Pork Butts...do you inject?

I will inject with my competition pork brine for the reason I like to get flavor down deep. Don't inject all the time, but maybe 50% of the time. At home, I don't inject with Butchers, Kosmo's or any of the competition type injections. I just don't like the flavor for my everyday pork. It's great for contest when you really want to focus the flavor, but that's just me.

If I don't inject, then I make sure to season the meat after I pull it.

Pork tastes like pork and I want it not to taste like Pork (you know the other white meat that doesn't really have a taste), and the center mass of the PB doesn't get smoke or rub unless you do something to up the flavor

The last couple butts I've injected with a combination of Butchers and an injection recipe that I have run across. My test rats around here thought they were the best yet. I was able to eat pulled pork sandwiches with no sauce and still have a nice pork flavor.I want to tweak it a little differently the next time and see what happens. Q'n is soooo FUN.

I would say put me in the group that likes to inject, besides what in the world am I gonna do with that 2 lb bag of Butchers Pork Injection, oh well!

I know of one guy who uses the pork injection, diluted to half strenght 1/2 cup powder:2 cups water) to inject St Louis Spares. He pumps 1-2 tbsp of solution into the meat between the bones, entering with his syringe from the side of the rack. Tried it and the ribs were very juicy. It didn't work so well on Babybacks due to the curvature of the bones.

Max,

Now I'm really gonna have to take the other side. Comp injections for home PB and now ribs? Say it ain't so.

No reason to inject ribs. That's just wrong and I think it's a real ways of time and effort. Oh, and for the record, yes I've tried it and you can actually create issue by injecting too much liquid, they'll separate from the bones.

But my ribs I have no problem getting moisture and flavor throughout.

I really understand the concept of Buthcers and the others, but I have problems recommending it for "routine" home use. Can you? Sure. Should you? Don't know, thanks for posting and I'd suggest to those that want to go ahead and try it and see.

I'm tired of all the extra effort for the comp stuff just trying to tweak what go old barbecue needs to be.

Careful, I might have to get on my Smokin' Soap Box (tm)

I'm a newbie, when do you do the injection? during the marinading time with the rub, or right before you put in to the smoker..
Also, is there any difference between boneless pork shoulder, and bone in pork butt? which one so most prefer?

Thanks!

Welcome to the forum Coach.

I've injected several hours prior to smoking and just before smoking. Can't say that I've noticed a difference.

thanks for replying MaxQue, just love this site as everbody here are so friendly and have the same passion.
I'm planning on smoking a 15 lb boneless pork shoulder this weekend, any warning signs with a meat this big, I see most folks here smoke theirs in the neighborhood of less than 10 lbs.

Forgot to mention....bone-in vs boneless. Personally I prefer bone-in butts. I think it helps retain moisture and the blade bone is like the turkey "pop-up" indicator...when the bone tugs away easily...she's done.

OTOH some cooks like boneless butts...allows them to get more rub to more meat surface. One advantage of a boneless shoulder would be a reduction in cooking time.

15 lb shoulder? Really just a matter of time. I'd go for 225 o and start checking tenderness around 185o As our Founding Father says, "it's done when it's done."

Good luck!

15 pounder. You're looking at least 22 hrs. Plan on getting done early, wrap in double heavy duty foil, wrap in a beach towel or two and place in a cooler. It'll stay hot to the touch for several hrs this way. If it takes longer than planned, then you have some flexibility. This at 225*. At 250*, it'll finish earlier by maybe a couple hrs.

I'm starting to worry that I picked up the wrong meat. Some folks here are saying that the Costco (what I have) boneless pork sholder is not good for smoking, as it's not a solid piece of pork like the bone-in pork, and can be tough and dry. OH, what the hec, live and learn.

If you haven't opened the package yet, you will find that the Costco package is actually two pieces of meat, so your cook time will be about 1/2 of what you are planning. Jer

Thanks Jerin, that makes perfect sense!

If you stack the two pieces of meat on top of each other if will smoke as if if was one piece of meat. I've done it if I want the meat to stay in the smoker for an extended time

If you stacked them on top of each other, where do you put the probe? one or the other, or the center where the 2 pieces of meat come together when folded.

Why stack them? Leave them open and separate because you'll get more rub on the pork as well as more smoke on the meat. Put the probe in the smaller one of the two.

Did it have two and are they square shaped?

Relax Coach Pete, you have bought a piece of meat that needs to cook for a long period of time to make a FINE meal. Who said that boneless PBs were a piece of crap??

Take a little time to make sure that you have two PBs and not a whole shoulder then work on a plan for cooking it up into a fine meal. Smokin' makes a good point on what can be done with a pair of boneless PBs.

I have used the rule of thumb that if I am going to inject I tie the pork both for a more even 'cook' and it seems a better distribution on what I am using for injection. The tie is tight and even so when You drop the butts on the counter they 'bounce' rather than going "plop". I would be interested if any one else ties their butts when injecting Pork; only here can You say that.

There is some good info for some different things for different times all over this thread.

Being from the South,where we cook some pork,this thread has me so confused,I'm not sure I could cook "pork".

Got to agree with Smokin' about taking the most simple meat of all we smoke,doing so many things that it becomes complicated.

I was taught by some very good pork cooks to learn to cook the product correctly and then when we know what we have,try the tricks for fun-or each in its specific situation.

Smokin' preaches to learn your cooker and learn the basic piece of meat.Then learn to cook it well,so it tastes great like the product it is named .

I often use the example of the fine cook ,cooking a couple cases of butts[about sixteen total and 125 lbs]

They may do it several times a week,and they are great.
Trust me,they aren't doing all this worry and aggravation over every single piece of meat they cook.

Yes,they can do tricks-in special situations,to be sure it tastes good and is cooked well.

Just a couple of thoughts.

quote:

Trust me,they aren't doing all this worry and aggravation over every single piece of meat they cook.

Good point. After all isn't that why we own a Cookshack?

At comps,we may be trying to gain 0.02 of a point,out of 180 total points.

We do some strange things to try and get there.That doesn't mean we would choose to eat much of it.

Smokin', and cooks like him,could teach a chimp,on a cell phone,how to cook a good butt in a Cookshack.

Once we know how the cooker cooks,and know the meat we are cooking,keeping it simple produces fine eating and an easy cook.