I tried searching the archives but nothing came up.

My neighbor has a New Braunfels-type smoker and there is a sale on pork
butt at the local supermarket. We'd like to try one. (She doesn't really
know how to use the smoker and I have an idea from lurking here, but no
experience)

I have a few questions, if you will be so kind as to help us:

Should we use a rub? If yes, how long before smoking should we apply it?

How many hours per pound should it take to smoke the butt?

Do we have to make pulled pork or can it cook a little less time and be
sliced and served?

I have a couple of rub recipes we are considering and she has charcoal
and wood chunks.

How long should we soak the wood chunks?

I know this post seems annoying to those of you who are BBQ experts, but
all of us have to start somewhere and this pork butt is our "somewhere"

I've Googled smoked pork butt and have some good advice, but the *best*
advice is from newsgroups.

TIA for any assistance.

--
Janet Wilder
Bad spelling. Bad punctuation
Good Friends. Good Life

Janet Wilder wrote:
I tried searching the archives but nothing came up.

My neighbor has a New Braunfels-type smoker and there is a sale on
pork butt at the local supermarket. We'd like to try one. (She
doesn't really know how to use the smoker and I have an idea from
lurking here, but no experience)

I have a few questions, if you will be so kind as to help us:

Should we use a rub? If yes, how long before smoking should we apply
it?

Not required. I apply rub about 30 minutes prior to going into the pit.

How many hours per pound should it take to smoke the butt?

You don't go by time, you go by temp. For pulled pork, about 185-190F
internal.

Do we have to make pulled pork or can it cook a little less time and
be sliced and served?

No, you don't have to make pulled pork. You can pull the butt to be sliced
any time above 165F.

I have a couple of rub recipes we are considering and she has charcoal
and wood chunks.

How long should we soak the wood chunks?

Zero minutes, i.e. you don't soak.

I know this post seems annoying to those of you who are BBQ experts,
but all of us have to start somewhere and this pork butt is our
"somewhere"

Why haven't you read the archives?

I've Googled smoked pork butt and have some good advice, but the
*best* advice is from newsgroups.

Same as above.

You should CAREFULLY read the bbq faq:
http://www.eaglequest.com/~bbq/faq2/toc.html

--
Dave
www.davebbq.com

On 19-Dec-2007, Janet Wilder wrote:

I tried searching the archives but nothing came up.

My neighbor has a New Braunfels-type smoker and there is a sale on pork
butt at the local supermarket. We'd like to try one. (She doesn't really
know how to use the smoker and I have an idea from lurking here, but no
experience)

I have a few questions, if you will be so kind as to help us:

My primary smoker is a New Braunfels Silver Smoker. It is a typical
offset smoker with no vertical cabinet component. It likes to run at
270°F measured near the smoke stack. It takes 6 to 8 hours to cook
a 6 to 8 pound pork butt. It will use 10 to fifteen pounds of fuel to get
there.


Should we use a rub? If yes, how long before smoking should we apply it?


Rubs are very personal. I personally like a Cajun rub on pork, but I'm
in a minority on that subject. Basic Salt and Pepper is popular and you'
can go wrong. Rub it when you take it out to warm up to room temp
or right up to when you put it in the pit. It doesn't care all that much and
your guests will never know the difference.

How many hours per pound should it take to smoke the butt?


Butts don't know anything about hours per pound. I've had them get done
in four hours. Just when I thought that was pretty neat, I had one take over
eight hours.

Do we have to make pulled pork or can it cook a little less time and be
sliced and served?

You do not have to make pulled pork. You do need to render all of the
collagen in the meat or it's going to be tougher then an old shoe. Ask 12
people what temp to cook it to and you'll get at least six different
numbers.
185°F internal is a good, safe number. It will get you into the tender range
with a good likelyhood of being nice and sliceable. It may or may not be
pullable at that temp. I personally like 185°F, but I must confess that I
most often slip up and let it get well over 190°F before I get it out of the
pit and sometimes even higher. I've never had to throw one out.

I have a couple of rub recipes we are considering and she has charcoal
and wood chunks.

How long should we soak the wood chunks?

I never soak wood for smoke. I want clean, crisp wood smoke, not swamp
gas. When I have logs or chunks, I put wood directly on the fire. If I have
to settle for small chunks or chips, I wrap them in foil and punch a few
holes
in it. I then put that directly on the fire. You only need smoke for the
first
couple of hours anyway.

