The mini has been languishing all winter, so decided it was time to smoke some meat. Got the 2 pack of bone in pork butts from Sam's and told everyone at work to look forward to pulled pork on Thursday.
I'd made up a batch of rub and sauce the night before so I was all ready to go.
Plan was to get the meat on about 6:00am. My usual hot and fast method would've had it ready a little after noon, then an hour rest and we'd be eating around 1:30.
You know what they say about plans.
First issue was getting my old tired butt going. Alarm went off at 4:30 and I got friendly with the snooze button til 5. Then I had to make coffee and load up the car. Long story short it was 6 before I left. And the office is an hour away.
I got there just before 7 and a friend was already there and the coffee was ready!!
Got the mini fired up and she hit 325° in record time!
Problem #2 was a two pronged approach. It was 28° and I had 16lbs. of cold meat to put in a tiny smoker.
In went #1...
Followed by #2
And the temp plummeted.
200° -225° took 40 minutes. 225°-275° took 2 hours. 275°-300° took another hour or so. And there she sat.
I'd also done the onion in the firebox trick, so the entire neighborhood was hungry. Only problem was there was no way this was gonna be done by 1:30.
So the lunch plan was moved to Friday and pizza was ordered.
Then about 3 I noticed a change in the aroma. Ran out back and had a thought. Hmmm says I, the butt on the top is at 175°, but maybe I'd better check the one on the bottom....
Probed with the thermapen, no resistance and the temp was perfect. 195° dead center and 203° toward the outer edge. The very bottom was just starting to over caramelize.
So I brought it in and set it on the counter while I looked for the foil.
The aroma was too much. They gathered around the carcass like a pride of lions at a kill. 15 minutes give or take and it was stripped clean. No buns, no sides. They were ripping hunks off and dipping in the sauce.
I've been informed that the smoker stays and we're having weekly bbq's from now on.
Don't have the rub and sauce recipes in front of me at the moment but will post later.
I'd made up a batch of rub and sauce the night before so I was all ready to go.
Plan was to get the meat on about 6:00am. My usual hot and fast method would've had it ready a little after noon, then an hour rest and we'd be eating around 1:30.
You know what they say about plans.
First issue was getting my old tired butt going. Alarm went off at 4:30 and I got friendly with the snooze button til 5. Then I had to make coffee and load up the car. Long story short it was 6 before I left. And the office is an hour away.
I got there just before 7 and a friend was already there and the coffee was ready!!
Got the mini fired up and she hit 325° in record time!
Problem #2 was a two pronged approach. It was 28° and I had 16lbs. of cold meat to put in a tiny smoker.
In went #1...
Followed by #2
And the temp plummeted.
200° -225° took 40 minutes. 225°-275° took 2 hours. 275°-300° took another hour or so. And there she sat.
I'd also done the onion in the firebox trick, so the entire neighborhood was hungry. Only problem was there was no way this was gonna be done by 1:30.
So the lunch plan was moved to Friday and pizza was ordered.
Then about 3 I noticed a change in the aroma. Ran out back and had a thought. Hmmm says I, the butt on the top is at 175°, but maybe I'd better check the one on the bottom....
Probed with the thermapen, no resistance and the temp was perfect. 195° dead center and 203° toward the outer edge. The very bottom was just starting to over caramelize.
So I brought it in and set it on the counter while I looked for the foil.
The aroma was too much. They gathered around the carcass like a pride of lions at a kill. 15 minutes give or take and it was stripped clean. No buns, no sides. They were ripping hunks off and dipping in the sauce.
I've been informed that the smoker stays and we're having weekly bbq's from now on.
Don't have the rub and sauce recipes in front of me at the moment but will post later.