pork shoulder recepie

[mstng86]

So my little smoker has two racks. I need to put the water on the bottom rack, and the shoulder on the top, and let the water pan catch the juices from the meat as much as possible.

How do you guys keep your fire going for 24 hours? Continously throw on coals? how much do you add at a time?

[Silverback]

I'll let brent answer as he's way more experienced, but i'm sure it will involve getting a bad ass remote thermometer

And yes, constantly checking the fire is a big part of smoking. Coals? You smoke with wood, not charcoal.

[bcoop]

So my little smoker has two racks. I need to put the water on the bottom rack, and the shoulder on the top, and let the water pan catch the juices from the meat as much as possible.

How do you guys keep your fire going for 24 hours? Continously throw on coals? how much do you add at a time?

I only use coals to get the fire started. I use a chimney starter for the coals, so that the taste of lighter fluid doesn't ruin the meat. So the coals is the base, then I throw on logs. My smoker is a small, cheap, Char Broil horizontal smoker, so the fire box is small. I usually put two logs on to start (I don't use chunks, they're a pain in the ass and burn up quicker, even if you soak them in water). Chunks would be appropriate though, for say an electric smoker or even a vertical smoker. As far as keeping it consistent, you can stoke it just like a fire in your fireplace if it gets too cool, use a fireplace poker to break it up if it gets too hot. Think of it like a fire in your fireplace. Stoke when needed, break up when needed, using the chunks of lump wood as your heat source when you add new logs/chunks. Try to keep it as much of a pyramid as you can.

[bcoop]

For the record, the only experience I have with a vertical smoker was as a kid, and I don't like them in comparison to a horizontal smoker. Like I said earlier, I'm a purist, so I don't like the idea of propane smokers, electric smokers, and I include vertical smokers in that.


Lone Sailor, does use a vertical smoker, and he appears to know what he's talking about when I've seen him post on the subject in the past. You may want to direct vertical smoker specific questions to him.

[mstng86]

I only use coals to get the fire started. I use a chimney starter for the coals, so that the taste of lighter fluid doesn't ruin the meat. So the coals is the base, then I throw on logs. My smoker is a small, cheap, Char Broil horizontal smoker, so the fire box is small. I usually put two logs on to start (I don't use chunks, they're a pain in the ass and burn up quicker, even if you soak them in water). Chunks would be appropriate though, for say an electric smoker or even a vertical smoker. As far as keeping it consistent, you can stoke it just like a fire in your fireplace if it gets too cool, use a fireplace poker to break it up if it gets too hot. Think of it like a fire in your fireplace. Stoke when needed, break up when needed, using the chunks of lump wood as your heat source when you add new logs/chunks. Try to keep it as much of a pyramid as you can.

Thats what I was trying to figure out. The one time I attempted to smoke, I used the coals as the base and put the wood in when needed, but I wasn't sure if I should have been adding more coals to keep the heat up. I smoked a chicken for about 8 hours, but I just wasn't sure if I was doing a good job in the heat department.

As far as it being a vertical smoker and basically being direct heat, my smoker has two racks and two bowls for coal. I put the fire in the bottom bowl, then put the second bowl in between with foil(to keep the fat from heating the fire) and then the meat on the top rack. Now I will put the water in the lower rack. The middle pan did seem to do a good job at keeping the flare up minimal.

[bard]

My $0.02

Charcoal cooking. A chimney starter and 1.5 sheets of newspaper will get you going every time without ever touching lighter fluid again. Dumping a load of coals on a bed of unfired charcoal will extend your cooking time considerably. This is usually referred to as the minion method if you want to google it for more in depth tips.

I guesstimate 1 - 1.5 hrs/lb at 235 degrees for butts, but yes temp rules all. When the meat reaches 165 I wrap it in double foil and bring it to 195. Then wrap it in old towels and store in a cooler for an hour or so while I get everything else ready. It's still plenty warm and plenty juicy afterward. Butts are real forgiving, but as mentioned keep your temp steady for best results.

[marcs95gt]

thanks guys for the tips....man I will do it saturday.

[Lone Sailor]

Thats what I was trying to figure out. The one time I attempted to smoke, I used the coals as the base and put the wood in when needed, but I wasn't sure if I should have been adding more coals to keep the heat up. I smoked a chicken for about 8 hours, but I just wasn't sure if I was doing a good job in the heat department.

As far as it being a vertical smoker and basically being direct heat, my smoker has two racks and two bowls for coal. I put the fire in the bottom bowl, then put the second bowl in between with foil(to keep the fat from heating the fire) and then the meat on the top rack. Now I will put the water in the lower rack. The middle pan did seem to do a good job at keeping the flare up minimal.

First off, it should not take 8 hours to smoke a chicken. If it is taking that long then your temps are too low or just too inconsistent. Usually chicken will only take 1 hour per pound at 200-225*. Chicken is fully cooked when the breast is 160* and the thigh is 170*, just fyi. For your vertical smoker I would keep the water pan in the middle, although you may have just goofed when you said you were going to put the water in the lower rack. I always like having the pan as close to the meat rack as possible. And get rid of the foil, save it for your corn on the cob or baked potatoes, just fill that biotch up about 3/4 full of water and be done with it.

You will always have to add more charcoal, wood, etc, when you are cooking for long periods like that. The way I do it, and everyone will do it differently, is I take a full pan of coals when they are white hot and throw them in at the start of my cooking and immediate add a couple of pieces of wood (I use smaller sized logs, not this little wood chips crap) and start getting the smoke into the meat from the get-go. Then I add 1 more piece of wood for the first stoking and only add briquettes or lump charcoal from there on, and that's even if it is needed on my Weber Bullett(unlike the Bullett, most cheap vertical smokers will normally require stoking about once every 1-1/2 hours). The reason I do it this way is that I have found, and it is noted by every seasoned professional, that the meat will only be able to absorb a certain amount of smoke in a given time and the longer the meat cooks the harder it is for the smoke to penetrate what you're cooking. So getting your smoke going right away is very important so you can get a great smoke ring. That said, I also only keep adding wood for smoke for about the first 2 hours(as noted above for stoking procedure), as I have found, and again noted by many pro's, the smoke can actually start to turn the outer portion of the meat bitter by having the smoke penetrating for too long(over about 2-1/2 hours depending on how much smoke you're actually making). You really don't need to be concerned as much about it as most people don't even like to keep the wood going for more than an hour just out of pure laziness(not saying you're lazy, lol), but that is something that you should always keep in the back of your mind, especially when it comes to pork. When I first started smoking about 15 years ago I had one hell of a time with over smoking pork butts and them coming out bitter and basically wasting all of the good smoke ring part of the meat, but I kept cutting back the smoke exposure time and eventually figured out the threshold.

I could probably go on forever, just like bcoop probably can, but that's about all I want to add as I am also watching the football game. If you have any other questions just ask.

[Lone Sailor]

Do you have the whole shoulder? If not, which cut do you have? Picnic, or butt? I make my own rub, and it's always changing and top secret, but I'll start with the basics. MUST COOK BONE IN, IMO. It's the only way to go. And I'm not a big fan of the picnic, I prefer the blade roast/boston butt.

I used to brine mine with water/kosher salt/turbinado sugar for 24 hours, before rubbing it down, but I've found that injecting beer seconds before it goes on the smoker gives the same effect.

Wash the butt, rub down with prepared mustard. Give it a nice thick layer all over. This will give you a nice thick bark when it's done cooking. I always let it sit out for a bit after rubbing with the mustard, and before applying the dry rub, so the mustard dries a bit, but you don't want it to dry completely. Once you apply the dry rub, it's easier to make a paste (if you've let the mustard dry a bit before applying rub) which is essentially what you're going for. Apply your dry rub, and really molest it. Get it in every nook and cranny, and don't fear applying too much seasoning. You have to keep in mind, when you wrap with saran wrap some of this paste is going to come off with the plastic. The longer you let this marinate, the more flavor you're going to have. It needs to marinate for a minimum of 24 hours, but 48 hours is ideal. Pull the butt from the fridge a few hours ahead of time, to let it get up to room temp before putting on the smoker. Make sure your fire is steady and not still rising in temp when you put the butt on. And like I said, inject with beer seconds before it goes on the smoker. I make one hole, but stab in through that one hole, making sure to hit all corners, top, bottom, etc. I'm sure there are videos on youtube that illustrate the proper way to do this. You don't want to make a bunch of different holes, because that gives the beer more ways to escape or boil out when cooking, defeating your purpose.

I'm a purist when it comes to fire temperature. No more than 245, no less than 200. 225 is ideal, and the more consistent you keep, it the better your pork will be. Temp gets too high, butt dries out. Temp gets too low, and it takes longer to cook. I also don't say '12 hours for a 7 lb butt', either. I cook to an internal temp, period. I've had them on the smoker for as little as 12 hours, and as many as 27 hours. I use a remote thermometer with two probes. One for the rack of the smoker, the other is a meat probe. Mine has a hi/lo alarm that is adjustable, for both probes. I've found this really helps in several different ways. It also helped me discover that the thermometer on my smoker reads about 40 degrees low.

#1 rule of smoking - Low and Slow.
#2 rule of smoking - Don't over use the doors/lids.

I won't open the lid for the first 4 hours, period. After about 4 hours, you want to apply your mopping sauce. The mop sauce I use is equal parts Apple Cider Vinegar, and Canola oil. I also dice onions (small dice), and put a quarter cup of my rub in, stir, and mop on. Once I start the mop process, I apply the mopping sauce every 2 hours.

Pork is 'done' at 165, but I've found that if you let it get up to 185-190 before pulling it, it really helps that collagen render more, which aids in the pork being moist. Once you pull from the smoker, you need to let it rest on the counter for at least an hour before you start pulling it, slicing it, etc. This lets the rendered collagen redistribute itself back through the pork. If you were to slice or pull it immediately, all that rendered collagen will run out, and your pork will be too dry. If you don't have a meat probe, just use a normal meat thermometer to gauge internal temp. Another way to tell when it's done, is by pulling the blade bone. If you tug on the bone, and it pulls clean out (no meat comes with it), it's done.

Some people carve the bark off the pork before they pull or slice it, but they are pussies. I'm of the opinion that the bark really sets it off and gives it the extra kick, so I always leave it on.

What wood you use, is really up to you. Mequite is good, hickory is good, pecan is good, etc. All these woods give different flavors though. Be warned though, mesquite and hickory both produce strong, thick smoke. Since I go low and slow, and the pork will be on 24 hours (usually), I use a mixture of pecan/hickory or pecan/mesquite. If you cook it as long as I do, and used 100% of one or the other, the smoke flavor is too damn strong, so I prefer to mix so the smoke flavor doesn't overpower the rest of the spices and the natural pork flavor. I also strip the bark off the wood before throwing it in the fire. The wood bark (not to be confused with the bark on the pork), gives off a bitter flavor when it burns. You don't have to do this, but again I'm a bit of a purist, so it's a must at my house.

As for rubs, it's really all in what you like. I'm not a big fan of the overpowering chili flavor a lot of people use in their rubs, so while I do use a bit of chili powder, it's not a lot. I also like mine spicy, so I use a generous dose of cayenne and crushed red pepper. With pork, tarragon is a must, but it doesn't take a whole lot. I googled around a bit, and this is somewhat similar to what I make. I'll say, though, this recipe has WAY too much chili powder for my taste, not enough cayenne, and no red pepper. But again, I like some kick to mine.

http://barbequelovers.com/recipes/sauces-marinades-rubs/michael-wright-bbq-rub-recipe

Basics ingredients of a rub should be brown sugar, kosher salt, paprika, onion powder, lots of black pepper, garlic powder, dry mustard, tarragon, some lemon pepper gives a nice touch, etc.


