Wood for Pork Butt

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bbqiowa

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Two firsts for me tonight. First overnight smoke, and first pork butt. Need some suggestions for which wood/woods to use and how much. I have chunks of apple, maple, and hickory. Here's the rub I'm using thanks to virtualweberbullet.com.
1/4 cup ground black pepper
1/4 cup paprika
1/4 cup Turbinado sugar
2 Tablespoons table salt
2 teaspoons dry mustard
1 teaspoon cayenne pepper

I'm smoking two butts @ 7 lbs after removing false cap with bone-in.

Thanks in advance for the advice.
 
I use 80% oak and 20% hickory when I cook butts. But, fruit woods are not as strong as hickory so it depends on what you like. If you like a mild smoke use the apple. If you like it a little stronger use the hickory.

I think it would be a waste of the apple wood to mix it with the hickory. I can't help you with the maple since I've never used it for smoking.
 
Best results I have had are equal amounts apple and hickory.

Still get a decent smoke taste, but the apple seems to "smooth" things out. I used to use only hickory, but found a better end result with the apply/hickory mix.

wallace
 
Good luck,

I have a Treagar grill and use Hickory "pellets" almost exclusively. I have used apple pellets too, but I prefer the hickory.

Cooked up a four pounder just yesterday and made the most fantastic Carnitas Tacos.

KG
 
I use some hickory, but I'm not crazy about it. Use it sparingly for a nice light smoke.
 
How many fist sized chunks do you all think? I'm smoking on a WSM. Thanks again. Advice is greatly appreciated.
 
Apple, just a sweet and mild hit for Pork, my perfect wood
 
I would be willing to bet that hickory is the most used wood for pork. That being said, I usually use cherry.

Good thing is, you can try various combinations to find what you prefer and enjoy each one.
 
I do mostly apple here with a little hickory included. Its a great mix.
 
I highly recommend using at least some cherry. It gives a beautiful red color to the bark and tastes great in combination with some hickory or pecan.
 
Brewer said:
I highly recommend using at least some cherry. It gives a beautiful red color to the bark and tastes great in combination with some hickory or pecan.
Click to expand...

I would have to agree on the cherry. I know it wasn't on the OP list, but you can find cherry chunks pretty easily. Mixes great with pecan, on all meats.


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk
 
I almost always use a combination of Apple and Cherry. I usually use 3 fist sized chunks. Good luck.
 
My favorite combo is Pecan and either Cherry and/or Peach for butts.
 
Oh, THAT kind of wood. I thought this was another appreciation thread. Well, my vote is for hickory and apple.
 
Anything wrong with oak lump charcoal, and mesquite???

SteveT
 
SteveT said:
Anything wrong with oak lump charcoal, and mesquite???

SteveT
Click to expand...

A lot of people around here don't like mesquite. They say it's bitter and too strong. I like it but you've got to be careful not to use too much.
 
I have cooked with 100% Mesquite pellets for Beef.
I agree. It can be overpowering if over-used.

I now cook Beef over Candy Sue's Mesquite blend pellets.
70% Oak, 30% Mesquite.
WONDERFUL flavor!! :-D

To me, it is clearly all about the amount used.

TIM
 
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