Following recommendations from the group, I purchased a Smoky Mountain a few
weeks ago, and made my first attempt at a pork butt this weekend. Used a
dry rub overnight, the butt was about 5lbs bone in. Got the fire going
around 9am yesterday A.M. using the "standard" method from
virtualweberbullet.com and everything was looking good ( temp stable between
230-250 ). At around 3pm I had all the vents open to keep the temp up, so I
added another fully lit chimney of coals ( briquets ). Temp went up to
about 325, but came back down to 250 within about 15 minutes. By 7pm (
after it had been on the fire for about 9 hours, the internal temp was still
only about 170. I had hope to hit 190 or so and pull the pork, but had
hungry mouths to feed. It was very good nonetheless, but is it common for
it to take more than 2 hours per pound to reach 190? Or should I have run
closer to 250 the whole time?

TIA

Scott in WI

WiScottsin wrote:
Following recommendations from the group, I purchased a Smoky Mountain a few
weeks ago, and made my first attempt at a pork butt this weekend. Used a
dry rub overnight, the butt was about 5lbs bone in. Got the fire going
around 9am yesterday A.M. using the "standard" method from
virtualweberbullet.com and everything was looking good ( temp stable between
230-250 ). At around 3pm I had all the vents open to keep the temp up, so I
added another fully lit chimney of coals ( briquets ). Temp went up to
about 325, but came back down to 250 within about 15 minutes. By 7pm (
after it had been on the fire for about 9 hours, the internal temp was still
only about 170. I had hope to hit 190 or so and pull the pork, but had
hungry mouths to feed. It was very good nonetheless, but is it common for
it to take more than 2 hours per pound to reach 190? Or should I have run
closer to 250 the whole time?

TIA

Scott in WI

There is a "plateau" of anywhere from (about) 250 to 270 where the collagen
breaks down, and the fat renders out. When the internal temperature reaches
this plateau, it can stay there for several hours before it begins to rise
again. Some people are almost religious about keeping the meat at this plateau
for the longer times, insisting that it makes a more tender and juicy finished
product. I haven't found this to be true, just let it cook and when it gets to
the pulling temps. it is done.

BOB
who bets you had some excellent *sliced* pork

The Naked Whiz wrote:

On Sun, 23 May 2004 20:59:30 -0400, " BOB"
wrote:

There is a "plateau" of anywhere from (about) 250 to 270 where the collagen
breaks down, and the fat renders out. When the internal temperature reaches
this plateau, it can stay there for several hours before it begins to rise
again. Some people are almost religious about keeping the meat at this plateau
for the longer times, insisting that it makes a more tender and juicy finished
product. I haven't found this to be true, just let it cook and when it gets to
the pulling temps. it is done.

BOB
who bets you had some excellent *sliced* pork


I assume you mena 150 to 170? Never had meat cooked to 250! :-)



Meat cooked to 250 would be pretty crispy, no?

Matthew

--
If the war in Iraq was over oil, we lost.

On Sun, 23 May 2004 20:59:30 -0400, " BOB"
wrote:

WiScottsin wrote:
Following recommendations from the group, I purchased a Smoky Mountain a few
weeks ago, and made my first attempt at a pork butt this weekend. Used a
dry rub overnight, the butt was about 5lbs bone in. Got the fire going
around 9am yesterday A.M. using the "standard" method from
virtualweberbullet.com and everything was looking good ( temp stable between
230-250 ). At around 3pm I had all the vents open to keep the temp up, so I
added another fully lit chimney of coals ( briquets ). Temp went up to
about 325, but came back down to 250 within about 15 minutes. By 7pm (
after it had been on the fire for about 9 hours, the internal temp was still
only about 170. I had hope to hit 190 or so and pull the pork, but had
hungry mouths to feed. It was very good nonetheless, but is it common for
it to take more than 2 hours per pound to reach 190? Or should I have run
closer to 250 the whole time?

TIA

Scott in WI

There is a "plateau" of anywhere from (about) 250 to 270 where the collagen
breaks down, and the fat renders out. When the internal temperature reaches
this plateau, it can stay there for several hours before it begins to rise
again. Some people are almost religious about keeping the meat at this plateau
for the longer times, insisting that it makes a more tender and juicy finished
product. I haven't found this to be true, just let it cook and when it gets to
the pulling temps. it is done.

