Pork butt help

10-12 hours at 225-250 degrees. Check them at 10. Forget the thermometer--look at the blade bone if the meat is pulled away from it more than a little bit(atleast 3/4 -1 inch) then it is done.
This is a good starting point.
Good luck!
Zeb

Ain't no way I'd argue with Zeb.. but, I'm still learnin' and want to avoid opening the box.. until the last moment. I use the cable thermometer.. for every cook. Just my style

Cook on 225 until internal temperature reaches 190-205*F. Use 2-4 oz. of wood. Do not open the door. We cannot tell you how long the cook will take. It takes as long as it takes.

I have never cooked on the smaller CS'---only Fire pits and I own and use a 250. Do the smaller models take THAT long to get back up to temp? Just seems that everyone is very afraid to open their boxes to check the product. I come from the stick burning crowd and have never used a remote thermometer. It would drive me nuts if I couldn't visually check the meat atleast a couple of times before it was ready. Shoot, I am still having trouble getting use to my 250 and not being able to play with the fire!
Zeb

I agree with Zeb, at least 10-12 hours at 225. Use the thermometer if you want, but insert it into the largest piece of meat so that when it is done, they are all done.

Cheers,

Micah

Micah,

I agree with you if all the butts are in the same area of weight. But sometimes I will cook a load of butts with weights from 5-8 lbs. When this occurs and if I use a remote therm, I will put it in the smallest butt. Thus, I am not overcooking the smallest while I am waiting for the bigger ones to finish off. Just a thought.

John

I too still use a temp probe to tell doneness. But when I do multiple butts, I use 2 probes... one in the largest and one in the smallest. Mark them with masking tape as to which butt they are in. Then you can monitor both without opening the door. Probes are cheap.

Bob

quote:

Originally posted by ZebzBBQ:
[qb] I have never cooked on the smaller CS'---only Fire pits and I own and use a 250. Do the smaller models take THAT long to get back up to temp? Just seems that everyone is very afraid to open their boxes to check the product. [/qb]

Hey Zeb.. we don't have the heat mass that you have in the logburners.. You have a lot of steel in one of those pits.. so, yes, once you open the door.. the heat escapes. there is some heat mass in the meat, grates and the thin walls of the box but we only have a 1500W element to get it back up to temp.. not a log and bed of coals. I guess if we put in some big heat sink like a steel plate, rocks, bricks or similar.. it would come back to temp pretty quickly.

We are not afraid to open the box, we know doing so will just release heat, steam, and smoke, and will work against what we are trying to accomplish...COOKING. There is no need to open the door and look at the meat because we know what temp the meat is with our remote therms.

Hmmmm.... interesting, indeed! I can see what you guys are saying. I guess I just come from another school of thought. I am 100% self taught and did not even know that there was such a gizmo as a remote thermometer until about a year or 2 ago. As a matter of fact, I have only been using a real thermometer on my smoker for 3-4 years. I first started with a smoker that had a temp guage that said "cool--good--hot" and I cooked on it for 4 years 3 times a week while learning. I always shot for the first "o" in "good." I still use it some times. My facination with smoking food was the beer, fire, meat and the SUPER LOW tech method of cooking. Something from the caveman days still stirs in this young feller. Hell, I love the feeling I get from having to tear the meat off a spare rib that has been cooked, but not falling off the bone. I never felt the need to check internal temp--it has cooked at a sufficient temp for 12-16 hours and natures thermometer (the bone) says "it's done." I never worried about the time it to cook the meat, I was in no hurry--as no one should be, there is NOTHING fast about good smoked food. So if opening the door costed me an extra 30 min. I did not care--or actually know. To me smoking is an art not a science. An artist uses no templates. I would like all of my barbaric, meat eating brethren to take a few to get in touch with the Art of smoking meat and not get so caught up in the Science and "exacts" of it. This means open the doors sometimes and take a pinch, trust YOUR judgement on the food not the "probe." I think that everyone should have a "cool--good--hot" temp guage to go by and just have fun with it. I'd be willing to bet that more than half of you would get better food for it. I don't even use a temp guage on my smoker at my restaurant--I just go off the factory probe and readout on the CS---yeah, it might be off but I have the "feel" of the smoker and open the door and check-in at about 12 hours. I can still out cook most---I have the customers behind me on this one. I am glad that I not very dependent on guages, etc. I like the work and personal investment(sweat equity) that goes into my food. That makes me proud.
Now what happens if your probes, guages, etc are not accurate or just quit....what do you do? Rely on yourself.
If given block/bricks and some wood and a grate and nothing else--I feel confident. Get to know what you are doing more personally--That is my suggestion---you'll be glad you did.
Sorry for the long winded reply---I am just REALLY proud of what I do and the time and EFFORT that I put into it. I feel that the BBQ community has taken alot of what I enjoy out of the process. Of course the flip side is---the new ease of making decent food has made the community larger. Can't never have too many friends!
Zeb

Oh well, not to worry. I cook outside on the ground with sticks and limbs we find in the woods ever other weekend from may through september with just some rocks and a metal grate. No problems. When I am home I like to 'set it and forget it' until it is done. I have been through several survival training courses and have eaten lots of things raw and have cooked lots of lizards and snakes over small fires started with flint. I can do it and so can alot of other people, if we want or need to. Hey, I feel ya.

HEY Zeb I am a newbe to smoking and can you please explane what you ment by natures therm the bone ?

Not Zeb, but when you can grab and easily twist the bone on a shoulder or butt, it's done. Cook enough and you can be about as accurate as a thermometer using this technique.

Great explanation, Zeb, of the art and process of BBQ. And I salute any pit boss, pit master, etc. who has paid their dues to acquire those arts.

The problem I have is that I'm busy with four kids, work, blah blah blah. I bought the Cookshack pricisely for the reason that it allows me to enjoy good BBQ without having to master the process that you so eloquently described. For me, if I had to master that process I'd never be able to enjoy good BBQ.

That's why I love my CS--I get to enjoy great BBQ (the end result) without having to master the process and art of creating it. The more I smoke the more that "art" comes into play. I'll never be a god of smoke like you and your cohorts. And I'm fine with that, as long as I can still enjoy some good barbecue along the way.

PS: I just cooked for 100 people using my Cookshack Smokette, all while working 10+ hours per day and sleeping 8+ hours per night. This was for a church function and I couldn't take off work to prepare the food. So I timed the smokes to start and end while I was home. The results were outstanding.

First I would like to say to everyone---I meant no offense by what I posted and TRULY hope that none was taken. I love ALL you guys!
Dennis,
I am glad that you had a successful run with your Q adventure. I am also glad that "the ease of use" with products that are available now has expanded the Smokin' community to allow for fine folks like yourself to indulge in an activity that is VERY time consuming and laborious.
Again, like I said one can NEVER have too many friends. I say po-tate-o, you say po-tot-o---but, we both still love them taters!
Glad you are happy with what you are doing, that is TRULY all that matters.
Zeb

P.S. I am pretty sure that NONE of us here are Gods of any description. Hell, I know I ain't. I got the horns to prove it! I also bought a CS to make my life a little easier--a 250. I use it all the time for that reason, at my restaurant. You are right--the more you smoke the more the art of it will come into play.
Happy Qing!