I am planning on doing an overnight/very early morning cook tonight. I'm making a #15 butt in the PBC. The food needs to be ready at about Noon Saturday. So I'm going to have to start it early. I was planning on using my Maverick to monitor temps and then going back to bed. Just wondering if anyone has had any issues when doing an overnight with the PBC. Any input is appreciated!! Thanks!!!
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Most folks seem to say the run time on one load of charcoal is ~8-10 hrs. Worst case scenario you have to get up early and reload it. Might I suggest cutting that monster butt in half, more seasoning, smoke penetration, and more bark? The Maverick is simply awesome for those types of things. Hi/lo cooker alarm, and hi meat alarm. Even a lost signal alarm. It's foolproof for an overnight cook! -
I agree with Huskee, cut down the big chunk... good thoughts. Throw more fuel in the morning if you need... worst case scenario it stalls and you have to finish in the oven. Not a problem, and also not likely. You have enough PBC experience to pull this off easily... good luck and let us know the outcome!Comment
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Doing the exact same thing Saturday night. My overnight PBC cooks have gone well, I usually don't sleep too well because when I do I just dream that the fire went out so I check on it a bit.
The one really big mistake I made was in an effort to save time I prepared everything I could in advance, including putting charcoal in the basket and chimney etc. so I could get back to bed ASAP. I was too sleepy to realize what was going on until it was too late, but the temp change had caused a lot of moisture to develop all over my coals, and it took me almost an hour to get the chimney ready to dump. Still not thinking, I dumped them on the basket of more damp coals. It took another hour with the lid cracked to get everything dried out and running.Comment
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You're plannign a 15 lb butt taking only 9 hrs? Even if you split it into two 7 or 8lbers I still think that's cutting it a bit close. Are you plannign to wrap them at the stall? To be honest I'd give 'em 12 hrs. I realize PBCs cook faster than most other cookers but you still might want to have a couple hrs of wrap & hold time to soften them. Maybe I'm overshooting what they'll take, but you can always hold them in a faux cambro until serving time, PBs are very forgiving that way.Comment
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True. Thats why I'm here. Thanks for the heads up. I just didn't want it to be done too early. Then have to worry about reheating the meat before serving. Then i would feel like serving leftovers. Although, I have a Yeti cooler that I'm going to use as my Cambro so it should stay warm enough i would think. I would rather start it at midnight than 3 am!!Last edited by Spinaker; December 19, 2014, 04:27 PM.
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Originally posted by Huskee View Post
Ditto.
I am cooking a 7 pound butt and 2 briskets Saturday night, after I finish 3 (3+ pound) butts and 2 briskets (which will be pulled and sliced and bagged). I will be serving around 1 PM. I will be hanging meat at about 1 AM. Plan to be done b/n 10 and 11 AM to allow 2+ hours of rest.
Last edited by Jerod Broussard; December 19, 2014, 04:08 PM.Comment
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If you wrap it shouldn't be a problem at all, if you don't then I'd aim for 12AM if you keep it whole, and 2AM if you split. If going whole I might even add an hour to that because you want plenty of rest time and depending on the weather you will probably need a full chimney to get you the last few hours.
I am splitting mine again and will have 4 ~3lb chunks and i'm starting at 2AM.Comment
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Cook it on the rack, not the hooks. That way you don't have to worry about what temp it hits while you're sleepingComment
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Just hit the stall, Brutus is at 268 F, Internal is 163 F. I put the butts on right at midnight. I had some problems with my probes. I have the worst luck with Mavericks. Always have problems. One of the probes wasn't working right. You'd think for that kind of money, the probes included could at least be washed properly with out being ruined. (Heaven forbid you would ever drop one) Enough complaining.
I added about 15 coals to the fire at around 4:30 am and Brutus is going strong. I am going to try and not wrap at all, but we'll see what happens.
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I was going to try that but the butts were too big (ahem). I pulled them off the hooks at about 175 F and put the grate in and placed the butts on the rack. I'm coming down the home stretch right now. I've got an internal of 194 F after 9 1/2 hrs. Then its to the YETI for a good long rest. -
For your probes... try putting them in your oven at 350F for an hour and watch the Maverick to see what kind of temps they read. If they work in the oven (or are broke initially but then work after a while) you know it's actually your pit that is causing the problem. I have had trouble with my Maverick in both my PBC and in my Kamado. I attributed these issues to extreme pit humidity. so give my oven trick a try and let us know how it goes.
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Sounds like perfect timing! Those suckers are gonna be good. Did you stay up all night? I am starting mine tonight at about 12AMComment
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I finally got everything pulled off the PBC. Overall, I would say things went well (except for my nights sleep) We may have had meteor shower last night! Look at bark on those guys. I got some great bark on these after this cook. I waited for a while longer to wrap them this time and I know that helped with bark formation. The only reason I wrapped was, I was worried about the moisture level. Seeing how this is for a birthday party, I didn't want to risk making it to dry. Next time when I do a personal cook, I'm going all the way, no wrap. Man, I can't wait to tear into these bad boys. They are both resting nicely in the YETI for serving at noon!!! Thanks for the discussion guys.
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I'm so envious, Spinaker. I passed on that double butt pack at Sam's Club last week. Got a couple of chuckies instead, which will have their PBC day tomorrow, perhaps.
Now I wish I had picked it up and done a HC in SC plan--smoked the butts and then put some in the freezer for Xmas guests. Of course the week is young, so I could always go back to Sams to see if they have any of those butts left. The price was pretty good, as I recall.
I can hardly wait to hear how those butts tasted and see how they looked, all pulled and ready to enjoy. Your timing was perfect. Congrats.
KathrynComment
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I'm hoping this works. Let me know if these go through this time.
Kathryn, its almost impossible for me to walk out of Sam's or Costco and not buy some type of meat.
Everything turned out great!! People were saying best they've ever had. Great bark, smokering, and the flavor was awesome. Husk's rub comes through once again! Thanks Brother!!
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