Eggsperts Needed!

UGAVET · May 2008

Ok, In 2 weeks i have to cook for 150 people at a wedding reception. The theme is a western wedding with pulled pork and brunswick stew. I sought advise last week about how much i would need to cook. By my estimates for 150 people im going to need about 55 pounds of pulled pork. considering 40% loss i think i need about 90 pounds of BB's. I have 12 BB averaging about 8 pounds each. Found them on sale here locally for 89cents/lb. The question i now have is when do i cook these. The wedding is a 2pm wedding so probably will be eating around 2:45 on a saturday afternoon. I have the friday before the wedding off and i also have this friday off and the weekend but im going to the nascar allstar race in charlotte on saturday so i would only have sunday to do any cooking ahead. I know how well pulled pork reheats after being frozen so my question is do i cook some of these the weekend before and the cook some on the friday before the wedding and then mix all together or would you try to cook everything on the friday before. I just hate to have something go wrong on the friday and then be stuck with not enough food but i dont want people eating dried out pork either. I will have an xl, 2 larges and a small to do all the cooking. Any advise for the best product and most succesful cook would be appreciated. I am however doing the parts for the stew, chicken, beef, pork, ahead of time and freezing then putting together in the stew the morning of.

Celtic Wolf · May 2008

With an XL and two larges you can start cooking them on Friday. However I would get two maybe even 4 more butts more butt. 96 pounds is pushing it. Remember extras freeze well.

6 on the XL 4 each on the large. Save the small for breakfast..

UGAVET · May 2008

so if i coordinate to have the butts come off saturday morning so i can get them pulled what is the best way to store the pulled meat as i will have to transport the grub about 15 miles and then set back up. i have the large alluminum serving pans that fit in the wire holders for the table and have sterno to go under them but should i do something else to reheat when i get there? my plan would be to pull and put in smaller containers or ziplock bags into the warm cooler for the transport but the meat will cool down a fair amount as it is being pulled and sitting in the pan. thanks for all your previous advise.

Celtic Wolf · May 2008

Personally I would leave them whole wrapped in the cooler till you are ready. Also keep in mind that if that meat drops below 140 you will need to reheat it or further refrigerate it.

bbqmyway · May 2008

That cooler trick is just the thing I think. My limited eggsperience with large quantities of baked potatoes has proven this to be very effective. Wrapping in heavy towels enhances the coolers ability too1

BamaBackdraft · May 2008

No eggspert but if they are ready ahead of time, preheat cooler with hot water and drain before adding meat. Will extend the hold time if needed. Several layers of newspaper on top will help hold the heat also.

Mahi-Mahi · May 2008

Found this at amazing ribs web site. You would have to do a test of this method.

The fast method. After two hours of smoking at about 225F, put the meat into a roasting pan on a roasting rack and pour a cup of water or apple juice into the pan. Cover the meat with foil and fasten the foil tightly to the edges of the pan so the meat is in a nice enclosed environment. Roast in the oven at 350F for another 2-3 hours or until the temp hits 190F and it passes the fork test, above.

5) When it is finally ready, take it out and let it rest for 30-60 minutes. If you are more than an hour from mealtime, you can leave the meat on the cooker or put it in the indoor oven and hold it there by dialing the temp down to about 150F. If you are more than two hours from mealtime, wrap it in foil to keep it from drying out and hold it at 150F. If you are taking the meat to a party, get a plastic beer cooler and fill it with hot water for about 30 minutes to warm it up. Then dump the water and pad the bottom with a few layers of folded towels or a blanket. Leave the probe in the meat, wrap the hunk tightly in foil, wrap the foil with more towels, and put it the whole thing in the cooler. Fill up the cooler with more towels, blankets, or newspaper to keep the meat insulated. Hang the thermometer cord over the lid of the cooler, and close it tightly. Plug the cord into the readout and make sure it never drops below 145F. Just know that this technique will soften the bark and change the texture of the meat very slightly.

Bacchus · May 2008

I dont know but please take pics.
Also, let us know how the Brunswick stew turns out.

Ron

Slick · May 2008

If you have access to a vacuum sealer, you can reheat in hot water with no risk of drying out the meat. With a good seal, there would be no need to freeze, just refrigerate. Would work for the stew, also, but sealing liquids is tricky unless you have the right sealer.

Slick

tjv · May 2008

You're xl package is out for delevery with Fedex. Between the flip ring and the Rig, you should be able to get 11-12 butts smoking.

Feel free to contact me if you need some pointers on setting up the pieces. tom

Crimsongator · May 2008

I think all you will need is the XL and 2 larges for the butts. If you are brave, cook them the night before and rest in coolers until you need to pull them.

UGAVET · May 2008

wow, thanks tom. Came at lunch today. i wasnt expecting that so soon. I may definately get in touch with you about set up options for cooking this load that i have to cook.

UGAVET · May 2008

i have done the stew many times. it is my grandmothers recipe so it should be pretty good.

Eggsperts Needed!

Comments

Categories