Boston Butt, the picture of porcine perfection

The preferred meat of choice for the Smoker varies greatly based on geography. In Maryland pit beef prevails as the BBQ delicacy of choice. In Texas it is still beef but it is an entirely different (and some would say ornery) cut, the brisket. Western Kentucky prides itself on the wonders of smoked mutton. But this is a point on which I want to be very clear...while I harbor no ill feelings towards those who disagree, Pork and namely the Boston Butt are what I consider the essence of BBQ. It is kinda like how many Southerners use Coke as both the name of a specific drink AND a general moniker that covers all carbonated beverages. The term Barbecue in my mind refers to both a genre of food and a specific thing. If I say, "I am going to make some barbecue" and do not qualify that statement in any other way, we are having pulled pork for dinner.

Perfect for the Novice

Boston Butt really is the most perfect cut of meat for a novice to cut their teeth on. Understanding this point is really about understanding the very nature and origins of BBQ. BBQ was originally all about using the parts of an animal that were too tough to use in traditional cooking methods (i.e. direct heat methods). A Boston Butt usually ranges in weight from about 8lbs and 15lb, but a large percentage of that weight is made up of bone, cartilage, fat and collagen. If you attempted to cut the meat out and remove these unsavory characters you would end up with a large pile of very small pieces of tough pork.

By slow cooking the pork, between 225 and 250, the fat and collagen will literally melt and render either into a drip pan (trust me on this, use a drip pan) or - AND THIS IS THE KEY - it will baste the meat throughout the cooking process. The result being a moist, and tender final product. The high collagen and fat content is what makes this perfect for the novice. Because of the self basting aspect, the Boston Butt is by the far the easiest piece of meat to smoke and the least susceptible to drying out. It does take a good bit of time, but hey...most good things do.

Picking Your Meat
When you pick your Boston Butt it is important to bear a few things in mind:

1. Despite what many say...size does matter. My preference is to smoke a Butt that is 11 - 14 lbs (If I can find one with a bone I will go a little bigger). Often, stores have butts that are as large as 18 or 20 lbs.  But listen, if you need to cook a 20 lb Boston Butt, do yourself a favor. Cook 2 10 pounders. You will be more likely to have a good penetration of smoke flavor and you cook will be shorter.
2. Don't be afraid of the bone. Bones will do a couple good things for you...They conduct heat better than meat, so a bone will help your meat cook a little faster. But more importantly, the meat surrounding a large shoulder bone will be the most moist, tender, flavor and LEAST fatty of any meat you can find.
3. Fat is a good thing, but too much of a good thing can be bad. You want good, even marbling with small pockets of fat. There should be a good 3/4+ inch piece of fat along one entire side of the meat. But remember, you are paying the same amount for inedible fat as you are tasty meat. Choose wisely.

Slather

In a bit you will apply some seasoning to your meat. But first we need a slather. Nearly all BBQers use a "slather" of some sort. The options range from Worcestershire to Olive Oil to Ketchup (I wouldn't recommend ketchup). A slather, is simply a liquid applied to outside of the meat to which your seasonings will later be applied. Just remember, your slather will actually do little to flavor the meat. And using anything that has a high sugar content could back fire and cause some sweet flavors (best outcome) or burn and turn to creosote (worst outcome). I personally use good ol' fashioned yellow mustard. I feel like the consistency of the mustard lends itself to "holding" more seasoning...and if the flavor does hang out, mustard goes well with barbecue.

Meat Prep

Preparing your meat is not a laborious process. No matter what, your meat should be completely thawed the night BEFORE your cook. Remove the meat from the packaging and rinse thoroughly. There shouldn't really be any blood in the packaging. One tip...there will be at least one piece of plastic that is stuck into the bottom of you meat (usually the side that was the "bottom"). REMOVE this unless you like barbecue that tastes like melted plastic. Pat the meat dry and put it to the side.

One extra tip: I have found that making a cross hatch pattern across the fat side causes more of it to render out. I highly recommend doing this.



Fat side up, slightly trimmed with a cross hatch cut into it



Seasoning-Let's dry rub

I like my flavors to be pretty simple. Kosher salt, black pepper, onion powder, garlic powder, cayenne pepper, paprika. My mix is equal parts of the black pepper, onion powder, garlic powder, and paprika. I put twice as much salt as the other ingredients (i.e. if 1 tbs of black pepper et. al. then 2 tbs of salt) and half as much cayenne.  As mentioned above, mustard goes well with BBQ.  At times I have added one part dry mustard with good success.