I know this post seems annoying to those of you who are BBQ experts, but
all of us have to start somewhere and this pork butt is our "somewhere"

That's going to be an expensive pork butt unless you take advantage of the
room in that pit to cook some other stuff. Chickens are cheap and always
good. Don't get cute. Wash them good. Dry them as much as you can.
Rub them with simple S&P or Old Bay Seasoning if you have a mind to.
I tie the wings and legs close to the body to help even cooking. The birds
take only about 1-1/2 to 2 hours to reach 165 in the breast and thighs. I
cook them backside down for the simple reason that I don't want the
breast to stick to the grill and get damaged. It works for me. The birds
don't seem to care at all.

I've Googled smoked pork butt and have some good advice, but the *best*
advice is from newsgroups.

TIA for any assistance.

If you happen to have a 2 or 3 pound chuck roast lying around, stud it
good with garlic slivers and salt and pepper and put that in there too.
It needs to reach the same temperature as the butt, but will likely get
there earlier since it is much smaller.

Your biggest problem is going to be leaving the door closed. The
need to open that cook chamber and peek is a disease that sometimes
takes years to cure. Be advised that not even a chicken is going to get
done in under an hour. Ribs will never get done under three hours and
butts will never get done under five hours. They will all invariably take
much longer then that.

Avoid the desire to play with your food. It's trying to rest and get
happy. Being forced to play will only make it tired and grumpy.

The New Braunfels offsets are notorious for being much hotter near
the firebox then at the other end (Surprise). Stage butts and briskets
near the firebox, ribs in the middle and birds at the far end (If the
pit is full).

Midway in the cook (4 hours for butts) iit is reasonable to turn the
meat 180° to even out the cooking, but do not change their relative
position in the pit. I never turn food over. Use too many variables
and you'll never learn how your pit operates. You're sure not
going to become a pitmaster on the first go-around.


--
Janet Wilder

Everybody that responds to your post is likely to tell you something
different. The hell of it is, they make good 'Q' too. We do what
works for us. I can't speak for everrybody, but it took me a couple
of years before I could gaurantee good 'Q' everytime I fire up the
pit. The New Braunfels offsets can drive a perfectly sober person
to strong drink, but they hold a lot at one time and they make
great 'Q'.

All bets are off if you're using a New Braunfels knockoff made
by Charbroil.
--
Brick(Youth is wasted on young people)

Brick wrote:

snipped for brevity
Everybody that responds to your post is likely to tell you something
different. The hell of it is, they make good 'Q' too. We do what
works for us. I can't speak for everrybody, but it took me a couple
of years before I could gaurantee good 'Q' everytime I fire up the
pit. The New Braunfels offsets can drive a perfectly sober person
to strong drink, but they hold a lot at one time and they make
great 'Q'.

All bets are off if you're using a New Braunfels knockoff made
by Charbroil.

Thanks so very, very much for the tutorial. I printed it off.
Really appreciate your time and effort.
Janet
--
Janet Wilder
Bad spelling. Bad punctuation
Good Friends. Good Life

Dave Bugg wrote:


Why haven't you read the archives?

Your link was the first time I've seen a reference to archives. I was
trying to do a search on the term using my newsreader. Nothing came up.
I guess it's because everything was archived elsewhere. g

I've Googled smoked pork butt and have some good advice, but the
*best* advice is from newsgroups.

Same as above.

You should CAREFULLY read the bbq faq:
http://www.eaglequest.com/~bbq/faq2/toc.html


Thanks for the link. It's bookmarked. I'm a Master Cook user and I'm
going to do a bunch of downloading.

Janet

--
Janet Wilder
Bad spelling. Bad punctuation
Good Friends. Good Life

Janet Wilder wrote:
Dave Bugg wrote:


Why haven't you read the archives?

Your link was the first time I've seen a reference to archives.

The archive is Google Groups. Most newbs think GG is a newsreader, which it
isn't. It is an archive that allows access to a newsserver.Go to google
groups .. alt.food.barbecue. Enter the search that you are looking for. It
will bring up all past threads relating to the topic you're searching for.
It used to be called Deja News.

I was
trying to do a search on the term using my newsreader. Nothing came
up. I guess it's because everything was archived elsewhere. g

Really? I entered 'bbq pork butt' into google and got 43,400 hits. The first
hit on the list was http://www.bbqdan.com/smoking/butt_basic1.html I don't
vouch for the information --- 'cause I didn't do much more than glance at
it -- but it is an example of what came up.
--
Dave
www.davebbq.com

Dave Bugg wrote:
Janet Wilder wrote:
Dave Bugg wrote:

Why haven't you read the archives?
Your link was the first time I've seen a reference to archives.

