# First attemp at smokeing a Butt



## muddstopper (Jun 7, 2020)

Got a new gas grill this week for a early Father's day present. This morning my wife decided to cook a boston butt for supper. Now she usually cooks the butts in the crockpot, drains the grease and adds BBQ sauce and its pretty good. Not today, we going to cook it on the new grill. Of course I didn't have anything to use for a rub, no wood chips for smoking, no meat thermometer, none of the stuff you need to cook a smoked piece of meat. So I run to TSC, its the nearest store that might have the things I wanted. Nope, Then to Lowes, nope, Walmart, got some wood chips, a thermometer, and a grilling pan with rack, then to Ingles for some Apple juice. Could not find an injector needle anywhere. OK going to cook it without the injections juice. Lit up the grill and with my new digital thermometer, got the heat up to 275f exactly. Went to add the wood chips in their little smoke box and of course dropped the box inside the grill and had to turn off the burner to clean up the mess. Got that done and relit the burner and got the stove back up to temp. Put the meat on the grill and inserted the temp probes and started the waiting game. 2 hrs, turned the meat around, added more rub and closed the grill lid. Pulled every rookie mistake, even knowing better, but couldn't resist taking a peek every now and then. Meat turned a red smokey color but didn't crust over, and the internal temps seemed to get stuck at about 140F. I had read that might happen so I just decided to let it cook some more. About 4 hrs into the cook, it started getting cloudy. No rain in the forecast, but my weather rock was starting to get damp which means rain. It didn't just rain, it came a cloud burst, grill cooled off to 190F. even tho I was steadly turning up the heat. Internal meat temp still around 140F. Grabbed some aluminum foil and wrapped the meat and threw in the oven at 300F. about a hr later, meat temp is 198F. Done!. We opened up the foil and the meat was juicy and tender, but it wasn't pull apart ready. Ate it anyways, because I was hungry and it sliced real easy. My wife said this isn't BBQ, but she ate 2 platefulls. The Butt has a real good taste, not to smokey, not to spicy, but it wasn't pull apart-able. So what did I do wrong? Also, the thermometer on the grill lid is about 20degrees off of what the digital thermometer said it was.


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## JustJeff (Jun 8, 2020)

Its hard to cook a butt on a gas grill. I cheat. I put it on the grill to sear it. Smoking chips soaked in water and rolled in foil with the ends open. Sear on high heat for a few minutes per side, turn it down and let the chips put some smoke flavor in it. Then it goes in the crock pot to finish. Has the BBQ flavor and still pulls apart plus you can go fishing while it cooks!

Sent from my CLT-L04 using Tapatalk


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## buzz sawyer (Jun 8, 2020)

I use my grill for steaks, burgers, chicken. Never tried a boston butt. I use my smoker for pork shoulders and brisket and I like to cook 'em slow. I run it at 240 - 260 and it takes 6 hours to reach 165. After that, I wrap it and put in the oven at 175 - 200 for another 6 hours - longer for brisket.


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## cuinrearview (Jun 8, 2020)

I would say your thermometer is probably not accurate, especially being from Wally World. If you know your elevation you can find out how far off you are by temping boiling water. The measured temp you plateaued at is a pretty big giveaway though. That generally happens in the 160° range. I usually smoke mine to 195, so even at 190 it should pull apart pretty easily as the connective tissue rendering is what makes the stall in the rise in temperature.

I have never cooked a butt on a grill but I have more than one friend who has indirectly over coal on a weber kettle. 275 would be a decent compromise in temp.

The important thing with any slow and low cooking is to remember that you're cooking to temperature, not for a specific amount of time. I've had butts finish in 12 hours at 225 in my WSM, and I've had some that I ran out of time at 18 hours and had to use the "texas crutch" in the oven. At least with butts you can be done early, wrap them in foil, and put them in a cooler or pre-heated and shut off oven to rest for hours and still pull them out hot and ready to pull apart.


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## ATpro (Jun 8, 2020)

Slow cook at 220 for 8 hours or 160/165, smoke on for about 6 hours, set smoker for 185, wrap, and let sit in smoker and self-baste over night. If I want real good Butts I do it over open pit with hickory and charcoal , low heat, baste often, turn, and keep covered, whole hog the same way.


