Quest to Amp up my Pulled Pork!

[PaulstheRibList]

I'll admit it. I'm spoiled. Totally spoiled to hearing, "Wow, this is Amazing!" when people eat my BBQ. Get it all the times for Ribs, Chicken and Brisket.

But for pulled pork, it's good, tasty and all gets eaten, with people going for 2nds, but don't get the "Amazing" comments. We're about to fix that.

Why? Well, it's like with golf, you've heard, "Drive for show, but putt for dough." With pork meat costing about 1/3 or less of what quality Brisket costs, I'm thinking that for BBQ joints, I'm thinking it goes like this, "Brisket for show, pulled pork for dough."

So, off to Sams to pick up a case of Boston Butts, and the Week of Pulled Pork!

Thus far, I've not found a consistent method for serving pork. When it's fresh pull and hot, I've usually just served it without sauce, and enjoyed it greatly! I usually split the butts so there is more bark, and when I pull and chop, I'll make sure there is plenty of that gorgeous Bark in every bite. It's good, but I'm thinking the sauce in the pull is mandatory to get that over the top awesome.

We've served it sometimes with Meathead s Lexington Sauce, and really like it.

At Corkscrew BBQ in Houston, I really liked their pork. I think it had a thin Apricot glaze. It was memorable and I ate all of the pork on my plate, leaving a little brisket behind, even.

So, fire op the ole' WSM for 2 days of Butts in a row (3rd tomorrow). Bye the way, I haven't used the WSM in months, and it was super fun and easy to get a whole day at 250 with almost no vent adjustments and a perfect cook, Stubbs charcoal and Apple Chunks! Here is the split butt from yesterday, couple hours before final pull.


Today's butts right before pull. Put on at 6:30 am, 240-260, fire died down toward the end of the day, and the internal temp and the grill temp were both 180's when I pulled them at 5 pm. Slightly less fall apart tender, which meant I could serve the Money Muscle Sliced! (If I cook the butts to 203 internal temp, the meat is fall apart, and the money muscle will seldom slice.)


So today, I went with Blues Hog, Swamp Boys and Apricot Preserves for the Pork... I love those 2 sauces! Those and Granny's. I like our home cooked sauce so much, thanks to Meathead, but it takes some time to cook.





I taught a group at church today, and when I mentioned I had Pulled Pork on the smoker as we speak, 2 ladies immediately spoke up claiming dibbs on the sharing...so here they are!


I LOVE the crispy griddled bun and the sliced smoked Gouda cheese, along with the Apricot Sauce!




Any advice from you guys on making WOW! pulled pork?

Any advice on an Apricot sauce for pulled pork?

Your friendly nieghborhood @BishopofBBQ, paul

[Huskee]

What is it that makes people say WOW! to your ribs but not your pork butts? What's different/better with the ribs? My thoughts have long been waaaaay more bark-to-interior meat with ribs. When we eat ribs we get all that extra seasoning and smoky goodness from the bark, and no bread or coleslaw diluting the real flavor. Who eats ribs on a bun, or tops ribs with coleslaw? No one. With pulled pork, most often on a sandwich, you get more interior meat & bun taking up real estate on the tongue, and the bark becomes a supporting actor and not the lead. I don't think the vast majority of people will ever appreciate pulled pork as much as ribs, apples-to-apples.

Me, I just use my rib rub very generously on butts, and cook very small butts ~3-5lb/ea with 4lb being the avg.... I like to let the smoker do its job, not skimp on the wood, and not doctor the meat up any more than the salt & the rub & the smoke. By that I mean make the meat taste how it should on the smoker first. Then add the little tricks to the pulled product later. (Me, I don't wrap with butter and br. sugar and I don't spritz with rum & apple juice while on the smoker like some recipes- do that stuff after it's cooked if you must) But that's what I like to do to get it to taste how I like it. The next guy might taste mine and think 'meh, this needs a rum spritz.' Lol.

Adding butter once it's pulled to give it a rich mouthfeel has worked for me in the past too. I like to remove big wads of fat that haven't rendered, so there's no 'gross' bites. I also have added another dusting of my rub and stir, sample, repeat if necessary until I get that Wow! (to me) flavor I want.

[PaulstheRibList]

You are speaking my kind of language, Huskee!

