Boston Butt-Pulled Pork

[nmayeux]

Tommy, if I'm wrong please correct me, but it looks like you have a Klose offset smoker. It might be easier for you to use standard charcoal (Briqs or lump) to build a bed of coals, and use splits for the rest of the smoke. Also, there is a lot of great tips to help you with your butt. I love butts because they are very forgiving, and also this is the Q that almost everybody loves. Here are some pics of some of my pork, though I might have posted them in another thread. Note the explanations for each pic.

 

[nmayeux]

In addition... Mop, coolering, and finished product.

 

[joed617]

Tommy,I noticed that they stopped supplying the "Wicked Good Charcoal" Have you tried the "Weekend Warrior" brand? Thanks for the links.. They always come in handy..

Joe

 

[joed617]

Gary, Nice looking Butt.. Pulled pork looks good as well.. My kids are all grown up .. kinda miss having the young ones around .. Have a good one.

Joe

 

[tommy c]

Mornin' Joe,
The weekend warrior is a product of wicked good charcoal. It's the only one available now. The competition blend was made of exotic woods from south america and they've stopped cutting those woods down. IvÃ[emoji]169[/emoji] located about 40 bags here in wisconsin, but, they tell me when it's gone, that's it. Now the weekend warrior blend is also exotic woods, but, of a different species. It's available in abundance. I hav'nt tried either blend, but plan to take a drive to the warehouse today or tomm. to get a few bags of the comp. blend before it's gone for good. It's a little pricey at about a dollar a pound, but, they say it burns forever! Gotta try it before it's gone.....right?

 

[joed617]

Thanks Tommy... I'm going to try the weekend warrior when i get from vacation .. sometime after the 11th or so .. let me know how it works for you ..

Joe

 

[tommy c]

Hey Noah NICE lookin' butts! Yes I have a Klose offset smoker. I went all out and bought ,what (I) think is a top notch rig. I just hope I can produce some top notch product like some of you other guys.
My wife FREAKED when they unloaded the smoker at my door. She's like.....What the heck do you need that big ole thing for? I said hey it's a guy thing. I have a huge deck around my pool out back and I put the smoker up there. I and two friends had to hook up a pulley system and ropes, planks for the stairs, and then pulled it up onto the deck with my tractor! The niehbors all got a good laugh! Of course I'm the envy of the niehborhood now.
You said to start my smoker with coal and then use splits? What do you mean by splits? Wood chunks? How much coal to start? Should I just use coal and add wood occasionally?
Also I see you have a drip pan under your butts. Should I not let the drippin's hit the bottom of my smoker? There's a drain plug on the bottom of my smoker, and I assumed I was to leave that open during the smoke for that purpose. Please correct me if i'm wrong. Thanks again!

 

[willkat98]

Charcoal for a coal bed, use 1 lit chimney.

Splits are logs, split into sticks.

Pans are optional, drain when needed.

Don't forget to season your new pit. Oil it down (peanut, vegetable, whatever) and burn here on high as you can (400+ degrees if you can) for couple hours.

 

[tommy c]

Hi Bill,
I rubbed my smoker down with bacon grease and loaded it with apple wood and cured it for about 12 hours. Nice thick resin coating now. This is what Klose said I should do. Nice and shiney inside and smells great!

 

[tommy c]

Bill, should I only use splits from this point forward? Or coals also?

 

[willkat98]

Both (IMO)

Coals to use as a coal bed, then splits for heat and flavor.

I've cooked a few times on a Klose Backyardchef.

Hold heat real well, but eventually, even using all wood, you run out of coal bed to light the next split up, so a chimney of coals or lump is added just to maintain the coal bed.

I would also pre heat your wood on top of the firebox. Then, when you toss it in, you get instant ignition and no bad smoke

 

[tommy c]

o.k. Bill, thanks again. Did you like the "Klose"?

 

[ranger72]

Hi There Tommy C!

There is some excellent information in your thread and some great pics of some nicely done butts.


I don't know if you read back far enough to have seen my thread which is a quick tute on pork butts. It answers some of your questions from another perspective..

Has a recipe fpr a great mop which I use on pork shoulders and butts..and has pics from start to finish...Hope it may give you some additional information as well as this great thread!

Go here: http://www.smokingmeatforums.com/viewtopic.php?t=617


Cheers,

ranger72 8)

OTBS # 14

 

[willkat98]

Loved it.

love the 1/2" steel firebox.

Very versatile unit.

You have the horizontal?

 

[nmayeux]

Tommy,
I have a Lang, which is very much like yours. I usually will use all splits, but sometimes I will resort to using charcoal for a coal bed. When I'm using just wood, I'll light the fire with my brush burner, but sometimes its not around, or I don't have time to mess with building a coal bed from scratch. Charcoal just makes it easy sometimes, but nothing beats the flavor of all wood if you learn how to manage it.

 

[tommy c]

WOW!!! I'm sure havin' fun here guys! All of your help and responces have been just overwhelming.
Ranger, yes I have seen your thread and plan to try your mopp. Also looking forward to southflaquer's finishing sauce.
Bill, I do have the horizontal Klose. Thanks for the encouragement.
And finally.......Noah, I sure would love to have at one of those brush burners!!!!!! NOW THAT'S A FIRE!

 

[nmayeux]

Tommy,
A brush burner can be yours for just $27.99 at Northern Tool!
http://www.northerntool.com/webapp/w..._266859_266859

 

[nmayeux]

Ranger,
I love the setup, and that looks like one cold cook! Butts look real good.

 

[tommy c]

Thanks....on order!

 

[tommy c]

Hi Noah, I noticed yor grate is very close to the bottom. Do you get alot of ash? And does this effect a long burn? I have a Klose with a fire box that looks alot like yours, except, my grate sits a little higher, and has a pull out ash tray. Will I need to continually dump ashes? Or will they stay under control for long burns.