First attempt at pulled pork, how long will it keep in a cooler.

[basspro05]

I am having a graduation party for my wife tomorrow, she finished up her college degree.

I am having a bunch of people over and smoking 2-9lb boston butts. I have never smoked a butt before, but from what I read they are hard to mess up...I hope...

The party is at 5pm.

I will be tied up from 9am-noon and not be able to check the meat, so I am thinking about throwing them on tonight and slow smoking for a while and then cranking the heat up to about 300 or so to speed the process up.

I have no clue how long they will take but I feel if I put them on around 7pm tonight they will be done before I have to take care of some stuff at 9am tomorrow morning.

My question is, if these butts get done tomorrow morning around 7am or so how long can I keep them hot in a cooler? And will they be ok to come off the smoker and be pulled up to 8 hours later?

[JimF]

My most recent Pork went like this:

8.7 pounds
cooked at 225
Foiled at 165
Upped heat to 275
Removed at 205
Placed in cooler for 1 hour
Pull

[JimF]

oh the question was how long can it sit in the cooler? hahaha sorry. I dont know. ha

[landarc]

two 9 pounds butts, put into the cooler at around 200F, will hold for at least 4 hours in a decent cooler. In a good cooler, probably 6 hours. My cooler which is pretty good, the meat will be 185F after four hours. I do preheat my cooler with a gallon of boiling water first.

[basspro05]

Probably a dumb question, but as long as it initially cooks to 200 degrees, even if it cools down a little in the cooler, it will still pull apart for pulled pork right???

Sorry I am completely new to the smoking world:shocked:

[fantomlord]

Probably a dumb question, but as long as it initially cooks to 200 degrees, even if it cools down a little in the cooler, it will still pull apart for pulled pork right???

Sorry I am completely new to the smoking world:shocked:

yes...the reason it pulls is that you've broken down the collagen, so once that's done, it will pull even after it cools. FYI, it's easier to pull when it's hot than when it's cold--but it will definitely keep it's heat for 4-6 hours in a cooler. Double wrap in HD foil, into the preheated cooler, then pack the rest of the cooler with towels to insulate.

[WineMaster]

Ive seen 8 happen, Thermo-Pen still read 164. Helps to have a good cooler that is about 2 butts in size though.

[landarc]

It will pull at anytime, as said above. I prefer not to pull too soon, as I believe the product dries when you pull above serving temperature.

[aawa]

If you put it in a standard preheated coleman/igloo cooler with towels and newspaper taking up the rest of the air space it will be able to stay hot for 6+ hours.

During my house warming party I had 2 pork butts in a cooler that were in a cooler waiting for the initial 2 pork butts to be finished. I kept them from 2pm-10pm. When I took them out of the cooler and pulled them, they were still nice and hot and were easy to pull.

[basspro05]

Thanks alot of the advice guys, wish me luck!

[flyingbassman5]

2 hot butts wrapped in towels in a good quality cooler will keep for 4-6 hours no problem.

[el_matt]

I like to preheat my cooler, and fill the void with towels just like everyone else. Something I didn't see mentioned, I also try to leave it outside, in the direct sunlight. I think we all know how hot and humid a cooler left in the sun can get.

Matt

[criffaaa1]

if it were me I'd put them on around midnight, they'll be done around noon give or take and can go four hours in a cooler no problem.

[basspro05]

if it were me I'd put them on around midnight, they'll be done around noon give or take and can go four hours in a cooler no problem.


Only thing I worry about here is if I am tied up and can not get to them until noon, and they happen to be done at 10:30 or 11...

Wont they be way overdone when I finally get to them?

[Bro-be-que]

I usually will aim to have the shoulders off the smokers 3-4 hours before I plan to eat. Gives me time to let them rest. I pull after 45 minutes or so (easier to handle after its cooled a bit), put in a hotel pan with some apple cider, cover and stick in a warm oven until dinner time.

Never had a complaint!!!

Good luck!

[aawa]

Only thing I worry about here is if I am tied up and can not get to them until noon, and they happen to be done at 10:30 or 11...

Wont they be way overdone when I finally get to them?

Pork butts are very forgiving. It will take cooking them for a super long time to dry them out. However the meat will get mushy when it over cooks.

I have had the same time frame as you have had before. What I did was put them on the smoker at 235degrees at midnight. If you cooked the entire time at this temperature you are looking at about 2 hours per pound. Once I woke up and finished with my commitment I turned the temperature up to 325-350degrees till it finished. The pork butts finished between 2-3pm and then I foiled and let them rest in a cooler and pulled them when I needed them.

It is all about time management and knowing the approximate cook times at different temperature ranges to check for doneness.
225-245 approximately 2 hours per pound from start to finish.
250-275 approximately 1.5 hours per pound from start to finish
300-325 approximately 1 hour per pound from start to finish