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## muddstopper (Jun 8, 2020)

I usually just do hotdogs, burgers, and steak on the grill. When smoking, its usually whole shoulders, not just the butt, and in a dedicated smoker. When we went to buy the new grill, I had intentions of buying a small grill, but this one was on sale and I had a gift card so it only cost $163. It has 5 burners and a side burner. This is where you get in trouble watching youtube. Saw a video of a guy smoking on a gas grill and had to try it. To tell the truth, It worked way better than I expected. the digital thermometer is a Weber 4 probe expert model, $20 so?? As to how accurate it is, It showed 20 degrees colder than the factory one in the lid. Anyways, I plan on another try in the near future. I think about 4 hrs of smoke was just right for the taste so I might smoke and then do the Texas Cheat and wrap it up for the oven, which is basically what I ended up doing this time. The stove in my new house is all digital, I cant even cook a egg on it, but you can set the temps 1 degree at a time. It even tells you when a cake is done. Wife loves it.







333


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## muddstopper (Jun 15, 2020)

Getting ready to smoke my second butt. Nothing big, only doing small 2-3lb size butts while I learn. I have checked my digital thermometer in a pan of boiling water. At my elevation water is supposed to boil at around 209.5 degrees. thermometer hit 210f so I am guessing its pretty close to accurate. I hit every store in town looking for a injection needle with no luck. Every where I went the clerks would say I know we sell them, but for some reason they didn't have any. I should have hit amazon, but found one at a feed and seed store that sold those green egg cookers. $32, yikes, but I bought it anyways. Stainless steel and should last forever and all that, but over priced for certain. 

Meat prices have actually fallen a little bit from what they where a couple weeks ago. $3.98lb for butt's. I will be using apple chips again and some more store bought rub since I had plenty left over from the first attempt. I don't plan on making to many changes as how I smoked the last one. Biggest change will be starting cooking a lot earlier and starting with a lower heat. I will be injecting the meat with a apple juice/ apple cider vinegar with a little rub mixed in. I also plan on keeping a little of the injection solution to spray on the meat as it cooks. I also plan on allowing some time to let the meat rest after smoking and allowing the internal temp to get up to around 200-205 degrees. It hit 198f last time and no resting period. 

My first attempt produced some very good tasting pork, it just wasn't falling apart good. I hope the longer cooking time over lower heat will help with that. Any other suggestion are welcome.


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## CentaurG2 (Jun 15, 2020)

Anything big green egg is very pricy but they do make a very versatile grill/pizza oven/slow cooker. I usually do Boston butts in a crock pot. One butt, one bottle of bullseye BBQ sauce (it has a lot of smoke flavor) a chopped onion and a can of soda. Some folks like coke but I prefer a good high-quality ginger ale (the kind that puts a hurt on you). About 4-5 on high or about 8-10 on low. Pull the pork, ditch the drippings and back into the pot with another bottle of BBQ sauce. Make this a lot for summer gatherings and it is always a hit, inexpensive and super easy.


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## muddstopper (Jun 15, 2020)

A crock pot has always been my wifes favorite way to cook a butt roast. Never tried the soda, but she has tried about every kind BBQ sauce on the market. She got one of those insta pots a few months ago and has burnt every piece of meat she has put in it. Hope she figures it out soon. My son is the pit master around my house. Each year he smokes several on a small smoker for friends and family. I have always been a fan of smoking, just never got into doing it myself. My first attempt was kind of a spur of the minute decision. I am trying to plan the second one a little better.


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## CentaurG2 (Jun 15, 2020)

Bullseye BBQ sauce is common here but I don’t think it is available everywhere. You could also add a couple of drops of liquid smoke to your preferred BBQ sauce. I don’t usually do a lot of smoked food but the best meat I have ever found for smoking is turkey. I have a big weber with a rotisserie and a big green egg. I usually do whole turkeys or turkey breasts (dry brine) on the rotisserie. If you can find them, turkey tenderloins are excellent on the BGE. You can make smoke packets out of aluminum foil and chips and place them on your grill burner. A better method I have found is a smoke tube.



https://www.amazon.com/LIZZQ-Premiu...9Y2xpY2tSZWRpcmVjdCZkb05vdExvZ0NsaWNrPXRydWU=




Basically, it is a stainless-steel tube you fill with wood pellets, light one end and it burns like a cigar. These things smoke like a train for hours. You can get many different varieties of pellets or pellet blends. You can also cold smoke cheese or fish with one of these things. Super easy even with a gas grill if you like smoked food.


