FoodSaver Pork Butt Experiment

We portion into zip top bags in single serving sizes, stack them in a vacuum bag, and leave a long "tail" on the bag so we can cut and reseal it over & over. I normally mix everything together, juices, etc, in the pan before portioning. Since it's already in single serving sizes, (usually 4oz each) it's easy to grab as many as we need for whatever meal we're having. Plus it makes it easy to throw a lunch together when there are no other leftovers.

I pull the pork..then vac seal in portions. Some 4 oz for one sandwich...some 1lb for a meal. I know some people reheat by setting the bag in hot water. I've been just defrosting in the microwave. I usually add a little sauce to the 4oz portions to make a sandwich. I've added the 1lb portion to a skillet with rotel and taco seasoning to make pulled pork Tacos.

I use a 15" sealer. I seal portion sizes and reheat in a stock pot. I place paper towels between the meat and sealing area to keep liquid from making a bad seal.

For brisket I freeze broth and place the cubes in with it before sealing.

Sent from my SM-G950U using Tapatalk

I cook the meat, pull/slice, then pour in a bit of the reserved juices. I put that in the fridge overnight to solidify.

Portion into the size you want (I usually do bags of 2 lbs), solidified fat/juices and all, then put in the deep freeze.

When it comes time to eat, I will thaw the meat on the counter, or sometimes even put frozen, into a water bath using a small cooler and my Anova sous vide and bring it up to 130* or so. A lot of hot (not boiling) water works as well.

Using this method, the reheated product is *almost* indecipherable from fresh. It's just not practical for me to run my stick burner in all situations where I want to serve some barbecue, like taking it into a lunch for work.

sudsandswine said:

I cook the meat, pull/slice, then pour in a bit of the reserved juices. I put that in the fridge overnight to solidify.

Portion into the size you want (I usually do bags of 2 lbs), solidified fat/juices and all, then put in the deep freeze.

When it comes time to eat, I will thaw the meat on the counter, or sometimes even put frozen, into a water bath using a small cooler and my Anova sous vide and bring it up to 130* or so. A lot of hot (not boiling) water works as well.

Using this method, the reheated product is *almost* indecipherable from fresh. It's just not practical for me to run my stick burner in all situations where I want to serve some barbecue, like taking it into a lunch for work.

Click to expand...

Good idea on fridging first. Thanks!

Sent from my SM-G950U using Tapatalk

We just put the leftovers in the vac bag & seal. If you put any liquid in the bag, the vac is going to pull it right back out when you seal it. When we reheat, we boil water, turn the heat off and drop the bag in until its warm. There's typically enough moisture in the meat itself that it doesn't dry out. FWIW, it works great for ribs too!

Refrigerate first to harden fat and congeal juices. Then vac.

Reheat in hot, but not boiling water.

Yup I chill meat first then put into bags so the suction does not pull liquid into seal. Also I have a 1/2 gallon pitcher that I put the bag into and fold the open end over the top of pitcher, keeps bag clean and holds it open while I put the meat in.

Chill meat first then weigh out 1 lb portions and seal and freeze.

While my butts are holding I refrigerate the meat juices to solidify the fat for easy removal.

I pull the butts by hand removing all fat, gristle, and cartilage while still warm and by the time I'm done it is cool to the touch. I then calculate my bags and distribute the solidified liquids accordingly.

Fill the bags to sizes needed; 1 lb, 2 lb, 3 lb, 5 lb, or any combination according to my needs. I then will add some apple cider / juice and sometimes a sprinkle of rub if needed. Once the bags are filled, I refrigerate the non-sealed bags for an hour to allow the apple juice to mix and congeal with the meat juices before sealing.

I don't add sauce to the meat.

To reheat;
I try to thaw slowly ahead of time if I can, but that isn't always the case so a soak in cold water can help to thaw the bags quickly.

Bring a pan of water (big enough to hold your bag of meat) to a boil. Once the pan comes to a rolling boil, turn off the flame/electric and drop the bag into the pan of hot water. Let the bag of meat sit (depending upon the size of the bag) in the hot water for 10 to 20 minutes.

Remember don't boil the water with the bag in it. The meat is already fully cooked and you just need to bring it to a serving temperature, not to further cook it.

.

mjpmap said:

We just put the leftovers in the vac bag & seal. If you put any liquid in the bag, the vac is going to pull it right back out when you seal it. When we reheat, we boil water, turn the heat off and drop the bag in until its warm. There's typically enough moisture in the meat itself that it doesn't dry out. FWIW, it works great for ribs too!

Click to expand...

And it should be just this easy.

I always have the same opinions when I read threads & subsequent suggestions such as the ones here.

1) If you are adding liquid to your barbecue, then you cooked it too dry.
2) If you are having to put your leftovers in the fridge to solidify before vac sealing, then your barbecue is way to greasy.

And again, it's just that easy to understand.

If you're vac sealing, then all you need to do is put it in simmering water until up to temp. I know restaurants that use this method 7 days/week.

You do your thing, I'll do mine :wink: