Need - Smoked Pork Shoulder Advice

[Mike D]

Smart’s recipe is a good ‘un.

You also may try buying an Amazen pellet tube to get heavier smoke. The electrics just can’t produce the smoke like a stick burner can and the pellet tube helps a lot. You’ll need to shield it from the drippings because the pellets just smolder for hours to create the smoke.


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[Double-O-Dave]

Hey recar!....I apologize if my redneck french is not up to date. I'm English Irish mix after all..

Anyway...You know the rendered fat/drippings you catch in the foil that mixed with the added apple juice and brown sugar I told you about?.....mix that **** with the meat. Hopefully that explains it better so there is no confusion....

Sorry, but I don't know what "recar" is or means. So there is no confusion, I meant no offense/slight/insult to anyone in my post. My apologies if I have offended/slighted or insulted anyone. Your original post was quite clear to me, and I was just trying to clarify the spelling of au jus in case others were interested.

Regards,

Dave

[GarGuy]

At the risk of appearing to agree with something Smart posted.... every thing he wrote is correct except his speelin. He may be Smart after all. go with pork butts.

[Smart]

Sorry, but I don't know what "recar" is or means. So there is no confusion, I meant no offense/slight/insult to anyone in my post. My apologies if I have offended/slighted or insulted anyone. Your original post was quite clear to me, and I was just trying to clarify the spelling of au jus in case others were interested.

Regards,

Dave

recar is the name of the person who started the thread. I was talking to him there trying to be funny...I just quoted your post for effect.

No offense taken..

[LakeJake]

Do what Smart says.

I catch the jus, mix with a little BBQ sauce and rub, and pour it back into the shredded meat.

I also use an electric upright smoker, though not a pellet smoker. Mine barely makes any smoke below 250F.

[oktx]

I have an MES 40 also. I cook all of them in an aluminum pan. That way I can catch all the juice and add little apple juice to what ever drippings I catch. I only wrap after it hits 200° +. Let rest a minimum 1 hour then pull. After I have pulled it and added the drippings and apple juice I sprinkle a little more rub to the pull product.

[Palmetto]

At 165 put it in an aluminum pan, and dump in a can of pickeled jalapenos. Cover the pan with foil. Pull out at 200, & let rest for a little while in a cooler.

MMMMmmmnnnnn......

[oktx]

At 165 put it in an aluminum pan, and dump in a can of pickeled jalapenos. Cover the pan with foil. Pull out at 200, & let rest for a little while in a cooler.

MMMMmmmnnnnn......

Going to try that one.

[Bowhica]

Brine it 24hrs in salt brown sugar and water

Glad you said this. I curious about brining.

[SwampRabbit]

Yep... just here to say "What Smart said!"

I learned how to cook a PB from Smart and so far I have failed to find a way to ruin one. There is a lot out there that makes it sound more complicated than it really is.

Just get some smoke on it and get a bark going. Then get it up to 200 or so degrees and pull it apart.

In all honesty, you can just smoke it for a couple hours to get the bark on it and let it get to 160ish and then wrap it and put it in the oven and let it cook the rest of the way in all that smoky flavor that you just put into it.

****it!!! now I want some pulled pork!

[SwampRabbit]

Brine it 24hrs in salt brown sugar and water

Does brining a pork butt really buy you anything? I cook it to 200 degrees which means I'm breaking down all that tissue that makes it really nice and juicy. If I want to add additional flavor, the rub or sprinking more rub after it is pulled just does the trick. I don't see the advantage of brining.

I usually save brining for something that I am not pulling or am definitely not taking above 165 degrees or so and I still want the "pull" of the meat. A turkey leg comes to mind. I like to brine Turkey legs because I don't want to go above about 175. At 175 I still get a good pull, good smoke, and don't want it dry....

[Smart]

Glad you said this. I curious about brining.

Most vacuum sealed pork butts are packaged with a solution injected already... says so right on the package.

For me...brining is a technique used on meats you need to add moisture for. Turkey, chicken maybe pork loin. There is so much fat and moisture in a PB it seems to me to be a wasted step....and if you brine too long they can become a bit hammy. JMO...YMMV....

[Smart]

Does brining a pork butt really buy you anything? I cook it to 200 degrees which means I'm breaking down all that tissue that makes it really nice and juicy. If I want to add additional flavor, the rub or sprinking more rub after it is pulled just does the trick. I don't see the advantage of brining.

I usually save brining for something that I am not pulling or am definitely not taking above 165 degrees or so and I still want the "pull" of the meat. A turkey leg comes to mind. I like to brine Turkey legs because I don't want to go above about 175. At 175 I still get a good pull, good smoke, and don't want it dry....

Faster typer than me..

I have heard some folks refer to putting rub on your PB and letting it sit overnight or for a day as dry brining. I just call it...wait for it....letting it sit overnight...

[Balcones_Walker]

This is total heresy, but lately my system has been producing knock-your-socks-off good pork.

I throw a frozen solid, bone in wild boar shoulder directly on the rack in a cold smoker first thing in the morning. Set it to 250. Put a big pan full of water underneath the pork.

Two hours later, baste it with a mixture of white vinegar, Frank's red hot, and spice rub. I like All American. Throw in two handfuls of apple wood chips. This is the only time I add wood - you don't need any more smoke flavor than this.

Every two hours baste it with your 3-ingredient mixture. If your bark sets up, go ahead and cover it, but mine usually doesn't need it.

Let it go for 8 hours total. This is important. Then turn off the smoker and let it coast for another hour - don't eat it right away. When it is cool enough to pull the bones out and they come with a gentle tug, you're ready to eat.

Now I'm hungry...

PS I don't know anything about domestic pork. I have a major problem with too much of the wild stuff - and I give away all the males and skinny females.