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## muddstopper (Jun 15, 2020)

We have Bullseye. I thought it was everywhere. Never been a fan of Liquid Smoke unless doing jerky. Turkey also isn't real high on my list of favorite foods. Like the drumsticks at Thanksgiving and the pot pie after, but any fowl not pan fried or made into dumplins is kind of off my eating list. I will eat kfc and Bojangles before I eat Mikey D/s or most of the burger places. I think that probably comes of eating on the road for the last 40 years. Aint much fast food I do like. 

I bought a couple of those smoke boxes for the chips. Kind of like the tubes and I would have probably bought a tube if I has found one local. I fill two of those boxes up and put them on the grill one at a time as the first one runs out. I have a 5 gal bucket with a hole in the lid I made for cold smoking side meat. I set it on top of a turkey fryer and under the hanging meat. I use silver maple chunks for the smoke. I think it takes about as long to cold smoke bacon as it does to cook smoke a butt.


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## cuinrearview (Jun 15, 2020)

CentaurG2 said:


> Bullseye BBQ sauce is common here but I don’t think it is available everywhere. You could also add a couple of drops of liquid smoke to your preferred BBQ sauce. I don’t usually do a lot of smoked food but the best meat I have ever found for smoking is turkey. I have a big weber with a rotisserie and a big green egg. I usually do whole turkeys or turkey breasts (dry brine) on the rotisserie. If you can find them, turkey tenderloins are excellent on the BGE. You can make smoke packets out of aluminum foil and chips and place them on your grill burner. A better method I have found is a smoke tube.
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muddstopper said:


> We have Bullseye. I thought it was everywhere. Never been a fan of Liquid Smoke unless doing jerky. Turkey also isn't real high on my list of favorite foods. Like the drumsticks at Thanksgiving and the pot pie after, but any fowl not pan fried or made into dumplins is kind of off my eating list. I will eat kfc and Bojangles before I eat Mikey D/s or most of the burger places. I think that probably comes of eating on the road for the last 40 years. Aint much fast food I do like.
> 
> I bought a couple of those smoke boxes for the chips. Kind of like the tubes and I would have probably bought a tube if I has found one local. I fill two of those boxes up and put them on the grill one at a time as the first one runs out. I have a 5 gal bucket with a hole in the lid I made for cold smoking side meat. I set it on top of a turkey fryer and under the hanging meat. I use silver maple chunks for the smoke. I think it takes about as long to cold smoke bacon as it does to cook smoke a butt.


Properly smoked pork, fowl, or beef is almost always superior to the methods listed. If your chicken or turkey or other lean meat is too dry, look into brining. Ribs cooked too long can dry out, as will a pork butt not cooked long enough. Check out some of the BBQ message boards similar to this one and take your BBQ skills to the next level guys. Feel free to message me as well. I can get you going.


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## CentaurG2 (Jun 15, 2020)

Smoked meat is just like reggae music. Sure, a little is OK but a steady diet…yuck. Not worth the time or trouble it takes to "do it right" but to each his own.


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## cuinrearview (Jun 15, 2020)

CentaurG2 said:


> Smoked meat is just like reggae music. Sure, a little is OK but a steady diet…yuck. Not worth the time or trouble it takes to "do it right" but to each his own.


I say the same about meat cooked in fat.


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## muddstopper (Jun 16, 2020)

I like good BBQ, but to much is to much. I can say the same about deep fried anything. Hard to beat Momma's pan fried chicken. My wife makes the best chicken and dumpling I have ever ate. Sorry Mom. 
Made me think of a family reunion just a few short years ago. Wife made a big pot of chicken and dumplins to take for the dinner. My Aunt who was about 90 years old had also made a big pot of Dumplins. I was sitting with my uncle who was about 80 years old and he said, I think I will go get some more of Sis's dumplins. She makes the best dumplins he had ever eat. I watched as he went to my wifes big pot of dumplins and spooned out a plateful. He came back and sit down and started eating. I asked him if the dumplins where any good. He said, best he had ever eaten. I laughed and said you know My wife made those. He said he could tell Sis's chicken and dumplins anywhere and Sis made those dumplins. I called the wife over and told her, Uncle doesn't believe you made that pot of dumplins, pointing to her pot. She said she did. My uncle then said those dumplins taste just like Sis's, Wife told him its probably because his, and Sis's mother, my grandmother, was the one that taught her how to make dumplins. My Aunt passed a couple years ago and my Uncle is now 83. My Uncles wife makes the best squirrel dumplins I ever eat. She said my grandmother taught her how to make them.


