First Pork Butt Cook on IW885

[Shedd]

I only wrapped one butt in the hundreds (honestly) I’ve cooked in my life. It was recommended for cooking butts on a Traeger. I tried it and nobody liked it. They actually recommended I quit cooking them on the Traeger, which I have but not for that reason, it’s the smoke flavor reason. I grew up cooking whole hog as a kid with my uncle’s in pits. Then raised pits and moved to offsets until I got my green egg about 30 years ago. Like others said it’s fairly easy to do but you definitely can mess one up. Especially if you try cooking to time or looks. Rib’s you can cook to looks but not all buts are equal and on a Traeger you definitely cannot depend on the temperature readings. A overcooked butt is dry and undercooked is tough and gummy. As for trying to slice a butt like a brisket, it’s not going to work well. You would definitely have to undercook but it’ll not be good. Pork loins slice well.

 

[GrillGuyMilwaukee]

So wasn't able to try this till today, and decided to go with Matt's Meat Church "No Wrap Pulled Pork". Put it on at 3AM at 200 degrees. Was around 125 by 8AM. I ended up bumping to 225 in the early afternoon. At about 3PM, i bumped to 275 as the pork butt is still at 159! It's only a 7 lb. pork butt also...

I'm running a Smoke X4 from Thermoworks for my internal temp, so I'm not just relying on the Traeger temp.

Have it on the "middle" shelf.

Is this normal? I'm at 13 hours already for this 7 pounder, still in the stall....

 

[Slimpicker]

So wasn't able to try this till today, and decided to go with Matt's Meat Church "No Wrap Pulled Pork". Put it on at 3AM at 200 degrees. Was around 125 by 8AM. I ended up bumping to 225 in the early afternoon. At about 3PM, i bumped to 275 as the pork butt is still at 159! It's only a 7 lb. pork butt also...

I'm running a Smoke X4 from Thermoworks for my internal temp, so I'm not just relying on the Traeger temp.

Have it on the "middle" shelf.

Is this normal? I'm at 13 hours already for this 7 pounder, still in the stall....

You started out pretty low, I would have bumped it to about 250° when it was at 159... this is the STALL area, 160-170, the STALL can last as long as it wants to... that's why pork butts never "go buy the book" with time!!!
But the good thing with a Butt is, when you take it off, wrap in foil and a towel and put in a cooler for about 2 hours, this is an important step, no matter how late it's getting, the "wrap and rest" is what makes pulled pork the best ever.

I NEVER wrap a butt during the cook, it's always AFTER, and can last in a cooler for 4 hours and still be too hot to touch, but the magic works in the end wrap.

 

[GrillGuyMilwaukee]

You started out pretty low, I would have bumped it to about 250° when it was at 159... this is the STALL area, 160-170, the STALL can last as long as it wants to... that's why pork butts never "go buy the book" with time!!!
But the good thing with a Butt is, when you take it off, wrap in foil and a towel and put in a cooler for about 2 hours, this is an important step, no matter how late it's getting, the "wrap and rest" is what makes pulled pork the best ever.

I NEVER wrap a butt during the cook, it's always AFTER, and can last in a cooler for 4 hours and still be too hot to touch, but the magic works in the end wrap.

I normally do bump earlier, but was following the Meat Church recipe, which was basically no bumping temp except when things hit about 180 to finish it off. Obviously, the recipe didn't work for me... lol

 

[Slimpicker]

I normally do bump earlier, but was following the Meat Church recipe, which was basically no bumping temp except when things hit about 180 to finish it off. Obviously, the recipe didn't work for me... lol

It's not as "rocket science" as you might think [EDITORIAL]

Modern BBQing has taken on some sort of "perfectionist faze" that is never meant to be in real BBQing. and BBQ Smoking. BBQ & BBQ Smoking is supposed to be FUN, a way to EXPRESS YOURSELF thru food, be your own chef, cook YOUR WAY to meet YOUR TASTES. We get caught up in all these "contests" and...

www.traegerforum.com

You will find that anyone's recipe is a GUIDELINE ONLY... no one is the BBQ god. Use recipes as a learning tool with your own twist and make it YOUR WAY.

 

[Shedd]

So wasn't able to try this till today, and decided to go with Matt's Meat Church "No Wrap Pulled Pork". Put it on at 3AM at 200 degrees. Was around 125 by 8AM. I ended up bumping to 225 in the early afternoon. At about 3PM, i bumped to 275 as the pork butt is still at 159! It's only a 7 lb. pork butt also...

I'm running a Smoke X4 from Thermoworks for my internal temp, so I'm not just relying on the Traeger temp.

Have it on the "middle" shelf.

Is this normal? I'm at 13 hours already for this 7 pounder, still in the stall....