The archive is Google Groups. Most newbs think GG is a newsreader, which it
isn't. It is an archive that allows access to a newsserver.Go to google
groups .. alt.food.barbecue. Enter the search that you are looking for. It
will bring up all past threads relating to the topic you're searching for.
It used to be called Deja News.

Well, I'm not a newbie and I use a real live newsreader and news
service. Have been on Usenet since 1995. On other groups, my
newsreader's search feature works just fine. Didn't even think of going
to Google Groups (and yes I know it replaced Deja News) because I don't
read newsgroups on Google.

I'm ever so sorry I bothered you. Please forgive me for posting on your
hallowed space.
--
Janet Wilder
Bad spelling. Bad punctuation
Good Friends. Good Life

Janet Wilder wrote:
Dave Bugg wrote:
Janet Wilder wrote:
Dave Bugg wrote:
[ . . . ]
I'm ever so sorry I bothered you. Please forgive me for posting on your
hallowed space.

WTF you talkin' bout, JW? Seemed to me ev'body was tryin' ta be he'pful.

--
Nick. Support severely wounded and disabled Veterans and their families!
I've known US vets who served as far back as the Spanish American War. They
are all my heroes! Thank a Veteran and Support Our Troops. You are not
forgotten. Thanks ! ! ~Semper Fi~

Nick Cramer wrote:
Janet Wilder wrote:
Dave Bugg wrote:
Janet Wilder wrote:
Dave Bugg wrote:
[ . . . ]
I'm ever so sorry I bothered you. Please forgive me for posting on your
hallowed space.

WTF you talkin' bout, JW? Seemed to me ev'body was tryin' ta be he'pful.


I was responding to the gentleman who helped with a large dose of
disdain. I did thank both posters who responded for their assistance.

--
Janet Wilder
Bad spelling. Bad punctuation
Good Friends. Good Life

Janet Wilder wrote:
Nick Cramer wrote:
Janet Wilder wrote:
Dave Bugg wrote:
Janet Wilder wrote:
Dave Bugg wrote:
[ . . . ]
I'm ever so sorry I bothered you. Please forgive me for posting on
your hallowed space.

WTF you talkin' bout, JW? Seemed to me ev'body was tryin' ta be
he'pful.

I was responding to the gentleman who helped with a large dose of
disdain. I did thank both posters who responded for their assistance.

OK. I hadn't been following the thread closely, so, as snipped, it seemed
generic to me. No problemo.

--
Nick. Support severely wounded and disabled Veterans and their families!
I've known US vets who served as far back as the Spanish American War. They
are all my heroes! Thank a Veteran and Support Our Troops. You are not
forgotten. Thanks ! ! ~Semper Fi~

On 21-Dec-2007, Denny Wheeler wrote:

On Thu, 20 Dec 2007 21:29:24 -0600, Janet Wilder
wrote:

Nick Cramer wrote:
Janet Wilder wrote:
Dave Bugg wrote:
Janet Wilder wrote:
Dave Bugg wrote:

snip


Good luck with the NBBD--

I somehow missed the post where Janet identified the smoker
as a New Braunfels Black Diamond.

I gather that offsets are a bit more
challenging than bullets,

To say that the Black Diamond is a little more challenging then a
bullet smoker is like saying that running the Daytona 500 is a little
bit more challenging then driving to work in the morning.

but you do have the balancing of pork butt
being probably the easiest bbq cut to get right, and hardest to ruin.
(though I managed it once--but far from my first time)

True about the forgiveness of the pork butt, but I wouldn't even
think about cooking a pork butt all by itself in a NBBD. I don't
mean that you can't do it because you certainly can. But, the
NBBD has something over 700 Sq in of cooking area. You can
easily cook for a whole firehouse in one load with an NBBD.

--
-denny-

I think the OP actually referred to the smoker as a New
Braunfels type without a specific reference to which model.
But the fact remains, a single butt in any similar sized offset
smoker is wasteful.
--
Brick(Youth is wasted on young people)

On Dec 19, 7:13 pm, Janet Wilder wrote:
I tried searching the archives but nothing came up.

My neighbor has a New Braunfels-type smoker and there is a sale on pork
butt at the local supermarket. We'd like to try one. (She doesn't really
know how to use the smoker and I have an idea from lurking here, but no
experience)

All BBQ is cooked at 220 - 250* until tender; plan on 1 - 1 1/2 hrs
per lb, but every pig/cow is different.


I have a few questions, if you will be so kind as to help us:

Should we use a rub? If yes, how long before smoking should we apply it?

