Pulled from a thread in GD:



I've been reluctant to smoke any more since the first attempt didn't turn out well.  But I'm wanting to smoke a pork butt for the entire cooking process in the smoker without using the 3-2-1 method.  What could I do to have a good pork product?  Treat me like a newbie, talk about it from what to do the day before, to the rub, to the wood for the smoke, to what temp to set the smoker at, and how big of a butt I need to try to find.

We're running a pellet smoker. BUT............. I do a dry rub the night before. Some use mustard first then rub, others use olive oil. It's up to you.  best results so far have been a 50/50 hickory & apple mix. Again we're using s pellet unit. So set roast in smoker on low smoke for 1 hour, then up to 225 until done. It's only the spouse & I, so a 5lb pork butt is the norm.

Have you read / browsed some of the smoker web sites for ideas?  
http://www.masterbuiltsmokercenter.com/masterbuilt_smoker_recipes.html

http://www.smoker-cooking.com/electric-smoker-recipes.html



One thing you should do is document the ways you've done each item. This way you have a base line for working off. Everything we've smoked started with someone's recipe, then adjusted to taste (seasoning, wet, dry, heat etc) for our needs.

The 3-2-1 method is good for ribs only. Dont use that for anything else, if ur smoking baby backs use the 2-2-1 method. For ribs, use a rub of your choice, i put evoo on the meat instead of mustard but YMMV, then hit the ribs with the rub, do thi s12 hours before you smoke to allow the spices to work their way into the meat. Then smoke at 225 for 2 hours with enough chips to fill thesmall tray on the masterbuilt smoker. After the 2 hours, pull out and wrap in foil with a your choice of spritz, i usually do the butter, honey and brown sugar, for an additional 2 hours. Whe those 2 hours are done, take em out the foil and smoke em for an additonal hour. The last hour i like to mop with bbq sauce, but thats optional. The last hour is to give the ribs tug, you dont want "fall off the bone" ribs, you want them to have a slight tug, thats what the last hour is for. After the last hour, pull out the smoker and enjoy. Im sure someone will be here shortly to help you with pork butt/shoulder. Ill type more tomorrow if no one replies. Happy smoking

Electric smokers that seal up tight require very little wood. For pork butt id do 1 chunk of cherry and 1 chunk of oak. Chunks being roughly the size of a base ball.  Put the rub on as soon as possible. Wrap it in plastic wrap after its seasoned and let sit in the fridge until your ready to smoke it. A couple days wont hurt.

How are you going to serve it will dictate how long you cook it for. Pulled pork needs to go longer so it can be easily shreaded. Usually until it reaches around 180 deg F internal temp.

Ok so if I get two days off in a row next week I'll smoke some.

Jim, thank you for the links. I've found a brisket recipe I want to try to duplicate.

Medic, apparently soaked and dry chips are like 9 and .45. I'll try dry this time and soaked next time. And is the mustard/evoo just something to bind the rub to the meat?

Deuc, what kind of ribs is your preference to smoke?

J Booker, my masterbuilt does seal up very well. So you only use two handfuls of wood the entire time you smoke a pork butt? Do you wrap it in foil or just keep it going uncovered low and slow? Does hot and fast work out well for a beginner usually?

I prefer baby backs. More meat per rib.  There is a wealth of info at smokingmeatforums.com , that place got me started a long time ago and they have some good recipes on there as well. When you get the hang of it you will tweak to your preferences but that is a good place to start.

Regarding the smoking issue: meat only really takes on smoke in the first hour or 2 on the smoker. Just put in enough chips to keep the smoke going for an hour or 2 and you'll be good. I have an UDS smoker with a charcoal basket that will run 15-18 hrs depending on how much stuff I'm smoking in it. I light it top-down method starting on 1 side. That is the only place I mix wood chunks into the charcoal because by the time the fire gets to the other side and/or the bottom the meat isn't taking on anymore smoke, it's just being deposited on the outside of the meat (leaving a thick, nasty, bitter layer).

You'll get the hang of it, smoking meats/foods is an art form and takes a little practice. I made a few "bitter" meals in the beginning too...




Spares are pretty widely known as having a LOT more meat per bone than baby-backs. The only time baby backs have more meat is if a large slab of the back-loin was intentionally left on the ribs to make them more meaty, and in that case, why not just smoke a back-loin if you want to eat smoked back-loin?

I will tell you that I used to LOVE baby backs as well because I "perceived" by the looks of the rack of ribs in the butcher's cooler that the baby-back had to have more meat. But one time he was running a special on spare-ribs so I tried them; LOTS more meat on spare-ribs. Not to mention, spare ribs are significantly cheaper as well. My buddy just bought some at a local joint 2 days ago and said they are running $1.29/lb for regular spares.

IMHO, I don't waste my time trimming spares to make St Louis style ribs either. You paid for that meat, why trim it off? Smoke it and eat it; yes, there is a bit of fat and cartilage to pick through but there is still good meat in there. Of course, if you can get them already trimmed to St Louis style for the same, or very slightly higher price (few cents more/lb) then I would go that route.

I do not use anything to "bind" my rubs and I use a salt/ dark brown sugar rub with dry mustard in the ingerdients list.. Once the salt starts to work it provides all the needed moisture. I do rinse the meat prior so I do have residual moisture but it isn't dripping wet by any stretch. 24 hours with rub followed by a quick rub down before hitting the smoker.

I like to trim my ribs to the St. Louis style as it is easier to work with w/ and I use rib racks that allow my to cook 4 racks in the same space as one.


It is a cheapo version but it works and I can stuff it back in the box so it takes up little room.

Slow and low for me. I use chuncks instead of chips and I put them in unwrapped and dry.

I like spares too but if i do get em i will trim the to st louis style just for the ease of eating them, plus the are aesthetically pleasing. At 1.29 a lb i would grab em while i can, here they run in the 3 per lb for sone reason. I will say that im not a fan of beef ribs unless its the are korean style for kalbi.

I'm going to try that about the smokestack tin can. I may end up just putting a handful in while it is getting to temp and then another handful about midnight and let it go low and slow.

Dad grilled some pork ribs last night on his gas grill. He did a pouch of hickory off to the side and finished it off with some KC Masterpiece brown sugar sauce on it. Had some char and the sauce gave it a sweet bite.