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lola
07-07-2012, 04:02 PM
I tried a boston butt for pulled pork for the second time on my Chargriller kamado style kooker. Everything I have read says for a 6 pound butt at 300 indirect it should be about a 10 hour cook. I put it on this morning, 0600, 300 indicated on my dome gauge, with a mustard and rub coating. 6 hours later it was 195 internal so I pulled it off and foiled it into a cooler for 4 hours. Pulled it and it was beautiful, but I expected it to take much longer. I was able to sauce the pork and warm it for a 7pm dinner but why did it cook so fast????? The bark was so nice, the pork rendered and so tender but I need to know for the next time if this is normal or for some reason a very quick butt. Lump charcoal, indirect set up, never exceeded 300, spray with apple juice every 30 minutes. Any ideas???? I either need to adjust my cook times or reschedule dinner time. Thanks for the suggestions. Newby to pork butts on a kamado.

LMAJ
07-07-2012, 04:13 PM
Hey Lola...
Are you sure your thermos are right?
300 is high for a low and slow cook - I usually cook 230 - 250 and figure 1.5 hours a pound as a start for time. @ 300 I would expect it to cook much quicker.

Brian in Maine
07-07-2012, 04:17 PM
LMAJ has it right. 300 is higher than most of us cook pork. Those that do refer to it a cooking hot and fast. If you were happy with the results it will save you time.

Butt Rubb'n BBQ
07-07-2012, 04:19 PM
That sounds about right for a hot and fast cook. If had been me I would have wrapped it at 160. For a 10 hour cook you should have been cooking at 225 but sounds like you did okay to me. Why cook for ten hours if you can do it in 6.

The_Kapn
07-07-2012, 04:20 PM
Lola,

Each piece of meat and each cooker have different time lines.

To me, you did a great job of staying on top of the cook and the results are great.

Do not let any "guidelines" from others affect how you cook on your cooker.

Seems to me that you nailed it--------------:grin:
We should all be so lucky.

TIM

Homebrewed Q
07-07-2012, 04:38 PM
Good advice by all above, I've never smoked a butt above 240 so I'm sure it was the temp. Good results so enjoy!!

lola
07-07-2012, 04:54 PM
Thanks for all the info, it seems I was too timid to hold it at 225-250 for the time it needed. Next time I'll try lower temps and not be so concerned about it not cooking at that low of a temp. My inexperience definitely showed on this one, but I was happy that I saw what was happening & pulled it off in time to save the effort. There may be hope for me yet! Thanks to one and all for the assistance. I'll get the hang of this type of cooking yet.

Ron_L
07-07-2012, 05:02 PM
Lots of folks cook butts at 300 and get good results, but it won't take 10 hours. I'm not sure where you read that, but you might want to read somewhere else :-D Unless, of course, it was here, the figure out who those folks were and don't pay attention to them any more :-P

Seriously, at 300 your timing of 6 hours is about what I would have expected.

LMAJ
07-07-2012, 05:11 PM
Thanks for all the info, it seems I was too timid to hold it at 225-250 for the time it needed. Next time I'll try lower temps and not be so concerned about it not cooking at that low of a temp. My inexperience definitely showed on this one, but I was happy that I saw what was happening & pulled it off in time to save the effort. There may be hope for me yet! Thanks to one and all for the assistance. I'll get the hang of this type of cooking yet.

If you are happy with your results then you did good!! and that is all that matters.

caseydog
07-07-2012, 05:20 PM
Thanks for all the info, it seems I was too timid to hold it at 225-250 for the time it needed. Next time I'll try lower temps and not be so concerned about it not cooking at that low of a temp. My inexperience definitely showed on this one, but I was happy that I saw what was happening & pulled it off in time to save the effort. There may be hope for me yet! Thanks to one and all for the assistance. I'll get the hang of this type of cooking yet.

The trick to having your butt done right on time for dinner, is to start a little earlier than you need to, and cook at the temperature that you want -- for low and slow, 225 to 275. Then, if you get done early, just foil the butt, wrap that in a towel, and drop it in a cooler. It will stay hot for hours.

Otherwise, just cook it the way you want to cook it, and tell everyone dinner will be ready when it is ready.

BBQ is done when it is done. All we can do is plan for that fact. If I want to serve at six, I aim for five, and if I'm done at four, I can keep it hot until six, and it's all good. On the the hand, if I aim for six, and it's done at seven, side dishes get messed up and people get unhappy.

That's just my own method. It would be great if everything would get done right on schedule, but I'm not that good.

CD

schlickenmeyer
07-07-2012, 05:20 PM
I second the above. Results and your satisfaction with the product are the key.
I am staying with 225-250 on most things, if nothing else I want to learn to control my pits and they can be a pain down that low. Once I have that down, I figure the higher temps are easy. :)