I do a bit of trimming but the majority of the fat cap stays on. I put directly on the grate. I use rub sparingly when the pork butts are raw. I add more after it is pulled the pulled product benefits much more than the raw product during the long cook.
I pan but do not cover when the internal temps hits around 170 or so. Thats when most of the fat and collagen starts to break down. By this time the butts have been exposed to plenty smoke and will continue to get more exposure because I do not cover the pan. I also add a bottle of dark beer to the pan and let all the juices and beer mingle together.
Once i hit the 205 to 210 mark and they are ready to be pulled off then I foil over the top and put them in the Cambro for resting. I let them sit in the Cambro overnight and pull the next day. Not sure I would do this with a faux cambro but with the actual Cambro I have left them in there for 14 hours and pulled them out and they are still 140 or above.
I pull them in the same pan I cooked them in with all the beer and juices. All that beer and juice gets reabsorbed back into the pulled meat. Then I add more rub. I vac seal in about 3lb bags and freeze.
I settled into this method quite sometime ago however I did discover there was no reason to use all the rub on the raw pork butt in the start but adding it after it was pulled was much more beneficial a couple months ago.
I pan but do not cover when the internal temps hits around 170 or so. Thats when most of the fat and collagen starts to break down. By this time the butts have been exposed to plenty smoke and will continue to get more exposure because I do not cover the pan. I also add a bottle of dark beer to the pan and let all the juices and beer mingle together.
Once i hit the 205 to 210 mark and they are ready to be pulled off then I foil over the top and put them in the Cambro for resting. I let them sit in the Cambro overnight and pull the next day. Not sure I would do this with a faux cambro but with the actual Cambro I have left them in there for 14 hours and pulled them out and they are still 140 or above.
I pull them in the same pan I cooked them in with all the beer and juices. All that beer and juice gets reabsorbed back into the pulled meat. Then I add more rub. I vac seal in about 3lb bags and freeze.
I settled into this method quite sometime ago however I did discover there was no reason to use all the rub on the raw pork butt in the start but adding it after it was pulled was much more beneficial a couple months ago.
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