I've never seen this put into a heading all it's own, so I'll do it here.
For all the folks that say they're cooking a 4# brisket for themselves and company, or a 5# butt. Please understand that:
1. Butts and brisket both shrink while cooking. Normal sized specimens will lose ~50%, so your 5# butt will only yield 2.5# of meat, or enough for about 4-5 people. Same for brisket.
2. These numbers might not be right because they are based on the yield from a 15# brisket and an 8# butt. If you start smaller, your yield is likely to be less than 50% as bone mass and dehydration take effect. Cook a larger cut of meat, you'll be happier.
3. Both brisket and pork freeze well. Cook extra and freeze the leftovers if needed. Your cooker works better with a larger cut of meat too.
4. If nothing else, cook bigger out of pride. Inviting people over to sample meat from your new smoker and then presenting them with a blackened butt the size of your fist makes you look kind of wimpy. You know it does. So don't do it. Cook large or go home. You wouldn't take your buddy for a ride in the new Ferrari and then putt around in first gear, now would you?
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