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## grizz55chev (Jun 16, 2020)

CentaurG2 said:


> Smoked meat is just like reggae music. Sure, a little is OK but a steady diet…yuck. Not worth the time or trouble it takes to "do it right" but to each his own.


If you ever try smoked cheese, you might be surprised!


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## cuinrearview (Jun 16, 2020)

grizz55chev said:


> If you ever try smoked cheese, you might be surprised!


Some cold smoked cheddar and a cajun dish made with cold smoked andoille are what hooked me.


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## CentaurG2 (Jun 16, 2020)

Not a big fan of smoked cheese either. The best smoked food is wild caught trout and salmon. With a little cream cheese, some dill or chives, red onion, maybe some capers on a nice baguette or bagel. Well at least I know what I am having for dinner.


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## Blue Oaks (Jun 16, 2020)

CentaurG2 said:


> Bullseye BBQ sauce is common here but I don’t think it is available everywhere. You could also add a couple of drops of liquid smoke to your preferred BBQ sauce. I don’t usually do a lot of smoked food but the best meat I have ever found for smoking is turkey. I have a big weber with a rotisserie and a big green egg. I usually do whole turkeys or turkey breasts (dry brine) on the rotisserie. If you can find them, turkey tenderloins are excellent on the BGE. You can make smoke packets out of aluminum foil and chips and place them on your grill burner. A better method I have found is a smoke tube.
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Cool. I've never heard of those. I just ordered one. I have two smokers but my problem is I like to nap during the day, but my smokers are old school "fill with wood and charcoal" type that you have to feed every 45 mins or so. Now I can smoke meats and nap. Two of my favorite pastimes.


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## kjmatson (Jun 16, 2020)

If you are going for pulled pork I get the internal temp to 205 and then wrap in paper or foil, wrap that in a towel and then put in a cooler for about 45 minutes to an hour. It will fall apart.


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## kjmatson (Jun 16, 2020)

Smoking some ribs today. I added some cinnamon and sugar to the rub and let it sit out a couple hours, makes a nice bark


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## muddstopper (Jun 16, 2020)

got the meat in the fridge. Going to take it out after supper and do the injections and the rub. I'll let it set overnite. I have a doctors appointment in the morning. When I get home I plan on firing up the grill. I'll take a few pics along the way.


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## muddstopper (Jun 17, 2020)

Getting thing started. 9:30 am 

Temps at 11am


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## ironman_gq (Jun 17, 2020)

I do pork butts at 225F for 12-14 hours. Rub them with a seasoning that has some sugar in it to help with the bark and inject them. I used to monitor the internal temps but my smoker holds so steady that as long as I buy butts that roughly the same size the cooking time doesn't vary much. I spot check the meat temp after 12 hours with an instant read in at least 3 places. Takes the same amount of time to make 10lbs of pulled pork as it does 60lbs, big hit for the holidays.

Mine plateau around 160-170 which happens about 4-6 hours into the smoke, the temp will start climbing again after 2-3 hours but very slowly. 80% of the finished temp is hit in the first 40% of the cook, it takes 60% of the cooking time to cover the last 20% to get it up to 195F. Also found that the meat quits taking smoke once it hits around 140F, you can foil wrap after that and it'll keep more moisture in the meat at the expense of the bark.


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## muddstopper (Jun 17, 2020)

Well, I kind of forgot the picture taking. ( I went to sleep watching tv) I kept the temp at about 246 for 5 hrs. Butt just didn't want to make bark. I turned the butt over and increased heat to 280, internal temp hit 160 and then just set there. After a couple more hrs, temps around 180f I wrapped the butt in foil and left until meat temp hit 205. Took off grill and wrapped in towel and put in cooler for one hour. Meat tasted great, but no bark. Still didn't get the pull apart I was looking for, altho it was almost there. Not sure what to try next. For one thing, I think these 2-3lb butts might not cook the same as a bigger piece of meat The first butt cooked at 275 made bark, altho It didn't stay on the grill quite as long as the second butt. 9.5 hr total cook time. I guess it will be round 3 next week. Going to watch a few more video's between now and then. I have to say the meat tasted great, if I could just figure out the pull apart thingy, I would be happy.


