A very big Butt jumped in my shopping cart . . .

[latenight71]

i stopped in the market today to grab some baby backs to smoke for dinner and sitting there next to the ribs was the biggest pork butt i've ever seen offered outside a good butcher - and on sale no less! it practically jumped into my shopping cart. it was meant to be mine, even, as my wife had just asked me to smoke a butt "exactly like you did last time" for her birthday next week.

Now the question - How long to cook this big butt? should i hang it or put it on rack? i've cooked a bunch of 5-7 lb. butts but never anything this big. any words of advice on this? !mucho thankias!


Big 'ol Smithie!



12.64 lb. for $44.11? Heck no! Take this home cheap for just shy of $13. what's the dealie, yo?

[Jerod Broussard]

I trim out that big membrane that's near the blade bone. Score the fat cap into little squares. Run on the grate fat cap up. It takes some tying up to hang the whole cook.

[bbqLuv]

My choice is a fat cap towards the heat source.

[Jerod Broussard]

bbqLuv I've done both and end up losing way too much fat cap when it melts onto the grate. I've tried spraying with Pam to no avail. When you hang a butt and a brisket the fat is on the side anyways.

[Troutman]

Hey bbqLuv maybe spritzing with PBR would solve the problem??

[Texas Larry]

You might want to cut it in half. Freeze half for later? In any case it should cook a little faster. Dunno.

[Mr. Bones]

That hog had some serious butt goin on!

Jus did an 11+lb.er, a few weeks back...

Reg price (there in Kalifa) is ridiculously high, compared to here...:eek!

High Dollar hereabouts is $2.49 more typical is $2.00, normal pricin.

They go on sale at ¢99 at least once a month, between th 3 grocers local to me...

[latenight71]

9 posts to go to 10K. an honor to be your 9,991st!

[Mr. Bones]

latenight71 an honour to be right here, on yer post, Brother!

[HawkerXP]

I've run into some big butts at Walmart. Had to give her a bump to get her moving. She was blocking the whole darn isle!

[willxfmr]

That wasn't a "she", and a simple "excuse me" would have gotten me to move. The hip check into the Little Debbie display was not required.

[Mr. Bones]

Main! I know that there shite's right!

[HawkerXP]

sorry willxfmr but they were having a blue light special on men's thongs.....

[cashelton]

I would hang using the double hook method to 180ish, then move to the grate. But tbh, I try to hang everything in the pbc...for better or worse!

[latenight71]

i am a sucker for the hook, myself. if it can't hang in the PBC what's the point? just thinking the weight of this one would tear it down.

[RonB]

I agree wth Texas Larry - cut it in half. It will cook faster and you will have more bark. If you don't need that much meat, you could freeze half for later, or cook both hunks and freeze one whole for an easy later...

[latenight71]

i have never halved a big butt. one half loses the bone i imagine? would it alter individual cook times if i cooked them at same time? i like extra bark!!

[RonB]

Two pieces almost never wind up finishing at the same time, but maybe not too far apart. I suggest putting a probe in the smaller hunk and when it's time to probe the smaller one, probe 'em both, and pull each when ready.

[Mr. Bones]

^This^

[Dadof3Illinois]

These are 2 butts frozen together solid but one finished in 9 hours and the other was maybe 30min behind. I’ve been cooking butts straight from frozen and it really doesn’t take much longer at all.

[HawkerXP]

..., ..., ...!

[Troutman]

You can do this with almost any protein for that matter. My only reluctance is not having the proper salt brining cure before cooking.

[Dadof3Illinois]

Troutman That’s true but for large hunks of meat that cook for hours I’m finding that dry brining, at least for me, doesn’t seem to add much to my end product. For things that cook fast that I need/want a nice crust or crispy skin I agree that protein needs a dry brine.

@HawkerXP...yep...PBC, PBC, PBC...😂😂😂
Now for hot and fast cook

[Robert Page]

What are you cooking it on? Cut it in two or bone it and cut it in two. On my WSM 18 I would put the thinner piece on the bottom rack. Put the thicker part in the hotter area in your smoker.

[Henrik]

Cut it in two: cooks faster and gives you more bark. Win-win

[Troutman]

Cut it into a hundred little one inch cubes and make pork burnt ends pig candy. Then go out into the neighborhood and make some friends

[Huskee]

I always cut mine into 4 lb-ish hunks. I find whether they're 3lbs or 4lbs or 9lbs, they tend to take me about 12hrs if I wrap after the stall.

[Redwng]

"Usually" when they are packaged that way there are two separate butts. Two 6#ish butts will yield more bark and cook faster, good luck and share the pics when it's done.

[bardsleyque]

my butt is already split down the middle...