BOB
who bets you had some excellent *sliced* pork

I assume you mena 150 to 170? Never had meat cooked to 250! :-)

TNW

WiScottsin wrote:
Got the fire going around 9am yesterday A.M. using the
"standard" method from virtualweberbullet.com and everything was
looking good ( temp stable between 230-250 ).

Ya need to use the Minion Method for long cooks.

At around 3pm I had
all the vents open to keep the temp up, so I added another fully lit
chimney of coals ( briquets ). Temp went up to about 325, but came
back down to 250 within about 15 minutes.

With all the vents open, ya burned yaself out too quickly. Go back to
virtualweberbullet.com and read how he damps the vents down to keep
the fire goin longer. I have my bottom vents closed to about 10% open
for long cooks. And sometimes might have just one bottom vent open if
things is windy or rainy out.

It was very good nonetheless, but is it common for
it to take more than 2 hours per pound to reach 190?
Or should I
have run closer to 250 the whole time?

Butts, like brisket, don't keep time like you & I do. Both are done
when they're done and there's no way around it. There's different
philosophies on how to cook butts but here's how I do mine. First
off, I run hotter (275-300°F) for my cooks. When I see the butt's
hangin at 160°F, I open the WSM bottom vents and let the temp climb to
as high as 325°F. For me at least, this boost in temp gets the butt
to move on thru the 160°F plateau and on to 190°F or above so it pulls
good.

Back to the time bit. Since butts don't keep time like you & I do,
it's a good idea to start your butt around 6am or so instead of 9am.
This gives ya more leeway in case it's one of them real stubborn
butts. If it finishes earlier than ya plan to eat, go ahead and pull
it apart and get it all mixed in a pan, then cover it with foil and
put in your oven set to "warm". A couple hours in the oven won't hurt
ya results one bit.

HTH
--
-frohe
Life is too short to be in a hurry

The Naked Whiz wrote:
On Sun, 23 May 2004 20:59:30 -0400, " BOB"
wrote:

WiScottsin wrote:
Following recommendations from the group, I purchased a Smoky Mountain a few
weeks ago, and made my first attempt at a pork butt this weekend. Used a
dry rub overnight, the butt was about 5lbs bone in. Got the fire going
around 9am yesterday A.M. using the "standard" method from
virtualweberbullet.com and everything was looking good ( temp stable between
230-250 ). At around 3pm I had all the vents open to keep the temp up, so I
added another fully lit chimney of coals ( briquets ). Temp went up to
about 325, but came back down to 250 within about 15 minutes. By 7pm (
after it had been on the fire for about 9 hours, the internal temp was still
only about 170. I had hope to hit 190 or so and pull the pork, but had
hungry mouths to feed. It was very good nonetheless, but is it common for
it to take more than 2 hours per pound to reach 190? Or should I have run
closer to 250 the whole time?

TIA

Scott in WI

There is a "plateau" of anywhere from (about) 250 to 270 where the collagen
breaks down, and the fat renders out. When the internal temperature reaches
this plateau, it can stay there for several hours before it begins to rise
again. Some people are almost religious about keeping the meat at this
plateau for the longer times, insisting that it makes a more tender and juicy
finished product. I haven't found this to be true, just let it cook and when
it gets to the pulling temps. it is done.

BOB
who bets you had some excellent *sliced* pork

I assume you mena 150 to 170? Never had meat cooked to 250! :-)

TNW

THANK YOU!
Yes, i did mean 150 to 170. Where was I?

BOB
who has seen meat cooked to close to 250, but never tried to eat it.

"frohe" wrote in message
...
WiScottsin wrote:
Got the fire going around 9am yesterday A.M. using the
"standard" method from virtualweberbullet.com and everything was
looking good ( temp stable between 230-250 ).

Ya need to use the Minion Method for long cooks.

At around 3pm I had
all the vents open to keep the temp up, so I added another fully lit
chimney of coals ( briquets ). Temp went up to about 325, but came
back down to 250 within about 15 minutes.

With all the vents open, ya burned yaself out too quickly. Go back to
virtualweberbullet.com and read how he damps the vents down to keep
the fire goin longer. I have my bottom vents closed to about 10% open
for long cooks. And sometimes might have just one bottom vent open if
things is windy or rainy out.