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## ironman_gq (Jun 18, 2020)

Pull apart meat happens when the connective tissue breaks down, that happens around 180-200F at the center of the meat (check in several spots and keep cooking till everything is at least that hot). I would verify your thermometer reads correctly (get a pot of water boiling and check it's temp, it should read appropriately depending on your elevation. 212 at sea level, 203 at 5000ft). The temp stall is completely normal and can last a long time, don't turn up the heat just ride it out. The meat will get there you just need to adjust your expectations on how long it's going to take. To get a good bark you need to have something on the surface of the meat to turn into bark, a very heavy rub with enough salt and sugar in it to allow a a good bark to form is a must. The salt and sugar pull moisture (and proteins) out of the meat which combined with the seasoning, rendered fat and smoke is what forms the bark. Time is the other important factor in the bark, more time equals more bark. I don't generally start to see bark until 6-8 hours in @ 225F with a 7lb piece of meat.

Here's some info on the stall 








The BBQ Stall Explained: How to Beat It


Let me paint a picture for you, one that a lot of pitmasters will be depressingly familiar with. It’s the weekend. You’ve laid your hands on a pork shoulder or a prime beef brisket, and




www.smokedbbqsource.com


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## cuinrearview (Jun 18, 2020)

I cook to 195 internal. It takes anywhere from 12 to 16 hours to get a full ~10lb bone in butt to that temp at 225. Every piece of meat is a little different. At 195 the blade bone pulls out of the meat clean. But, out of the 2-6 butts I'll do in the same cooker, under the same conditions, to almost the same temp, some are so loose I can barely get them off of the grate to wrap to rest, some are a little more firm. They all pull apart easily with the claws though.


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## muddstopper (Jun 18, 2020)

I have checked my thermometer in boiling water. Water boils here at 209.5f, my thermometer reads 210f on all four probes. Close enough I would think. One thing about the bark, I have been cooking the butts on a large metal platter with a raised grate. I do this to try and keep the drippings off the inside of the grill. I have instructions from the wife to put foil inside the platter so it isn't as hard to cleanup. I am considering just laying the foil on top of the unlit burners under the meat and not using the platter. I don't know if that will have any effect, but it might let a little more direct heat reach the meat. I am just theroizing that the platter is keeping the juices so close to the meat its preventing the bark from forming like it should. Acting like a heat shield of sorts. The meat surface never seems to braze and get stiff. I have about 20lbs of butts in the freezer I want to smoke in the near future. I plan another small one to try and work out the kinks before messing up $70 worth of pork.


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## muddstopper (Jun 20, 2020)

I went to the store today to buy another butt. I was looking at the bigger 10lb size and noticed something odd. The biggest butt in the case was also the cheapest. $1.79 lb. 11lb butt. The rest of the butts where $2.79 lb. I don't know what the difference was, but suspect a mistake in pricing. Butt prices where $3.98 just 2 weeks ago. To heck with the small butts, I decided to buy the big one. Anyways, looks like I will be putting the butt on to cook next Friday evening to cook all night and hopefully it will be ready for Sat evening supper. I noticed today cooking hamburgers that my grill wasn't heating evenly. I had just lit the outside burners and put the burgers in the middle of the grill. the burgers where not cooking evenly, the ones in the middle just barely getting warm. I kind of noticed that on the first and second butts I cooked as I had to turn the meat around to face the side the burner was on to get both sides hots. The grill is big enough to put this big butt in the middle, so I think if I can keep the temp low enough I will light the two outermost burners and place wood chips on both sides. This should even out the heat around the meat. I also plan on leaving the drip pan I had been using out completely so heat can more easily get to the bottom of the meat. I will cover the three middle burners with foil to catch the dripping. I plan on hooking up a 30lb gas bottle to make sure I don't run out of gas while cooking. I have ran the 20lb bottle for over 15hrs, plus it wasn't a full bottle when I started. It still has some gas, but I will save it for hamburgers and refill when its empty. How much cooking time does anyone get out of a 20lb gas bottle?


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## SS396driver (Jun 21, 2020)

I know I'm a yank but smoke all the time. I actually have built several smokers. None of my meats will I ever use BBQ sauce if it needs that your missing something in the rub . My smokers are all reverse smoke stickburners . My latest one . Got tired of loading smokers onto a trailer so I built one on a trailer






My basic rub cayenne red and black pepper torabino sugar and coffee grinds. Some paprika and Italian seasoning very little salt as the pork is injected with a marinade of apple juice, apple cider vinegar and salt . 

