Smoking Pork Butt but for how long?

[dancingzorba]

Hi All,

It's been a while since I've posted! I am smoking a pork butt today, 4.5lb boneless (I forgot to ask for bone-in). I am following this recipe but it's for a butt that's twice as big. https://amazingribs.com/tested-recip...ol-smoke-style

How long can I expect to smoke this butt at 300? Is there a formula so I can learn to fish instead of asking here again?

Thanks!

Mike

[LA Pork Butt]

Most formulas I am aware of are based on cooking at 225, and my experience is at 225 with 10# butts. If I had to guess I would say 5-6 hours. Crock Pots cook at 300 on high, so if you can find a crockpot recipe that would put you in the ball park.

[dancingzorba]

Thanks! Should I just adjust for 225 do you think? I mean 225 is the bbq temp I normally see too. I am easy in that regard.

[TheQuietOne]

5-6 hours is about right from my experience with my PBC which stays pretty steady at about 275. I wouldn't go by a crock pot recipe. Liquid transfers heat more efficiently than air so the crock pot time would be too short for the smoker.

[dancingzorba]

Cheers lads. And if it is done early, I can always wrap it in a faux cambro.

[texastweeter]

put it in the pit at 225°, and or ed n a bottle of bourbon. Drink bourbon until it's done, it will taste great...

[dancingzorba]

While I have your attention... I injected my butt - wait that came out wrong... lol! In all seriousness, I injected the PORK butt last night, one in apart with 1 oz per injection. There was a bit of liquid in the pan this morning when I let it sink in last night in the fridge, is that normal?

[sheridan]

I'm giving pork butt a go for the first time. I'm going to do it on my Traeger rather than my kamodo on account of the wind.

15lbs, bone out (Costco). If I understand correctly, this is going to take about 8 hours @ 225?

Thanks in advance.

[jfmorris]

A 4.5 pound boneless butt probably won't take the usual 12-14 hours my 8-10 pounders take, especially cooking at 300 versus 225. At 275 to 300, I am with the others and bet it will be done in 5-6 hours, if not sooner. I tend to smoke them at 275 to 300 if in a hurry, otherwise if it is overnight, I let them roll at 225, as I prefer NOT to have them get done at 4 or 5 AM, as happened last year when my fire got hotter than expected after I went to bed one night - the kettle shot up to 340 due to me refueling it around 11pm and not raking the coals to one end of the SNS well enough. I had turned off the pit alarms, but the meat high alarm woke me up. I had to wrap it and put it in a 170F oven to hold until noon for lunch.

I don't think there is any magic formula, even if you keep the cooking temp the same each time, every butt is different, and has different fat content and composition. The best you can do is a ballpark estimate, based on experience with your cooker and similar sized chunks of meat. That is why I love the faux cambro or a warm oven for holding - I always shoot to be done 2 hours before a party or dinner now, as its better to be done early than be done late.

[rickgregory]

My smartass reply was going to be 'until it's done!' but my slightly more useful reply would be that I would bet somewhere in the 5-8 hour timeframe and that I'd do it at 275 or so. People fetishize 225 too much, imo and it's much harder to maintain 225 than mid-higher 250-275 temps.

[IowaGirl]

I cooked two 5-pound butts in February. They took about 5 1/2 hours with smoker temp running in the 275-300 F range. So ... pretty much what the fellas are saying.