[DWCowles]

Let the smoker do its job...I like that Huskee

BTW...I eat ribs on bread > McRib

[SteveFromLafayette]

Very good points Huskee on the "bark-to-meat" ratios. I couldn't agree more. PaulstheRibList Perhaps you could cut your butts into several pieces before rubbing them? That would increase the amount of surface area allowing more bark to form.

Btw, how is Blue's Hog? I've heard great things, but haven't tried it yet.

[CandySueQ]

Next butt I cook, I'm trying this to sauce. I love the dark color and the succulent flavor. Change Your Life Rich Red Wine Sauce.

http://amazingribs.com/recipes/other_fun_sauces/rich_red_wine_sauce.html

[_John_]

It is the opposite at my house, every request is for pulled pork except a few who want ribs because they never get them. I have found that people prefer a good crusty bark even at the risk of juciness so I don't wrap anymore unless I have to. Most people (the ones I could actually get to criticize, not because it's great but most people are too nice) liked it best when I used way more smoke than usual, so I am pretty heavy on the smoke. I think that goes back to what Huskee was saying that there is way more interior than exterior and I don't usually cut mine up first so to get a lot of internal flavor the outside has to have a lot of flavor and mixed well at the end. Not a chance of seeing any meat after I put on the rub, it isn't thick but it is everywhere.
Where it gets tough is sauce, the people who eat mine a lot don't ever put sauce on anymore but 90% of new eaters do. I have blind tested more than 40 sauces, commercial and non, and the hands down winner has been Head Country. You have to take into account regionality though, we are closer to Kansas City and like quite a bit of sweetness, I would say the most common sauce around here is Sweet Baby Rays which came in 2nd to the Head Country.

I'm hoping we can get enough people to this get together that we can go eat somewhere and discuss, I wonder how much comes down to personal preference and regional influences.

Oh and like Huskee I am a meticulous butt cleaner... I trim almost everything from the bottom, and above the bone where 2 muscles come together I trim that junk out (usually several veins in there) to where the 2 pieces nearly separate. When I pull a butt it takes me probably 10-15 minutes, if there is any fat piled up anywhere I get rid of it. A little fat is ok but for example the tubes are usually covered in a layer of fat that would be a good part of a mouthful if you got it in a bite. When I do 6-8 butts at a time I still clean a lot but there just isn't that much time, I hit the spots I know have a lot.

Looking at your pics though mine just doesn't really look like that, yours looks chopped to me and there is no way you could slice my money muscle, not only do I go to probe tender around 200 I also try to hold for at least an hour if not 2.

I've tried various finishing techniques such as adding my rub in but I don't like that, all I do now is sprinkle a little fleur de sel salt on the pulled meat.

[DJ DeSpain]

I agree with Head Country as a great sauce, I buy a gallon at a time of their original, and a jar of their hot and spicy. Their rub though is a bit too salty to my taste.

[Danjohnston949]

PaulstheRibList, Huskee, CandySueQ, Up here on the Tundra I rarely Sauce the Meat prior to serving Not Knowing the Pain Tolerance of the Diners! I Do Spritz the Butts with an Apple Juice, Vinegar (Tarragon or Balsamic), Worsteshire, Lemon & Lime Juice 50/50, and a few shots of Onion
Juice? I Spritz the Butts while Smoking and the Meat after it been pulled before serving. Any Sauces are on the table as dipping sauce! I am not trying to be critical Just Saying this is what I do, but I am still learning "Q"! Eat Well and Prosper! From Fargo ND, Dan

[CandySueQ]

If I have time I take the bone out completely. There's a real art in getting that 'h' shaped bone out cleanly. I like the meat around the bone but I don't like the grey membrane. If I open it up, I can get more rub in there and that's more flavor. Like John said, if you trim the stuff out you don't want to eat before you cook it, there's less to do to prep the pulled pork. There's plenty of intramuscular fat, so I leave none on the surface.

[Ernest]

You almost always cook your ribs on the stickburner, correct?

[PaulstheRibList]

I usually cook ribs on the charcoal/chunk WSM or Cabinet smoker.

I've cooked mostly Briskets on the Stickburner, but do ribs and butts on them sometimes, to get the experience with the difference.

[Ernest]

Maybe the butt needs real wood and scale back on rub? Less is more type of thing?
I bet you can wow them if you sous vide that butt and then smoke it ......

