How much pulled pork for a party?

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rgautheir20420

Master of the Pit
Original poster
Jun 11, 2014
1,126
60
Crest Hill, IL (Chicagoland)
I've got my son's 2nd birthday party coming up and I'm considering doing some pulled pork for it. Party's at my house are known for great food and homemade beer, so I'm wanting to make something good. The last pork butt I did was damn good in my eyes, so I'm thinking I want to do it again. My dilemma is how much pork to get? We usually have 40 guests or so at our parties with about 10-15 of those being younger kids all the way down to toddlers. I also always make a vegetarian/seafood dish because a number of the wife's family doesn't eat meat. 

So how many lbs or butt should I get to feed say 30 people safely? Keep in mind, I don't mind leftover PP ;)
 
Each adult will 1/4 - 1/3 lb of meat.  Assuming you would like leftovers, lets say you want 40 1/3 lb servings = 13 1/3 lb of finished meat.  If you cook 24 lb of Boston Butt, it'll reduce down to about 13 lb of finished pulled pork.  If you don't want leftovers, simply multiply the number of guests you think will eat PP by 1/3 for a large serving.  Then multiply that by ~1.8 to get raw meat weight.  The 1.8 can change wildly but I always figure I can freeze the leftovers if there is too much after a party.
 
Last party I did was 24 adults. Cooked 2 nine pound butts and 20 brats, there was nothing leftover. I'd cook at least 3 eight pounders, if I were you.
 
 
Each adult will 1/4 - 1/3 lb of meat.  Assuming you would like leftovers, lets say you want 40 1/3 lb servings = 13 1/3 lb of finished meat.  If you cook 24 lb of Boston Butt, it'll reduce down to about 13 lb of finished pulled pork.  If you don't want leftovers, simply multiply the number of guests you think will eat PP by 1/3 for a large serving.  Then multiply that by ~1.8 to get raw meat weight.  The 1.8 can change wildly but I always figure I can freeze the leftovers if there is too much after a party.
Wow a 48% weight drop is finished product?!? I guess I wish I would have weighed the finished weight of the last butt I did. 
 
Well looks like I'll be doing some Italian sausage in the crock pot instead of PP. Thanks for the info guys. Great information for the future.

I will however be doing a butt this Saturday since I can't do it for the party.
 
Ryan is right where I am, I average a 30 to 35% loss, 1/4lb per per girl, 1/2lb. per teen age boy.

Always cook ahead of time. Pull, add some finishing sauce, in the reefer. Throw in the crockpot the day needed and balance out with more finishing sauce if needed. Set a squeeze bottle of your BBQ sauce next to the crockpot, and a tray of buns and step back. Always compliment Momma's slaw for making the PP taste better!

Whatcha talkin 'bout? Trim the fat off? Low and slow baby and the "fat cap" is the ambrosia of the gods! LOL

100 different people, 100 different ways.
 
Last edited:
Yeah... my rule of thumb is I figure 1/3 lb. for all guest no matter age or gender (it tends to even out in the mix), and allow for approx. 35-40% weight loss from raw to cooked.

So: 0.33 x 40 = 12 lbs finished product needed

20 lbs raw minus 35% leaves 13 lb. finished product. So two 10 lb. butts minimum - more if you wanted a bigger cushion, but up to you.
 
Since everyone has got ya covered with the amount of pork I would like to make a suggestion that I always make when this question is asked.

You will have less waste if serving the pork on smaller rolls or dinner rolls, especially if there are children.

Nothing more upsetting than seeing a half pound of pork piled high on a huge roll with one bite taken, lying in the trash.
 
 
Since everyone has got ya covered with the amount of pork I would like to make a suggestion that I always make when this question is asked.

You will have less waste if serving the pork on smaller rolls or dinner rolls, especially if there are children.

Nothing more upsetting than seeing a half pound of pork piled high on a huge roll with one bite taken, lying in the trash.
+1!

The Costco potato rolls make great portion control, or small hamburger buns.
 
 
Since everyone has got ya covered with the amount of pork I would like to make a suggestion that I always make when this question is asked.

You will have less waste if serving the pork on smaller rolls or dinner rolls, especially if there are children.

Nothing more upsetting than seeing a half pound of pork piled high on a huge roll with one bite taken, lying in the trash.
A proud member of the 302nd group of the "Federation of Dumpster Divers", if its less than 30 mins, it really didn't happen!

Hamburgers and hotdogs for the curtain climbers and rug rats!!
 
Get a bag of meatballs from Costco, a couple bottles of BBQ sauce and a disposable pan, heat it up in the smoker.  Easy to do and usually enjoyed by the snackers.  
yahoo.gif
 
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