Have you checked the Smoke x4 to see it it’s accurate? If it’s off 10 degrees or more then that contributes to taking longer. Some butts will take longer than others, it’s the quality of the meat. However at 200 degrees for the first 5 hours assuming you’re loosing 25 degrees if you was to cook at 225, that’ll add up in time and many people don’t think about it that way. Low and slow takes longer so lower is even slower. I cooked a spatchcock chicken tonight on my 780 and it took almost 6 hours. However I started it early and kept it at 200 for the first 4 hours. I also wrapped it in foil when it hit 165 and put it in my Yeti for close to 2 hours while I got everything ready but I started it early. On a butt you can put it in a cooler for several hours so next time put the butt on at 11 or 12. It just takes planning ahead. One of my good friends is always late on having his meat ready so I’ve gotten to where I stay on him to put it on hour’s early. I hope it turned out good and everybody enjoyed it!

 

[Shedd]

I normally do bump earlier, but was following the Meat Church recipe, which was basically no bumping temp except when things hit about 180 to finish it off. Obviously, the recipe didn't work for me... lol

I like his rubs but not his recipes or advice on cooking. Like Slimpicker mentioned, what works for one probably won’t work for all.

 

[RayClem]

So wasn't able to try this till today, and decided to go with Matt's Meat Church "No Wrap Pulled Pork". Put it on at 3AM at 200 degrees. Was around 125 by 8AM. I ended up bumping to 225 in the early afternoon. At about 3PM, i bumped to 275 as the pork butt is still at 159! It's only a 7 lb. pork butt also...

I'm running a Smoke X4 from Thermoworks for my internal temp, so I'm not just relying on the Traeger temp.

Have it on the "middle" shelf.

Is this normal? I'm at 13 hours already for this 7 pounder, still in the stall....

The stall occurs when the amount of heat produced by the smoker is just sufficient to evaporate moisture from the surface of the protein with no extra heat to raise the internal temperature. It usually occurs somewhere around 160-170F. When that occurs, there are three options:

1. You can just wait it out. At 200F, the wait is going to be a long one. Remember that you want the pork to end up around 193F, so 200F provides very little driving force.

2. You can boost the temperature to provide more heat to power through the stall. After several hours in the smoker, the meat will pick up very little extra smoke, so raising the temperature speeds up the cook, but does not affect flavor.

3. I do not have the patience to wait all day for options 1 or 2. Thus, I use the "crutch" of wrapping my pork butt. You can either use aluminum foil or butcher wrap. The wrapping traps the moisture trying to evaporate. Thus, the available heat goes directly into raising the internal temperature. You can also add various things during the wrapping process, beer, apple juice, vinegar, to provide extra flavor. I use a mix of apple juice and vinegar. The disadvantage of wrapping is that you will soften the bark you tried so carefully to create.


I would suggest that next time, you start your cook off at 200F for a couple of hours. That is the time when the protein will absorb much of the smoke flavor. Then boost the temperature to 225F and leave it there until you hit the stall. I just set the temperature to 225F at the start. When you hit the stall, either boost the temperature to 275F or wrap the butt.

Are you relying on the Traeger RTD thermocouple probe for your temperature readings? Due to the location of the probe, the temperature will frequently differ from the actual cooking temperature to which the meat is exposed. I use a 3rd party thermometer to monitor the temperature a short distance from the meat. If your controller said 275F, but the actual temperature is only 250F, that will make a difference in cook time.

Also, when possible, I cook on the upper shelf of my grill. Heat rises, so the temperature might be closer to the controller temperature at that level. Never assume the controller temperature is accurate. Always verify.

 

[GrillGuyMilwaukee]

Have you checked the Smoke x4 to see it it’s accurate? If it’s off 10 degrees or more then that contributes to taking longer. Some butts will take longer than others, it’s the quality of the meat. However at 200 degrees for the first 5 hours assuming you’re loosing 25 degrees if you was to cook at 225, that’ll add up in time and many people don’t think about it that way. Low and slow takes longer so lower is even slower. I cooked a spatchcock chicken tonight on my 780 and it took almost 6 hours. However I started it early and kept it at 200 for the first 4 hours. I also wrapped it in foil when it hit 165 and put it in my Yeti for close to 2 hours while I got everything ready but I started it early. On a butt you can put it in a cooler for several hours so next time put the butt on at 11 or 12. It just takes planning ahead. One of my good friends is always late on having his meat ready so I’ve gotten to where I stay on him to put it on hour’s early. I hope it turned out good and everybody enjoyed it!

I did do a quick calibration test of the Smoke X4 during the cook, and it was reading in the 32F range for the ice water, so I don't believe that was the problem. Had the probe on the same grate as the pork fairly close. I think I underestimated what the 200F would do to the entire cook by running it like that for so long. I ended up pulling it around 195, though i wanted to push it a little further. Only could rest for 30 min, which also was a bummer. It was completely edible, but not as moist as I was hoping, due to temp and lack of rest.
Next time i might start it around 10PM instead of 3AM if i'm gonna go 200F. Otherwise, I think 225 is the better way to go.

