cook from 250 to 350 until its 200 to 205 and check the bone. I do put a heavy rub on the night before and wrap in cellophane but really just so I don't have to do it in the morning. Let your finish time determine the temp you cook at. If you have 15 hours or so cook at 250, if you only have 8 hours or so cook at 350. Good luck.
                                                                
    _________________________________________________
    Don't let the truth get in the way of a good story!
    Large BGE 2006, Mini Max 2014, 36" Blackstone, Anova Sous Vide
    Green Man Group 
    Johns Creek, Georgia
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  • msloan
    msloan Posts: 399
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    thank you!
    gettin lucky in kentucky!   2 XL eggs!
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  • msloan
    msloan Posts: 399
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    well wish me luck!  i am experimenting today….i have one 4 pounder on the egg right now……i have no time table or deadline today….it's all relaxed.

    i took everyone's advice and all i did was trim the butt this morning, rub a little olive oil on it let the rub stick and then applied a generous helping of rub.

    i have the egg purring at about 255 with some dry apple chips inside as well.

    there will be no spritzing or foiling today!  i'll report back later to let everyone know how it all turned out.  
    gettin lucky in kentucky!   2 XL eggs!
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  • TexanOfTheNorth
    TexanOfTheNorth Posts: 3,951
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    Hope this one meets your expectations. If there is no bone then you'll want to use the probe test to determine doneness.
    ---------------------------------------------------------------------------------
    Well, "spa-Peggy" is kind of like spaghetti. I'm not sure what Peggy does different, if anything. But it's the one dish she's kind of made her own.
    ____________________
    Aurora, Ontario, Canada
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  • Carolina Q
    Carolina Q Posts: 14,831
    edited April 2014
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    For future reference, you don't need oil either. :) Good luck!

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

    Michael 
    Central Connecticut 

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  • JRWhitee
    JRWhitee Posts: 5,678
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    Good luck.
                                                                
    _________________________________________________
    Don't let the truth get in the way of a good story!
    Large BGE 2006, Mini Max 2014, 36" Blackstone, Anova Sous Vide
    Green Man Group 
    Johns Creek, Georgia
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  • EagleIII
    EagleIII Posts: 415
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    I agree with many of the above. No injecting needed, no wrapping, and NO spritzing. Opening the lid to spritz is killing your dome temp, extending your cook time and hurting you bark.
    This weekend I did 9.8 lb butt. Put it on at 5:00 pm Friday night, 230 temp at the grate, closed the lid and didn't open the lid until 1:00 pm Saturday when the butt hit 203 internal.
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  • msloan
    msloan Posts: 399
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    well………..SUCCESS!!!!

    everyone's suggestions helped a ton today……by far the best bark i'v done on a butt and everything was nice and tasty.

    it took a full 8 hours to get the butt where it needed to be, so that is info I will file away for next time.

    once again everyone, thanks a bunch for helping me!!!  i really appreciate it.
    gettin lucky in kentucky!   2 XL eggs!
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  • Gator_Man
    Gator_Man Posts: 138
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    Glad it went well this time! =D>  Just remember Butts are done when they are done some go fast and some go slow. :)

    I'm from North Carolina summer and Okeechobee Florida winter.

    I'm only hungry when I'm awake!

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  • xiphoid007
    xiphoid007 Posts: 536
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    Carolina Q said:

    Well, the only thing you did that I do is use an egg with a platesetter. :)


    No injection, DEFINITELY no mustard, no rub in advance, never heard of Bone Sucking rub, I mix my own. I don't soak wood chunks or use apple/peach. Usually hickory only, sometimes oak if I have it. Between the rub and the hickory, my butts turn a lovely shade of black. :) No water in drip pan and no foiling.

    Butts don't need to rest. I never do FTC unless it's done before I want to eat. Usually, I pull right away and eat then. Yours would have been better off cooking 30 minutes longer (probably more) instead of resting in foil. 

    I don't care what the internal meat temp is. It's just a target, usually around 200°. But if I feel any resistance when I insert the T-pen probe, I keep cooking until I don't.

    All butts are different. I have cooked 2.5 pounders that took just as long as the 5 pounder sitting right next to them. For that matter, the whole butt may even finish at different times. With this one, one end was done, the other not quite. It was dark, it was cold out and I was hungry. So I pulled half of it right there on the grid. Had dinner and then pulled the rest when it was done.

    Practice makes perfect. But regardless, sounds like your guests enjoyed it!

    Out of curiosity, why no mustard? I'm from Pittsburgh, so I have no idea about traditional real southern BBQ, I'm still learning. I use mustard to get the rub to stick better as I've seen here multiple times from multiple folks. Just curious as to why "definitely" no mustard.
    Pittsburgh, PA - 1 LBGE
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  • Carolina Q
    Carolina Q Posts: 14,831
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    Well, first, it seems a waste of a perfectly good hot dog condiment. :) Everyone seems to agree you don't notice any mustard taste on a butt and since rub sticks to the butt quite well without mustard, why bother? Mainly though, if you visit 10 Q joints cooking pork butt, you will likely find 11 of them that don't use mustard. Some (maybe most?) don't even use a rub. Just s&p.

    No mustard...
    image

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

    Michael 
    Central Connecticut 

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  • SoCalTim
    SoCalTim Posts: 2,158
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    Mustards cheap, I use it on all my butts and baby backs. Now if we were taking 'bout EVOO, that stuff can get expensive.
    I've slow smoked and eaten so much pork, I'm legally recognized as being part swine - Chatsworth Ca.
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  • Carolina Q
    Carolina Q Posts: 14,831
    edited April 2014
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    Yes, it's cheap. Supposedly, you can't taste it. Rub sticks just fine without it. None of the real Q joints use it. And no one uses evoo on butts or ribs!

    So what's your point? 
    :D

    PS: I really don't care. Use it if you prefer. Not me though. :)

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

    Michael 
    Central Connecticut 

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  • Raideregg
    Raideregg Posts: 33
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    I have cooked several butts ranging from 6 to 10lbs each.  Usually two at a time on the Xl.  I have always cooked at 250 to 260 degrees using a DigiQ to assist in monitoring and managing the temp. I set the temp at 250 on the grid and the internal at 190 degrees.  Depending on the weight of the butt.  I use a thromocoupler to check the actual temp of the meat.  Once it hits 190 degrees I pull the meat.  I wrap it in foil.   If I cook for 6 hours I let it sit in the foil inside a cooler for the same time.  Each time I have done this the butts explode when I start to pull them.  Needless to say, I have never had  a complaint.  Again, however long I cook it once it hits 190 degrees, foil them and place them in a cooler for the same time.  They will continue to cook!  When you unfoil them, have a bowl ready to collect the juice that will be present, as you pull one butt, pour the juice over the shredded meat and you will have the best pulled pork ever!  Forgot to mention I double foil using high temp foil.  Best of luck.  Please provide feedback on this technique!   Raideregg
                      Raideregg
    I Like Big Eggs and I can not lie!
    XXL,XL, L and MM
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  • fairchase
    fairchase Posts: 312
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    I will agree with most here.
    Water pans are for vertical smokers , and are of no benifit in the egg as far as I can tell.

    #1 IF Your LOOKING YOUR NOT COOKING !
    Leave the lid close and you will be amazed how much faster your cooks go !
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