I'm a Butt Man -- Pork Butt Preparation

This morning I got up early to do a little BBQ prep work before heading to the office. (Okay, so maybe Ben got up at 5 a.m. and had to go out, so I got up to take him, regardless, I was awake early.)

The first thing I did was make the rub for these two delicious chunks of well-marbled pork. I think there's 15 lbs total, so we'll have more than enough for the party, which means pulled pork tacos, omelets, fried rice...whatever all next week. No complaints here.

Once I trimmed some fat (just a little, fat is good!) from the butts, I rubbed them down with the spice-salt-brown sugar blend and they are sitting in our refridgerator curing a little before they go on the smoker tonight for their 10-12 hour cook. That's a long time, but man is it worth it.

I also whipped up a BBQ sauce with onion, garlic, green apple, rice vinegar, ketchup, cayenne, black pepper, yellow mustard, cider vinegar, brown sugar and apple juice.

Tonight I have some other prep work to do...but it's going to be some party tomorrow.

Comments

[Esther]

You have wonderfully balanced sweet, sour, hot an pungent flavors in the BBQ sauce.

However, the spice rub could have been even interesting with the addition lemon juice or pineapple juice to go with a dash of fresh oregano.

But I am sure that the spice rub on the pork butt will complement the BBQ sauce.

[enoch choi]

what temp do you set the smoker?

[Lenn]

Esther: I'll be using a vinegar-based mop sauce throughout cooking. Maybe I'll try adding a little lemon juice...would probably heighten the flavor a little.

Enoch: Last time I was between 225 and 240...but I try to keep it down around 225

[Michael S]

I did just that very thing: spicing my meat up before I cooked it; even used apples. I marinated it overnight in a baggie at least 12 hours in the fridge. I used charcoal, and might not want to do charcoal again. The smoker was not designed for changes of lit coals without self immolation. It also came with an electric element - any comments on that? It is a Brickmann, supposed to be good, but if I were designing one, I'd do it way differently. I used to get the greatest results with just using my ancient covered BBQ grill, fire offset from the meat, but the thing rusted and fell apart.

My buddy from North Carolina did not season his pork in advance, but made up some pepper and vinegar sauce, and mine had all the subtleties of the spices, but there wasn't THAT much difference to make all that advance work worthwhile. I think I'll stick with the advance rub anyway; it made me feel better to do it.

Thanks for your posts. Here's a tip: try the addition of tamarind paste to your sauce, the tangy sweetness is astounding.

[Michael S]

My best temperature is around 200f and keep the air surrounding the meat MOIST. Resist the URGE to open up and peek every half hour.

[Fatemeh]

"whipped up a BBQ sauce"

I'm always amazed by this. I consider myself pretty adept in the kitchen, but I never thought to make things like BBQ sauce or ranch dressing for years.

Ranch is now a staple at home, and even C says it's better than the nasty bottled kind, but I haven't attempted BBQ sauce yet. So, do you just kinda keep tasting as you go along until it's just right?

[John H]

This is NC country BBQ: I don't do a rub, don't cut off any fat, cook the Butts (two or four) in a very slow oven, skin side up on a rack, foil on top, 200 degrees about 8 hours, this slow cooking is to render the fat from the meat. Strain the pan drippings, skim off the fat and save defatted drippings; then smoke Butts, very low temperature with water pan in smoker, another hour or two, pull pork after smoking. Add back strained and defatted pan drippings to moisten pulled pork and salt to taste. Smoking is optional so if you don't have a smoker it's OK.

NC vinegar base sauce: white or cider vinegar, (use a quart or more of vinegar for four Butts) soak vinegar in lots of red pepper flakes, you can heat a minute or two, then strain, add salt, black, white and cayenne pepper, some Coleman's dry mustard (optional) and Worcestershire Sauce to make your sauce a little brown, taste and add a little sugar to taste, for sweet, sour, hot sauce. Sauce should be very hot and vinegary but will loose heat when put on the pulled pork, don't worry if it seems too hot. Put some sauce on the finished pork and some on the table for those who want to add more sauce. Left over sauce keeps well in refrigerator.

[John H]

NC Country BBQ - Note: You can cut the skin off the Butts and then lay it back over the meat for oven cooking or leave the skin on for the oven cooking but remove the skin when you smoke it. The word BBQ means to render the fat. That is what you are doing, taking a very fatty piece of meat and cooking off the fat very slowly. When you pull the pork, use your fingers, a knife, scissors, anything to get the job done and try to rub off as much of the fat as possible and don't use really the really sinuous fatty parts, discard them. Your finished pulled pork should have almost no fat in it. When you add back the defatted pan drippings they will be absorbed by the meat to a point but don't make your pulled pork soggy with the drippings, remember you will also be adding your vinegar sauce at the end.

[BrooklynQ]

Well, how did they come out?

[bibliochef]

Wish I'd read this before I made my first version a coupke of years ago,. I cook for 6ish hours at circa 225 degrees. And I put a combination of garlis, rosemary, salt and lemon in little holes all over it and them rub it all over the pork. I like to serve it with various versions of mashed potatoes. . . .

[Rufus]

Horseradish Sauce Recipe:
Ingredients: sour cream, grated onion, prepared horseradish, salt... view the recipe
http://www.horseradish-sauce-recipe.w8w.pl

[bradley original smoker]

made me hungry! With the warm weather here it is time to start hitting the smoker more often. I can't wait.