Half/Boston Butt on a 22.5 WSM for the first time ....

[Boudreaux]

I will be experiencing my very first Boston Butt on my 22" WSM. I cut the butt in half so it will not take some 12-14 hours to cook. But, I have no idea how long it will take.

I will be using my BBQ Guru Digiq on the WSM (minion method) and hope to experience a cook temp of 230* throughout the cook.

Any idea what time frame I will be faced with if I start at about 9 AM with ambient temps of about 60* outside....???

 

[NC Native]

How many lbs is the cut you're cooking? In my experience, cutting a butt in half doesn't cut your cook time in half.

I have a 22.5 as well but have never been able to keep it below 250, can you maintain that low?

 

[Boudreaux]

I have test cooked 2 separate sets of St Louis style ribs on this WSM on two occasions with the BBQ Guru Digiq with great results at a very stable 235*.

After the ribs were done, I let the pit continue. and achieved a total of 10 hours of heat at 235* with the charcoal bowl at about 3/4 full....

My only question is how long would a 3lbs butt take at 235* ....???

 

[dshaffes]

I just cooked a 5lb. half butt yesterday on my BGE at 250 degrees. I took 7.5 hours to hit internal temp of 203 degrees. I wrapped in foil with some apple juice after 5.5 hours.

 

[kynmo2010]

It is always difficult to say how long it will take. There is so much variations. I've cooked 2 butts of the same size, side by side, and one took 2 hours longer than the other. Just a difference in the meats themselves. For a 3 lb butt at that temp, I would guess around 6 hours minimum. I cocked 2 8 lb butts yesterday at 250 and they were done in 9 hours. I don't wrap or anything until they're done. I wrap in Al foil, put in a cooler and cover with towels to rest for a couple of hours.

 

[sudsandswine]

I'd probably just scrap the 230* idea and do more like 275* to cut your cook time down instead of cutting the meat in half. At 275* a 6lb but would usually take me around 7 - 8 hours, which you should have no troubles getting an 8 hour run time on a WSM.

 

[Boudreaux]

Thanks for all the responses .....

It's 9:22 AM here and the 3 lb butt has been on since 9 AM. I look forward to near perfect results thanks to information provided here... If all goes well with this butt, I have plans for two large butts to be served on Christmas Eve.

Again, thank you very much.

 

[Steve S]

I'd probably just scrap the 230* idea and do more like 275* to cut your cook time down instead of cutting the meat in half. At 275* a 6lb but would usually take me around 7 - 8 hours, which you should have no troubles getting an 8 hour run time on a WSM.

^^ What he said. Cook between 275 and 300 and be done in 6 or 7 hours cooking it whole.

 

[Boudreaux]

Thank you all ......

I went back outside and brought up my cooking temp from 235* to 260*.
The WSM held well to that temp thanks to the Guru. I let it cook for 4 hours, wrapped it, and put it back on the WSM for two hours at 260*. When it was pulled off the pit, it was great...

I used a rub and BBQ Sauce that was sent to me along with the BBQ Guru DigiQ unit, called "Hav-N a BBQ" . That stuff is great. I could eat the sauce with a spoon. It's just that good.