Some people will say that a water pan is a must, but I don't use one, because I don't need a water pan to keep it from drying out. Then again, I use a horizontal smoker. A water pan IS a must if you're using a vertical smoker.

Any questions at all, just ask.

Spot on as usual.

[black50]

mmm. pork butt

[bard]

Spot on as usual.

x2

[mstng86]

First off, it should not take 8 hours to smoke a chicken. If it is taking that long then your temps are too low or just too inconsistent. Usually chicken will only take 1 hour per pound at 200-225*. Chicken is fully cooked when the breast is 160* and the thigh is 170*, just fyi. For your vertical smoker I would keep the water pan in the middle, although you may have just goofed when you said you were going to put the water in the lower rack. I always like having the pan as close to the meat rack as possible. And get rid of the foil, save it for your corn on the cob or baked potatoes, just fill that biotch up about 3/4 full of water and be done with it.

You will always have to add more charcoal, wood, etc, when you are cooking for long periods like that. The way I do it, and everyone will do it differently, is I take a full pan of coals when they are white hot and throw them in at the start of my cooking and immediate add a couple of pieces of wood (I use smaller sized logs, not this little wood chips crap) and start getting the smoke into the meat from the get-go. Then I add 1 more piece of wood for the first stoking and only add briquettes or lump charcoal from there on, and that's even if it is needed on my Weber Bullett(unlike the Bullett, most cheap vertical smokers will normally require stoking about once every 1-1/2 hours). The reason I do it this way is that I have found, and it is noted by every seasoned professional, that the meat will only be able to absorb a certain amount of smoke in a given time and the longer the meat cooks the harder it is for the smoke to penetrate what you're cooking. So getting your smoke going right away is very important so you can get a great smoke ring. That said, I also only keep adding wood for smoke for about the first 2 hours(as noted above for stoking procedure), as I have found, and again noted by many pro's, the smoke can actually start to turn the outer portion of the meat bitter by having the smoke penetrating for too long(over about 2-1/2 hours depending on how much smoke you're actually making). You really don't need to be concerned as much about it as most people don't even like to keep the wood going for more than an hour just out of pure laziness(not saying you're lazy, lol), but that is something that you should always keep in the back of your mind, especially when it comes to pork. When I first started smoking about 15 years ago I had one hell of a time with over smoking pork butts and them coming out bitter and basically wasting all of the good smoke ring part of the meat, but I kept cutting back the smoke exposure time and eventually figured out the threshold.

I could probably go on forever, just like bcoop probably can, but that's about all I want to add as I am also watching the football game. If you have any other questions just ask.

I have no idea why I said Chicken in that post. It was a brisket. I must have had beer can chicken on my mind at the time.

So basically, I need to get the fire going and then add a small wood log at the beginning and let that go and stoke fire accordingly normally every 1 1/2 to 2 hours.

The water would be directly below the meat, as there is only maybe 20 inches between each rack.

Your in Mesquite, you may have to come by and show me how its done one day.

[Lone Sailor]

Here's one I did the day before Thanksgiving on short notice when my dad decided to come down....

[Boondock Saint]

pm bcoop. I've never had such good meat in my mouth before. :drool:

lmao!!

[cbrjames]

I marinated mine in Allegro Thursday night, and threw that shit on this morning at 9am. I rubbed it down with some of my own rub as well. I used dry mustard, a little brown sugar, some cayenne, and some other secret stuff.

got my jalapenos smoking in there right now too, stuffed with cheese and babyback rib meat, wrapped in bacon. I'm fixing to chow down in about an hour.