[fracmeister]

When i take the cooked butt off (and I do it 'by the book' where the book is Meathead's standard approach) I wrap it prior to waiting in the faux cambro a while.... it is usually done before the rest... i add one stick of butter, 1/8 c garlic powder and a tablesppon or 2 of the memphis meat rub on top. That all gets bear clawed in. adds to the fragrance if anything... nothing but raves...

[_John_]

You add the butter and powders to the wrap while it is whole or while you're pulling? I think I remember reading the butter thing but it has been a while.

[fracmeister]

I just dump it on the top and wrap it.... then I pull it and it mixes in.

[_John_]

There's a real art in getting that 'h' shaped bone out cleanly.

I hear that, I have done it a few times and it looks like I did it with a weed whacker! I do a case at a time, put in headphones, cutting board holds 4 butts at a time and I just go to town, it usually takes an hour to cut, prep, salt, and vac seal the case. Takes work up front but it is totally worth it after a night of cooking, plus I get surprises so it is nice to be able to throw a frozen butt on and not worry about the dry brine etc. just light the coals and the butts are ready to go on by the time they are ready.

[PaulstheRibList]

I like that plan!!

[DWCowles]

I don't waste my time cutting the bone out not when it will pull out clean when the butt is cook correctly. I also don't cut them in half. I will trim it, rub a little OV on it, cover it with rub heavy, wrap it up in plastic wrap and let it rest in the fridge overnight. The next day or night when the smoker gets to temp I will take it out of the fridge applied more rub and in the smoker it goes. Let the smoker do its magic.

[fuzzydaddy]

Great thread everyone. Lots of good info to consider. In my house as soon as I remove the butts (I always cook 2) from my faux cambro, everyone descends on them and grabs a chunk for their plate (almost fighting over the bark) then shreds it themselves. Sauce is rarely used by anyone.

I have (yet) to cut mine into 2 hunks, but I will probably do this on my next cook to cut down on the bark wars.

[scottranda]

Has anyone ever cooked both butts and ribs and chopped/mixed the meats? Was it good?

[Ernest]

I have. Only because I had leftovers from both meats. Made tacos and it was GUUD!!

[Skip]

I have used leftover rib meat for baked beans. Very good!

[mayapoppa]

I have never been a fan of sweet bbq sauce in any capacity, and I really think such an unctuous piece of meat is really well served with a bit of a tangy element. Once the butts I cook get to about 160, I start painting them every 20-30 mins with Carolina Treet, which is a vinegary North Carolina sauce. The butts get about 4 coats. Sometimes I'l pour just a little more into the pork as it is pulled.

[fuzzydaddy]

For those that cut their big butts in 1/2 Huskee, which one typically cooks quicker for you - the bone-in or the boneless, or no measurable difference? #justcurious #smallbutts

[fuzzydaddy]

Good to know. Thanks PaulstheRibList

[Huskee]

They both get the same treatment from me, I've never bothered to change timing with 'em.

[PaulstheRibList]

I haven't pulled them at different times, either. What I have been doing it figuring how long/tender to cook them where I can still get slices out of my Money Muscle. I watched your feedback Huskee on the thread for the guy asking what to cook his first butt on, PBS or SNS Kettle. I was just thinking that when I've been bringing them to 203 the last couple times, the meat was beautiful, super tender but was too fall-apart to slice the money muscle and it stay together.

So I've been paying attention for these last couple cooks at when they got probe tender. My sample size is too too small to draw conclusions, but on this case of butts they were tender at 190 or so, and I could make small slices of the stuff on the boneless end and the money muscle.

I'll have to keep practicing!

[PaulstheRibList]

If I have time I take the bone out completely. There's a real art in getting that 'h' shaped bone out cleanly. I like the meat around the bone but I don't like the grey membrane. If I open it up, I can get more rub in there and that's more flavor. Like John said, if you trim the stuff out you don't want to eat before you cook it, there's less to do to prep the pulled pork. There's plenty of intramuscular fat, so I leave none on the surface.

Do you find the rub on the inside changes things much?

And, does pulling that undesirable membrane before the cook give those big muscles on the bone end a better texture or flavor?

We have a local meat packer and I can get boneless cases from them. I think i"ll try one! And do a deboneing project like you mentioned, CandySueQ

[CandySueQ]

In the pellet Jambo, butts go closest to the firebox with the money muscle towards the stack. I don't tie the boneless back end, so those muscles get bark during the cook. Wouldn't have that bark otherwise. Bark = flavor!