I did have the vents open just slightly for most of the cook, it was only
around 3pm that I had to open the vents up more to keep the temp up.

My grandpa makes the best beef jerky i know of and he smokes it to 275.
"Matthew L. Martin" wrote in message
s.com...
The Naked Whiz wrote:

On Sun, 23 May 2004 20:59:30 -0400, " BOB"
wrote:

There is a "plateau" of anywhere from (about) 250 to 270 where the
collagen
breaks down, and the fat renders out. When the internal temperature
reaches
this plateau, it can stay there for several hours before it begins to
rise
again. Some people are almost religious about keeping the meat at this
plateau
for the longer times, insisting that it makes a more tender and juicy
finished
product. I haven't found this to be true, just let it cook and when it
gets to
the pulling temps. it is done.

BOB
who bets you had some excellent *sliced* pork


I assume you mena 150 to 170? Never had meat cooked to 250! :-)



Meat cooked to 250 would be pretty crispy, no?

Matthew

--
If the war in Iraq was over oil, we lost.

" BOB" wrote in message
...
WiScottsin wrote:
Following recommendations from the group, I purchased a Smoky Mountain a
few
weeks ago, and made my first attempt at a pork butt this weekend. Used
a
dry rub overnight, the butt was about 5lbs bone in. Got the fire going
around 9am yesterday A.M. using the "standard" method from
virtualweberbullet.com and everything was looking good ( temp stable
between
230-250 ). At around 3pm I had all the vents open to keep the temp up,
so I
added another fully lit chimney of coals ( briquets ). Temp went up to
about 325, but came back down to 250 within about 15 minutes. By 7pm (
after it had been on the fire for about 9 hours, the internal temp was
still
only about 170. I had hope to hit 190 or so and pull the pork, but had
hungry mouths to feed. It was very good nonetheless, but is it common
for
it to take more than 2 hours per pound to reach 190? Or should I have
run
closer to 250 the whole time?

TIA

Scott in WI

There is a "plateau" of anywhere from (about) 250 to 270 where the
collagen
breaks down, and the fat renders out. When the internal temperature
reaches
this plateau, it can stay there for several hours before it begins to
rise
again. Some people are almost religious about keeping the meat at this
plateau
for the longer times, insisting that it makes a more tender and juicy
finished
product. I haven't found this to be true, just let it cook and when it
gets to
the pulling temps. it is done.

BOB
who bets you had some excellent *sliced* pork

Bob, I'll bet you meant somewhere around 160 or so is when the long wait to
180 starts. I cooked a 10 pounder at @275-300 today in the grilldome . It
was pullable(took it off at 185) in 4 1/2 hours MMMMM.
Jack

"Matthew L. Martin" wrote:
[]
Meat cooked to 250 would be pretty crispy, no?

Pork briquettes. Give a nice flavor to chicken.

--
Intuitive insights from Nick, Retired in the San Fernando Valley

http://operationiraqichildren.org/

" BOB" wrote in message
...
There is a "plateau" of anywhere from (about) 250 to 270 where the
collagen
breaks down, and the fat renders out. When the internal temperature
reaches
this plateau, it can stay there for several hours before it begins to
rise
again. Some people are almost religious about keeping the meat at this
plateau
for the longer times, insisting that it makes a more tender and juicy
finished
product. I haven't found this to be true, just let it cook and when it
gets to
the pulling temps. it is done.

BOB
who bets you had some excellent *sliced* pork


What? 250 to 270? Man, you are way off. Great advise!

I guess the heat rise at the end of your "plateau" is when the roasted pork
spontaneously combusts.

-CAL

Jack Sloan wrote:
" BOB" wrote in message
...
WiScottsin wrote:
Following recommendations from the group, I purchased a Smoky Mountain a few
weeks ago, and made my first attempt at a pork butt this weekend. Used a
dry rub overnight, the butt was about 5lbs bone in. Got the fire going
around 9am yesterday A.M. using the "standard" method from
virtualweberbullet.com and everything was looking good ( temp stable between
230-250 ). At around 3pm I had all the vents open to keep the temp up, so I
added another fully lit chimney of coals ( briquets ). Temp went up to
about 325, but came back down to 250 within about 15 minutes. By 7pm (
after it had been on the fire for about 9 hours, the internal temp was still
only about 170. I had hope to hit 190 or so and pull the pork, but had
hungry mouths to feed. It was very good nonetheless, but is it common for
it to take more than 2 hours per pound to reach 190? Or should I have run
closer to 250 the whole time?