Try different stuff; see what you like. I like a mustard slather (a
thin later of cheap yellow mustard brushed all over) with the rub
sprinkled on to that, shortly before cooking. If you use nothing but
salt and pepper, you'll be fine (although I do like a thin dressing
based on cider vinegar after the meat has been pulled).


How many hours per pound should it take to smoke the butt?

Estimate 1 - 1.5 hrs/lb, but check tenderness. at a temp of 190*
internal, teh meat will pull and most of teh fat will have been
rendered without drying out the meat.

Do we have to make pulled pork or can it cook a little less time and be
sliced and served?

Slice any time after you reach a safe temp. It will be very greasy,
though, because the fat hasn't rendered.


I have a couple of rub recipes we are considering and she has charcoal
and wood chunks.

How long should we soak the wood chunks?

I think it depends on the pit. I used wrap mine, dry, in foil to keep
them from burning up right away. Not more than 30-45 minutes if you
do soak.

I know this post seems annoying to those of you who are BBQ experts, but
all of us have to start somewhere and this pork butt is our "somewhere"

I've Googled smoked pork butt and have some good advice, but the *best*
advice is from newsgroups.

TIA for any assistance.

--
Janet Wilder
Bad spelling. Bad punctuation
Good Friends. Good Life

Louis Cohen wrote:
On Dec 19, 7:13 pm, Janet Wilder wrote:
I tried searching the archives but nothing came up.

My neighbor has a New Braunfels-type smoker and there is a sale on pork
butt at the local supermarket. We'd like to try one. (She doesn't really
know how to use the smoker and I have an idea from lurking here, but no
experience)

All BBQ is cooked at 220 - 250* until tender; plan on 1 - 1 1/2 hrs
per lb, but every pig/cow is different.

I have a few questions, if you will be so kind as to help us:

Should we use a rub? If yes, how long before smoking should we apply it?

Try different stuff; see what you like. I like a mustard slather (a
thin later of cheap yellow mustard brushed all over) with the rub
sprinkled on to that, shortly before cooking. If you use nothing but
salt and pepper, you'll be fine (although I do like a thin dressing
based on cider vinegar after the meat has been pulled).

How many hours per pound should it take to smoke the butt?

Estimate 1 - 1.5 hrs/lb, but check tenderness. at a temp of 190*
internal, teh meat will pull and most of teh fat will have been
rendered without drying out the meat.
Do we have to make pulled pork or can it cook a little less time and be
sliced and served?

Slice any time after you reach a safe temp. It will be very greasy,
though, because the fat hasn't rendered.

I have a couple of rub recipes we are considering and she has charcoal
and wood chunks.

How long should we soak the wood chunks?

I think it depends on the pit. I used wrap mine, dry, in foil to keep
them from burning up right away. Not more than 30-45 minutes if you
do soak.

Thanks for all of your helpful answers, Louis.

--
Janet Wilder
Bad spelling. Bad punctuation
Good Friends. Good Life

I thank one and all for the valuable assistance. We have decided not to
do the pork butt as neighbor doesn't want to "babysit" a piece of meat
for that long.

I'd really like to try a brisket, but I understand the logic in doing a
pork butt first to learn just how the smoker works.

I smoke things on a (horrors) gas grill over indirect heat using soaked
chips in a cast iron smoker box. I'm seriously thinking of "liberating"
that smoker from her one of these days ,vbg
--
Janet Wilder
Bad spelling. Bad punctuation
Good Friends. Good Life

On Thu, 20 Dec 2007 09:44:58 -0800, "Dave Bugg"
wrote:

Janet Wilder wrote:
Dave Bugg wrote:


Why haven't you read the archives?

Your link was the first time I've seen a reference to archives.

The archive is Google Groups. Most newbs think GG is a newsreader, which it
isn't. It is an archive that allows access to a newsserver.Go to google
groups .. alt.food.barbecue. Enter the search that you are looking for. It
will bring up all past threads relating to the topic you're searching for.
It used to be called Deja News.

I was
trying to do a search on the term using my newsreader. Nothing came
up. I guess it's because everything was archived elsewhere. g

Really? I entered 'bbq pork butt' into google and got 43,400 hits. The first
hit on the list was http://www.bbqdan.com/smoking/butt_basic1.html I don't
vouch for the information --- 'cause I didn't do much more than glance at
it -- but it is an example of what came up.

Some people come to newsgroups and ask a question to get a personal
response. If your so damn lazy to answer her, don't bother answering
her at all. What a lazy wingnut.