The Disconcerting Stall

[CaptainMike]

Here's a conundrum: I recently bought a 2-pack (not Tupac) of nearly identical bone-in pork butts, about 12lbs each. I cooked each in my Traeger about a month apart, utilizing identical temps and techniques.

Butt #1: Rainy weather with outdoor temp in the upper 40's. Butt was thawed, cook temp 225-250, 11hrs with a 2 hour stall at 170. Final temp 198 when pulled off.

Butt #2: Yesterday with snow on the ground, windy and overcast, temp steady at 34. Butt was partially frozen with an internal temp of 29. 12hr cook at 225-250 with no discernable stall, and pulled off at 195.

Any thoughts on why butt #1, with seemingly better conditions, stalled and butt #2 did not?

[Steve R.]

How was the bark on #2? If it was good, I see no reason to care. I always rationalize during the stall time that great things are happening with the bark and that it will be worth the wait.

[CaptainMike]

Great bark on both, perhaps a little better on #2 but it had a bit more fat on it. Maybe the fat had something to do with not stalling. The world may never know...

[Jerod Broussard]

My guess is number 2 in those conditions the smoker had to work harder to maintain temp, thus creating more airflow and preventing an actual visible stall. It still took 12 hours.

[CaptainMike]

You know Jerod Broussard, your comment got me to thinking (which usually doesn't get me very far) that I didn't have my thermal cover on for the first cook. I didn't put it on until Thanksgiving and the first butt was before then. I recall that the cook temps fluctuated a bit more on the 1st cook, and that they were much steadier for the 2nd cook. Not sure if that solves the crime, but the picture is a little less fuzzy. Thanks for the input!

[tbob4]

What I find interesting is that besides the difference in outside temp, you mentioned that #1 was completely thawed and #2 was partially frozen. However, the overall cook times came out about the same. The difference, if I'm reading it correctly, was the stall. I wonder if the frozen meat has a more gradual but consistent rise in temp v a non-frozen? A lot of people have been graphing their cook temps on this site. I don't have a graphing thermo so I can't answer the question. What do you think Jerod Broussard?

[Jerod Broussard]

Yeah, you have pretty much the same cook times since #2 was partially frozen. I'll start measuring temps when I get a data logger. I downloaded the software. Still debating on what model to get. Beyond that I sleep through all my stalls.

[CaptainMike]

I was wondering the same thing tbob4. Interestingly, it was stuck (stalled?) at 29 for over 2 hours, then took off like one would expect. Pretty sure it just took that long and that much energy to get that clod going.