 

[GrillGuyMilwaukee]

The stall occurs when the amount of heat produced by the smoker is just sufficient to evaporate moisture from the surface of the protein with no extra heat to raise the internal temperature. It usually occurs somewhere around 160-170F. When that occurs, there are three options:

1. You can just wait it out. At 200F, the wait is going to be a long one. Remember that you want the pork to end up around 193F, so 200F provides very little driving force.

2. You can boost the temperature to provide more heat to power through the stall. After several hours in the smoker, the meat will pick up very little extra smoke, so raising the temperature speeds up the cook, but does not affect flavor.

3. I do not have the patience to wait all day for options 1 or 2. Thus, I use the "crutch" of wrapping my pork butt. You can either use aluminum foil or butcher wrap. The wrapping traps the moisture trying to evaporate. Thus, the available heat goes directly into raising the internal temperature. You can also add various things during the wrapping process, beer, apple juice, vinegar, to provide extra flavor. I use a mix of apple juice and vinegar. The disadvantage of wrapping is that you will soften the bark you tried so carefully to create.


I would suggest that next time, you start your cook off at 200F for a couple of hours. That is the time when the protein will absorb much of the smoke flavor. Then boost the temperature to 225F and leave it there until you hit the stall. I just set the temperature to 225F at the start. When you hit the stall, either boost the temperature to 275F or wrap the butt.

Are you relying on the Traeger RTD thermocouple probe for your temperature readings? Due to the location of the probe, the temperature will frequently differ from the actual cooking temperature to which the meat is exposed. I use a 3rd party thermometer to monitor the temperature a short distance from the meat. If your controller said 275F, but the actual temperature is only 250F, that will make a difference in cook time.

Also, when possible, I cook on the upper shelf of my grill. Heat rises, so the temperature might be closer to the controller temperature at that level. Never assume the controller temperature is accurate. Always verify.

I have a Thermoworks X4 to work off of for meat and pit temp. Learned that the RTD will always vary on different factors.

I was thinking about the upper shelf too. I didn't have room to put up there, but Matt from Meat Church DID put his on the top shelf. So while he set at 200, i'm wondering if he was actually cooking at 225....

 

[MidwestSmoker]

Next time i might start it around 10PM instead of 3AM if i'm gonna go 200F. Otherwise, I think 225 is the better way to go.

Yes, this is what I do and it works every time. Start at 200 around 10 pm and then bump it up to 225 at 8 am next morning. Wrap around noon and increase it to 250. Done at around 2 pm and in the cooler.

 

[RayClem]

I did do a quick calibration test of the Smoke X4 during the cook, and it was reading in the 32F range for the ice water, so I don't believe that was the problem. Had the probe on the same grate as the pork fairly close. I think I underestimated what the 200F would do to the entire cook by running it like that for so long. I ended up pulling it around 195, though i wanted to push it a little further. Only could rest for 30 min, which also was a bummer. It was completely edible, but not as moist as I was hoping, due to temp and lack of rest.
Next time i might start it around 10PM instead of 3AM if i'm gonna go 200F. Otherwise, I think 225 is the better way to go.

Calibrating the temperature probe in ice water provides you with a single point of reference, but that specific point is well outside the range of temperatures used for cooking, so the probe may or may not be correct at higher temperatures. A minimum of two point is required for calibration if the response is linear. Even using the thermometer to check your oral body temperature is closer to cook temperatures than an ice bath. More than 2 points are needed if the response is non-linear.

Checking the temperature of boiling water is closer to cook temperatures. However, this is difficult, because water boils at different temperatures depending upon the barometric pressure. Using boiling water is not ideal, especially if you live at higher altitudes.

I try checking multiple thermometers. If they agree at normal cook temperatures, then I trust them.

 

[GrillGuyMilwaukee]

Calibrating the temperature probe in ice water provides you with a single point of reference, but that specific point is well outside the range of temperatures used for cooking, so the probe may or may not be correct at higher temperatures. A minimum of two point is required for calibration if the response is linear. Even using the thermometer to check your oral body temperature is closer to cook temperatures than an ice bath. More than 2 points are needed if the response is non-linear.

Checking the temperature of boiling water is closer to cook temperatures. However, this is difficult, because water boils at different temperatures depending upon the barometric pressure. Using boiling water is not ideal, especially if you live at higher altitudes.

I try checking multiple thermometers. If they agree at normal cook temperatures, then I trust them.

I have a ThermoPro thermometer I can try next time also. Seems to be fairly accurate, so I'll run two different thermometers for the ambient next time. Thanks for the extra info on the probe calibration.

 

[Shedd]

I’ve always used boiling water as a reference but unfortunately the ambient probe inside the Traeger was well thought about. Sure would’ve been nice to remove it for periodic cleaning and calibration.