Pork Shoulder

Finman
I would put some rub on it and put it on the rack. I presume you are talking about the "plateau" which is when the temps stall for a bit while fat is rendered. You'll see the temp rise until it reaches this point, then it may sit at one temp for awhile. Try clicking on the "find button above and type in pork shoulder. Be sure to uncheck the "this forum only" box. You'll find dozens of posts on pork shoulder. I haven't done a shoulder, but have done many butts in my 250, I just put em on the rack. They come out wonderful.

Jack

I have been taught that the longer the big meats set in the plateau,the better job they do of rendering fat,breaking down collagen [tough stuff] without cooking all the moisture out of the product.

Lots of folks think that the old bbq standard of around 225* is a good place to start.

The CS cooks very moist,so as mentioned above,the pan wouldn't be necessary.

You aren't exactly in whole shoulder [16-20 lbs on today's market hogs] country.

Are you cooking whole shoulders,or a piece the market has labeled with shoulder in the description?

Shoulder (is it a full shoulder or a picnic?) A full shoulder will be about 12 to 15 lbs.

Put it in at 225 to 250, it will take about 1 to 1.5 hours per pd.

Check for an internal temp of about 195 for pulling.

Fellas,

Good advice, Sorry I was referring to "the butt Bob". Whole shoulders have been hard to find around here however, picnics/butts are readily available. How long will an 8# butt hold at 195* with an oven temp of 225*? They're going in in about an hour and I hope they will be done by 6 or 8 in the morning. I'll keep you posted.

My 6 pound butt went in at 9:15 am at 225*

It's been 9 hours and it's at 173*

I turned up the heat to 250* around 5 pm and it's going up slowly, but surely.

If you are using a Smokette, turn the heat up all the way and leave it there. Check it in the morning whenever you get up. It will not hurt if it is above 195*. I often let mine go way above 200*

Yeah, I cranked it to 250*

I'm going to wait it out, let it rest/cool, pull it apart and pack it up in the fridge.

Sorry, it has been a long time since I first posted my question on this subject. The white tail season came and went and it had all of my attention w/o internet access. The shoulders "butts" turned out great. I was surprised at the amount of smoke flavor that was in the meat, I used four handball size pieces of mesquite. It took about 15 hours to get to a temperature of 185 degrees. Also, I was surprised about how moist the meat was without using a pan. Since the deer season proved to be a success I was able to smoke 50 lbs. of thuringer and summer sausage plus 25 lbs. of sticks. I will post some questions regarding that experience. I am sold an the cooker.

Finman

LOL...that is enough mesquite for 4 butts !!!