# Help! New and lost.. Apple Cider Spray???



## thump

My pork Butt is ready, and will go on my new Master Built 30" electric smoker (the first time I have ever smoked anything) tomorrow morning about 7AM.  I have a 7# Boston butt, and from reading the forum posts I think I'll need to smoke it for ~10-11 hours at ~230 degrees.

I planned to use a spray bottle filled with 'Apple Cider Vinegar' and spray the meat lightly about every hour or so after passing 100 degrees.

_Should I use Apple Cider Vinegar ??? _I read some of the forum postings and now I have doubt.  Some use Apple Cider, and add Rum and other sweet stuff - _BUT none have mentioned straight Apple Cider Vinegar !! _

Help... Is straight  Apple Cider Vinegar going to be too strong ???


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## alblancher

Apple juice would be better


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## smoking b

I'll tag along but just to see what others say about the vinegar... I have an MES 30 but I don't spritz. Every time you open your door you lose heat & add a lot of time to your cook - I've seen a lot of estimates that say 15 - 20 minutes added each time. I don't have any trouble getting bark or moist meat so I just let it go. KISS method works great for me


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## jayskibum

Just my two cents. I don't spray my pork butts. I smoked two pork butts this weekend. Cooked then at 225f. Gave them smoke for 5 hrs. Then cooked them on the grate until IT of 180. Then wrapped in foil and brought them to 205. They were moist as can be without spraying. All the fat in the pork butt assists in keeping it moist. Now mind u this is just my opinion others will have different ones. The main reason I don't spray my pork butts is bc every time I open the smoker I loose temperature and the smoker has to catch back up. So every time you open the door u are just adding to the cook time. And pork butts take long enough already. Either route will work. Just be patient and it will be delicious


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## vegansbeware

I do a mix of...

1 Cup Apple Cider Vinegar

1 tsp. salt

1 tsp. pepper

1/2 cup Dijon Mustard...not the stone ground stuff, the smooth stuff

Set aside about 1/2 cup to drizzle over the shreds to add a little moisture and flavor

then I mop it on...about every 1-1.5 hours for the first 4-5 hours, or until you run out.


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## alblancher

I am sure different smokers have different recovery times.  My Lang 36 loses very little heat when all I do is open the door to do a spritz.   There is enough steel in the smoker that the temps do not move a great deal.    Smaller sidecar and electric smokers may take considerably longer to recover.

I normally use a combination of no-sugar added apple juice, a couple of Tablespoons of apple cider vinegar and maybe a bit of honey.  There are many different "mops" and "spritzes" any of which make a good addition to your smoke.   I think the most important is the moisture you add to your aluminum foil if you wrap and any finishing sauce you add before serving.

Anything and everything goes,  some people add bourbon, pineapple juice,  heck I will add some of the extra blueberry juice I have left over from making jelly.   They are all good and allow you to have some fun with different flavors and combinations.   

I'd start with the majority apple juice because it will add a bit of sweetness with a couple good sloshes of vinegar that will help cut the fat taste.

Like I said,  have fun and experiment!


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## thump

~~:beercheer:  ----   I agree with the apple juice rather than apple cider vinegar. 

Many thanks to all for the advice.   I think that I now have everything I need to make a reasonable start.  It turns out my Boston Butt is 7 pounds, and larger than I had first thought, so I'll have to plan on more time. I hope to have it on smoking at 230 degrees in my "MES30" early tomorrow morning, and I will make a spritz of apple juice and some imported coconut/rum.  ...  {Wow! I am even learning some of the terminology of the forum). 

I think my challenge is going to be if my new smoker will make smoke without me having to feed it more mesquite chips every hour or so.  The smoker chip box on the MES30 is not very large at all.


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## thump

I'm getting close!  In my new MES30, I find that the internal probe thermometer is reading higher than true internal temperature by at least 20 degrees.  (I have a Taylor electronic professional meat thermometer.)  - - Anyway, I am at actual Internal temperature of 168, so I have removed the internal probe, wrapped the butt in heavy foil and set it back on the smoker at 220 degrees, no smoke,,

I plan to let it stay on for another 1 1/2 hours and then wrap the foil covered meat in a towel and place it in a Styrofoam chest for another hour to slowly cool down. Then I should be ready for a beer and 'pulled pork sandwiches'... 
	

	
	
		
		



		
		
	


	

















MES30 and Bubba Keg.jpg



__ thump
__ Apr 8, 2014


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