TOUGH, Frustrating Boston Butt Lesson

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Tal

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So, I was excited to smoke my first butt today on my Big Green Egg. I had everything ready to go, and put the 9lb butt on the egg at 6:30 this morning at a stabilized 225.

I was hoping that would be ready for dinner tonight, but I am WAAAAAY off. The stall was a bear, and right now I'm only at 182. I did not foil it to power through the stall, as I wanted to get a baseline for myself.

I'm guessing this won't be ready for another couple of hours. I was counting on an hour to an hour and a half per pound, but that is not working out for me too well.

Horror of horrors, had to send the wife out for food to feed the kids so they could go to bed. Frustrating, but I am learning.

Thanks for reading - any suggestions, wisdom etc., are always welcomed on this end!

tal
 
It happens to us all. I nearly poisoned my inlaws for months with horribly over-smoked, improperly cooked food when I first started smoking meat. Just have to chalk it up as a learning experience and keep getting better with each cook. Not to brag, but I've been getting so many compliments on my meats lately that I'm looking into opening a food truck business. We all have to start somewhere.
 
Each piece of meat will cook different, it all depends on the connective tissue. You can have two butts that weigh the same and yet will finish at different times.
 
Tal said:
any suggestions, wisdom etc., are always welcomed on this end!

tal
Click to expand...

Well, I wouldn't have cooked at 225 for one. I'm no hot and fast guy but 250 to 275 is where my pits get comfortable.

Also, a butt will hold in a cooler for hours, so I'd rather hold it than have it not finish.

Better luck next time.
 
Last edited:
Well, a lotta folks cook at a little higher temps. It seems the majority of the folks here like 275-325 for most of their cooks, I prefer somewhere in the 275 +/- range. Probably the only time I like 225 is for a prime rib roast or other good beef roast followed by a high temp sear.

You'll eventually find YOUR happy place to cook with, just keep practicing and have fun!

KC
 
On the BGE for butts we do I like powering thru the stall with foil or butcher paper. Also a bit higher on the temp. Never done a butt hot and fast.

Another option is to put them in a aluminum pan when wrapping and add some apple juice and a bit of squeeze butter on the butt.

Keep practicing and you will nail it.
 
Harbormaster said:
Well, I wouldn't have cooked at 225 for one. I'm no hot and fast guy but 250 to 275 is where my pits get comfortable.

Also, a butt will hold in a cooler for hours, so I'd rather hold it than in have it not finish.

Better luck next time.
Click to expand...


what he said! always use your cooler as a time buffer zone! also the cooler is an important tool in any cook in its own right. the cool down from 205* to about 160* gives the connective tissue in the meat time to break down and turn to gelatin.
 
cook at 275-300* - pushes thru stall much faster. I knock out 10 lb Butts in 9-10 hrs.
 
I would definitely recommend bumping the temp up to at least 250. I go as high as 300 depending on my time constraints. I don't like black bark, so I always foil on larger cuts.
 
I guess I've been BBQing for a year and a half (more serious in the last few months) and I always feel a little surprised at how long it takes for big cuts. Just me, but I figure at least an hour per pound cooking hot plus 2 hour rest, anything better than that is a bonus for me.
 
Sean "Puffy" Coals said:
It happens to us all. I nearly poisoned my inlaws for months with horribly over-smoked, improperly cooked food when I first started smoking meat. Just have to chalk it up as a learning experience and keep getting better with each cook. Not to brag, but I've been getting so many compliments on my meats lately that I'm looking into opening a food truck business. We all have to start somewhere.
Click to expand...

Pulled pork on weck. I'm in for one.
 
I'm just curious. Was the butt frozen to begin with? Are you sure it was completely thawed? Wrapping in foil through the stall as mentioned would have definitely helped. There is something to learn on every cook, that's for sure. :) good luck!
 
GUSTERBOY said:
On the BGE for butts we do I like powering thru the stall with foil or butcher paper. Also a bit higher on the temp. Never done a butt hot and fast.

Another option is to put them in a aluminum pan when wrapping and add some apple juice and a bit of squeeze butter on the butt.

Keep practicing and you will nail it.
Click to expand...


What he said! Good Luck!:wink:
 
Good info posted, Depending on what is going on the day of the feast, if I do not want to get up extra early to get the smoker going, I put them on the night before and let them go all night at 225. I just did 2 very lge butts, took 12hrs to 188 deg internal ( thermapen really is way faster, I just won one here on BBO Brethren) I then bumped the temp up to 300 after the 12 hrs to finish and really crispen the bark, took another 1.5 hrs for the bones to pull right out. If I have plenty of time the day of, I will smoke them at 300 and typically 9+/- hours they are close to being done but then you have to add in the rest period.
Meat is never done till it's done. If you rush it, you will lose or be eating not so good meat.
 
I cook low and slow, and you have to account for at least 1.5 hours per pound at 225 if you want to cook at this temp. The time is just a guide line of course.

I wrap all pork meats in foil to help render juices/fat to add back into the pulled pork. For example an 8lb butt should be done in around 12 hours at 225, and gets wrapped in a foil pan at 8 hours after the bark looks good.
 
I get awesome results at 275-300 :thumb:

10620798_10152783866479994_4291961786206812946_n.jpg


(Sorry, had to show that one off)
 
Always wonder who came up with the magic number 225, I try not go below 275
 
The last butt I did taught me to start early and let it rest if it's done earlier than supper time. I had low temp issues so mine finished in the oven... about an hour and a half later than I needed/wanted it to. So, an alternate meal was chosen for supper.
 
If it's way off than others, i normally think it wasn't 100% thawed.

Been thawing cryoed butts in a cooler full of water under 40. They thaw incredibly fast in 35-40 degree water compared to any other safe method. Wouldn't do it with a butt that wasn't wrapped in some sort of plastic, however.
 
Like has been said, we've all been there. The first thing I ever smoked were some ribs, that were so bad I didn't even eat one bone - out of 3 racks! To this day, I don't know what happened. It's something that has never happened again, and even knowing so much more now than I did then, I have no clue what was going on.

Luckily, I tried a pork butt next that was great, and then I was hooked. However, it was 3 years before I cooked ribs again. Ribs were a blind spot for me for a while, and even now, while I can turn out some pretty edible ribs, I'd say they are my worst meat out of the main 4.
 
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