Now onto the wood mix of apple and cherry for pork and poultry . At first because after a few hours the meat doesn't take on the smoke. I switch to a more neutral wood like oak or ash. The smoker holds almost any temp I want but my go to is 250 at the rack . NOT a probe stuck in the lid . That could be 300 but that heat passes the meat.




Now on to the actual cooking . Butts can take anywhere from 10 to 18 hours. Dont ask me why but that's just how it is. I use all Thermoworks temp probes. One in the meat and a air temp on the grate














I never wrap just spritz with a small pressure sprayer . Spritz is just apple cider vinegar and apple juice. Spritz only after the bark is set.


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## SS396driver (Jun 21, 2020)

Also remember you dont want billows of white smoke coming out of the smoker. Best to have a slight blue to almost clear specially at the beginning. We all know what happens when thick smoke hits something cold , creosote! And you dont want to eat that . Another thing is I always pan the pork you dont want all that beautiful juice just getting burnt up. I use the juice after it separated from the fat as an addition to the pulled pork and as a dipping sauce


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## muddstopper (Jun 23, 2020)

SS396driver said:


> Also remember you dont want billows of white smoke coming out of the smoker. Best to have a slight blue to almost clear specially at the beginning. We all know what happens when thick smoke hits something cold , creosote! And you dont want to eat that . Another thing is I always pan the pork you dont want all that beautiful juice just getting burnt up. I use the juice after it separated from the fat as an addition to the pulled pork and as a dipping sauce
> View attachment 837362


Now why did you have to post up all those pictures of cooking meat. You got me wanting to go fire up the grill right now. There is certainly a learning curve to smoking meat. I plan on using cherry and pecan for my next smoke. I wanted to stick to apple, but I couldn't find any chips. I feel I wont be able to control the amount of smoke as well with the gas grill as you can with your homemade smoker. The gap between the lid and the bottom is to great. I am considering building a small dedicated smoker once I get the rest of the cooking figured out. My grand daughters boyfriend told me the other day he had one of those oval shaped oil barrels I could have. Bigger than I need, and I might just keep looking. Those oval barrels make great smokers, I had a coworker that used one and the company would pay him to do all the company picnics. Dang he was good at it. He lived in Lexington NC and that's the type of bbq he cooked.


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## SS396driver (Jun 24, 2020)

Smoking can be done on a grill . It just takes more than doing it on a dedicated smoker. Look up ugly drum smokers they work very well. My next addition to my smoker will be a swing away charcoal kettle. This way I can do burgers and dogs at the same station


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## muddstopper (Jun 24, 2020)

As much as this is a learning experience, one has to make a few observations as to what is taking place on the grill. A few things I notice is the smoke does escape around the lid, and not just a little bit. I have to keep adding chips to keep enough smoke to actually smoke the meat. Not knowing this when I started, there isn't much one can do about the smoke escaping when you have meat on the hot grill. Another thing I noticed was the meat was getting hotter on the side away from the lit burner. That didn't make a lot of sense to me, I would of thought the meat would get hotter the closer it was to the heat source. I can only suspect that trying to use a pan to control drippings, created a chimney effect, pulling heat under the pan and out the lid on the side opposite the flame. I am using two probes on each end of the meat, and another probe hanging directly above the meat. I believe the temp readings to be somewhat accurate, and can understand the difference between meat temps and cooker temps, but since heat rises, I don't think the temp probe hanging inside the smoker is representative of the heat at meat level on the grill. Probably not a big deal once a person learns just what temp the grill needs to read. I have tried 275f and 245f for the second butt and the 275f temp seemed to create more bark than the lower temp, and the lower temps stayed on the grill a few hours longer than the meat at the higher temp.

For this next attempt, a few changes I intend to make. For one thing, I am going to try and stuff something around the lid to control smoke and heat loss. Not sure how I will accomplish this, what ever I use cant burn or melt. Aluminum foil??? A second change is removing the drip pan and just laying the butt on the grill grate. A third thing is I plan on lighting two burners instead of just one. Youtube shows many folks smoking on a gas grill and everybody seems to just light one burner and for some reason they seem to think they have to light the one on the left and place the meat on the right on the grate. My grill has five burners and is large enough I can light each side and place the meat in the middle. Will it make a difference, well I do believe it will heat more evenly. My biggest fear is I wont be able to control the heat or get the heat low enough to smoke and not burn. I will have to babysit this attempt pretty closely and may have to shut off the second burner if it starts to scorch the meat.


