I'm maxing out the my capacity tonight after asking my wife to grab a couple of pork butts at grocery store (expected smaller blade butt like the one I happened across a few weeks ago). She came home with two big ones at 9.3 and 8.3 pounds. The "little one" as I am calling it is a "blade Boston butt roast" at 6.2 pounds. They go on the BGE tonight around 8 or 9 pm I think for dinner tomorrow around 6 pm. Trimmed weights are 8.5#, 7.8# and 5.7#. Pictures and FireBoard link to follow for those interested.
Any tips on how to manage that much on the BGE are appreciated. I've read the section on more than one hunk o' meat.
Allow for extra time with that much meat at once. In theory, it should be done at the same time if it was just one hunk of meat at the same temp, but I’ve been behind the eight ball when I cook that much on a kamado. Resting never hurts anyway.
I don’t have a BGE but I too second this. I did 2 shoulders and 2 chuckles on 2 separate cooks over the summer and they both took longer than I anticipated.
Allow for extra time with that much meat at once. In theory, it should be done at the same time if it was just one hunk of meat at the same temp, but I’ve been behind the eight ball when I cook that much on a kamado. Resting never hurts anyway.
+1 I've been behind numerous times. Last cool was two 8+# shoulders and it took too long. I'm reviewing las cook and backing it up another hour or so. I'm expecting small piece to be done early. and plan to double-wrap in foil it and pop it in oven set to lowest temp (170 I think). With any luck they'll all be done a little early.
I of course love smoked meats of all kinds, but also like quick cooks like chicken portions, pork tenderloins, steak and fish. Really into cooking of all kinds.
My outdoor kitchen has a Lone Star Grillz Adjustable and it is wonderful. There also is a Pit Boss 5 Burner Ultimate Griddle and a Pit Boss Copperhead pellet grill.
There is an outdoor fire pit that has grilling capability and limited Santa Maria-style grill raising and lowering.
No worries. Even better if you have at least three meat probes for your Fireboard. And don't forget that if you start to get short on time, bumping the cook temp up to at least 325 will not hurt a thing. Easy adjustment on a kamado cooker, as you know.
Lonestar Grillz 24x36 offset smoker, grill, w/ main chamber charcoal grate and 3 tel-tru thermometers - left, right and center
Yoke Up custom charcoal basket and a Grill Wraps cover.
22.5 copper kettle w/ SnS, DnG, BBQ vortex, gasket and stainless steel hinge kit.
Napoleon gas grill (soon to go bye bye) rotting out.
1 maverick et-733 digital thermometer - black
1 maverick et-733 - gray
1 new standard grilling remote digital thermometer
1 thermoworks thermopen mk4 - red
1 thermoworks thermopop - red
Pre Miala flavor injector
taylor digital scale
TSM meat grinder
chefs choice food slicer
cuisinhart food processor
food saver vacuum sealer
TSM harvest food dehydrator
Getting them on around 8 for tomorrow’s dinner at 6 you should have plenty of time. If you can get some space in between the hunks of meat for better air flow you should have a pretty easy cook.
As Jim White said. You can always bump up the temp to move things along.
Have fun.
Oh yeah. Just make sure the egg is well heat sinked. So get’er fired up a good hour before putting the meat on.
Last edited by Steve B; October 22, 2021, 02:45 PM.
I did 40# at 225 with a raised grate the took 22 hours on one load of charcoal. If you can get your meat at one level I would guess your cook time would be 14-16 hours at 225.
I did 40# at 225 with a raised grate the took 22 hours on one load of charcoal. If you can get your meat at one level I would guess your cook time would be 14-16 hours at 225.
I guess I need a bigger BGE! I've always cooked multiple butts on my Adjustable Rig and shelved them. I typically see the dome temp equalize with the grate temp (regardless of location) sometime around the stall. So far this one is going about as expected as compared to last month's pork shoulders. I'll have to try two butts on one level sometime to see what happens. Out of curiosity, why do you think that one versus two levels impacts cook time? Do you keep them closer to the charcoal on a single-level cook?
Last edited by TimmyR; October 24, 2021, 08:32 AM.
The top will cook faster, but not that much faster. The hear diffuser will help to even that out. Just keep an eye on them and you will be fine. On a single-level cook, I put them on the bottom grate and let it rip.
First one was done at 4pm (bottom big one) the other two finished up less than two hours later. I had to add a bit of fuel to finish it up. They were the best I can remember.
I have a Large BGE. I used Fogo extra premium and completely filled my KickAsh basket. I should’ve just filled it a bit higher. It would’ve made it to the end I’m sure. You can see the cook progress above using my FireBoard link.
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