You would probably like it if I told you how much of the Dry Rub to make. To tell you the truth, I would like it if I knew. I kinda just make it, always resulting in too much. That is why I have a large old seasoning bottle (I think it was oregano) and the excess just goes in there for use when I am making pork chops or something.

Apply your slather of choice on the entire surface of the meat and season accordingly. You should put enough seasoning on the outside of the meat that if you touch it, your hand will come back with essentially no mustard on it. Wrap the entire package in plastic wrap and place in the fridge for at least 12 hours.

The 12 hours ARE important. During that time, the seasonings, specifically the salt, will draw proteins to the surface that will help create a wonderful bark on the outside of your pork.



Mustard applied, seasoned and ready to be wrapped up for the night

It's Time to Cook

The goal is to spend the majority of your time in the 225-250 range. However, Boston Butts are VERY forgiving on heat tolerance. Some more ornery pieces of meat (I am talking about you, BRISKET) will be absolutely killed if your temp spikes. I can speak from experience on this. In the summer, at about 8 AM, the sun hits my smoker dead on and sometimes raises the temperature by 75 degrees in 10 minutes or so. I know for a fact that one of my butts spent at least 45 minutes at 450 degrees but, they came out ok.

When you start your cook it is a good rule of thumb to heat your smoker to about 50-75 degrees hotter than optimal because opening will cause heat loss, and also that cold piece of meat will suck up heat like sponge. I use a combination of charcoal and large wood chunks (usually the size of a log that you would put in your fireplace). My wood selections are either Oak or Hickory, but after I trim some trees this spring I will have some pear as well.

Cooking Temp & Time
When cooking large pieces of meat like Boston Butt, Pork Loin, Turkeys, etc it is important to determine when your meat is done based on internal temp. It should take your meat about 1.5 hours per pound but that can vary based a few things like heat consistency, fat content, bone vs no bone, etc. If your goal is pulled pork (my preference) you should remove it from the smoker at about 195, and it will coast up to 205-210 due to carryover heat.

 During the cook you will need to add both more charcoal and wood. In the summertime I can usually get by with only adding charcoal and wood once. In cooler weather I usually add more fuel three times.

When you are building your fire, I highly recommend the Minion Method. You can read more about it here.

Meat's done...now What?
Let the meat REST. Just take it off the heat, bring it inside the house and let it sit there for at least 30 minutes. I often allow mine to rest for an hour. Quick question: Have you ever taken something out of the oven or grill and cut into it only to have all of the juices spill out onto the cutting board? That is because you didn't let the meat rest. Read more here if you would like. Allowing the meat to rest will make sure you have a juicy final product that can be enjoyed WITHOUT SAUCE. Sauce is good but it is better for sauce to be a tasty addition rather than a necessity.

Using tongs or large forks (like meat forks) pull the meat apart and set aside in an oven safe dish. As you complete this task you will come across some pieces of fat and cartilage that you should remove. Finally, cover the meat and put it into a warm oven if you are eating it soon, otherwise place in the fridge.

At this point you can consume the meat any way you like. Sandwiches are the most popular but a baked potato that has been stuffed with BBQ is quite tasty. Leftover meat can also be used for things like pork nachos (yum!) or in soup (chili, gumbo, etc).

Fat side of the meat, looks overcooked...don't worry it isn't



That white part is the bone!!



That burnt looking fat cap peeled right off...
revealing beautiful meaty goodness

See, I told you it was beautiful meaty goodness

That pink is a good thing folks! It is called the smoke ring!




A clean bone is always a good sign

And we live in the South...so deviled eggs go well with everything!

Now, for all the die hard, purists BBQ-ers you should stop reading now...because I will now blaspheme The Smoker.


Faux 'Q
Many of you reading this are not endowed with a smoker. While I pity you as a result, that doesn't mean that your time here has been wasted. There is another way to do this that doesn't involve the smoker. It won't be as tasty, but the meat will be just as succulent.

You can always do everything listed above in your oven. You really just need to add one step. After you pull the meat and put it into the the oven safe container you should also add some sort of sauce. When I was growing up, Mom always put in Kraft Hickory Smoked. I personally have formed some affinity for Cattleman's (we buy it in Quart sized containers) and Stubbs (be warned...the spicy version of stubbs is good but VERY hot). You want to add just enough sauce as to give the meat some moisture and a little extra flavor. It won't be as good the real thing but it will still be pretty good!