TIA

Scott in WI

There is a "plateau" of anywhere from (about) 250 to 270 where the collagen
breaks down, and the fat renders out. When the internal temperature reaches
this plateau, it can stay there for several hours before it begins to rise
again. Some people are almost religious about keeping the meat at this
plateau for the longer times, insisting that it makes a more tender and juicy
finished product. I haven't found this to be true, just let it cook and when
it gets to the pulling temps. it is done.

BOB
who bets you had some excellent *sliced* pork

Bob, I'll bet you meant somewhere around 160 or so is when the long wait to
180 starts. I cooked a 10 pounder at @275-300 today in the grilldome . It
was pullable(took it off at 185) in 4 1/2 hours MMMMM.
Jack

I was just checking to see if you were paying attention. I guess you were!

BOB
'-)

"Bob in socal" wrote

I have similar results, 5-6 hours max with grate level temps ranging
from 250 -325 depending on how hard the wind is blowing. Cheap
temperature gauges are notorious for error and I would suggest
that next time Scott run his cooking temps a little higher.

Bob in socal..


Thanks, I'm going to definitely try a higher temp next. I was using a candy
thermo to measure temp at the lid, I may get a second probe thermo to
measure at the actual cooking grate.

On Sun, 23 May 2004 21:20:07 -0400, " BOB"
wrote:

The Naked Whiz wrote:
On Sun, 23 May 2004 20:59:30 -0400, " BOB"
wrote:

WiScottsin wrote:
Following recommendations from the group, I purchased a Smoky Mountain a few
weeks ago, and made my first attempt at a pork butt this weekend. Used a
dry rub overnight, the butt was about 5lbs bone in. Got the fire going
around 9am yesterday A.M. using the "standard" method from
virtualweberbullet.com and everything was looking good ( temp stable between
230-250 ). At around 3pm I had all the vents open to keep the temp up, so I
added another fully lit chimney of coals ( briquets ). Temp went up to
about 325, but came back down to 250 within about 15 minutes. By 7pm (
after it had been on the fire for about 9 hours, the internal temp was still
only about 170. I had hope to hit 190 or so and pull the pork, but had
hungry mouths to feed. It was very good nonetheless, but is it common for
it to take more than 2 hours per pound to reach 190? Or should I have run
closer to 250 the whole time?

TIA

Scott in WI

There is a "plateau" of anywhere from (about) 250 to 270 where the collagen
breaks down, and the fat renders out. When the internal temperature reaches
this plateau, it can stay there for several hours before it begins to rise
again. Some people are almost religious about keeping the meat at this
plateau for the longer times, insisting that it makes a more tender and juicy
finished product. I haven't found this to be true, just let it cook and when
it gets to the pulling temps. it is done.

BOB
who bets you had some excellent *sliced* pork

I assume you mena 150 to 170? Never had meat cooked to 250! :-)

TNW

THANK YOU!
Yes, i did mean 150 to 170. Where was I?

BOB
who has seen meat cooked to close to 250, but never tried to eat it.

About 100F off :0)

Harry

Who has just finished enjoying an 8.5 lb boneless butt off the #7. It
was an 18 hour cook [ about 5 hrs in 'dwell at 160F]. This was my
first time riding sise-saddle. I used my new guru. It's great! Pics
on ABF.

On Mon, 24 May 2004 13:28:29 GMT, "cl" wrote:


" BOB" wrote in message
...
There is a "plateau" of anywhere from (about) 250 to 270 where the
collagen
breaks down, and the fat renders out. When the internal temperature
reaches
this plateau, it can stay there for several hours before it begins to
rise
again. Some people are almost religious about keeping the meat at this
plateau
for the longer times, insisting that it makes a more tender and juicy
finished
product. I haven't found this to be true, just let it cook and when it
gets to
the pulling temps. it is done.

BOB
who bets you had some excellent *sliced* pork


What? 250 to 270? Man, you are way off. Great advise!

I guess the heat rise at the end of your "plateau" is when the roasted pork
spontaneously combusts.

-CAL

****-Off, Cal. He typoed OK? Get over it.

Harry