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## SS396driver (Jun 25, 2020)

Smoke needs to escape . Look at mine I have a 4 ft chimney but the smoke goes over the meat because it's a reverse smoker. But foil would work to seal some up but I wouldn't seal it completely, my smoker leaks around the door I thought about adding some woodstove gasket to it but never got around to it. The smoke adds the flavor but not the ring that is caused by the nitrogen dioxide given off by burning the wood. This turns into nitric oxide when it reacts with the meat. I use this air probe from thermoworks it clips onto the grate



This is the basic idea of a reverse smoker the meat has more contact with the smoke


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## CentaurG2 (Jun 25, 2020)

muddstopper said:


> As much as this is a learning experience, one has to make a few observations as to what is taking place on the grill. A few things I notice is the smoke does escape around the lid, and not just a little bit. I have to keep adding chips to keep enough smoke to actually smoke the meat. Not knowing this when I started, there isn't much one can do about the smoke escaping when you have meat on the hot grill. Another thing I noticed was the meat was getting hotter on the side away from the lit burner. That didn't make a lot of sense to me, I would of thought the meat would get hotter the closer it was to the heat source. I can only suspect that trying to use a pan to control drippings, created a chimney effect, pulling heat under the pan and out the lid on the side opposite the flame. I am using two probes on each end of the meat, and another probe hanging directly above the meat. I believe the temp readings to be somewhat accurate, and can understand the difference between meat temps and cooker temps, but since heat rises, I don't think the temp probe hanging inside the smoker is representative of the heat at meat level on the grill. Probably not a big deal once a person learns just what temp the grill needs to read. I have tried 275f and 245f for the second butt and the 275f temp seemed to create more bark than the lower temp, and the lower temps stayed on the grill a few hours longer than the meat at the higher temp.
> 
> For this next attempt, a few changes I intend to make. For one thing, I am going to try and stuff something around the lid to control smoke and heat loss. Not sure how I will accomplish this, what ever I use cant burn or melt. Aluminum foil??? A second change is removing the drip pan and just laying the butt on the grill grate. A third thing is I plan on lighting two burners instead of just one. Youtube shows many folks smoking on a gas grill and everybody seems to just light one burner and for some reason they seem to think they have to light the one on the left and place the meat on the right on the grate. My grill has five burners and is large enough I can light each side and place the meat in the middle. Will it make a difference, well I do believe it will heat more evenly. My biggest fear is I wont be able to control the heat or get the heat low enough to smoke and not burn. I will have to babysit this attempt pretty closely and may have to shut off the second burner if it starts to scorch the meat.



To answer your first question, I get about 1 month out of a propane bottle. I run an old weber genesis. It uses three burners that run parallel to the front of the grill. The bulk of my cooking on the grill is heat all burners full tilt till hot, shut the middle burner off and turn the front and rear burner down to whatever and place the food in the middle.

No need to seal off the grill. If I am using the grill for smoking, I put a #8 cast iron pan full of boiling water underneath the grill grate in the middle of the grill on the flavorizer bars. Food is placed above the pan, middle burner is off and heat is controlled with front burner and/or rear burners. The pan of water acts as a heat sump, keeps the food moist and temps around 250F. Smoke is from chip/foil packets on the front burner or the smoke tube. Temp probe?? Just get a thermapen. Best $100 you will ever spend. You will thank me later.



https://www.surlatable.com/pro-3662...=e&gclid=CIW4zL_WneoCFQfNswodXSsGTw&gclsrc=ds


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## muddstopper (Jun 26, 2020)

Getting ready for my next attempt. And I might of found my problem with the meat not pulling apart. I place my probes all right next to each other in the grill.. 



and then fired up the burners. I monitored the temps as the grill was heating up. 






The black probe is new and had not been used before. The gray probe is what I have been using to check temps inside the grill. The red and blue probes are what I have been pokeing in the meat. as much as thirteen degrees difference between the red and blue probes. This leads me to suspect that the met temp wasnt actually as hot as I thought. Done, but not pull apart done. I have checked all 4 probes in a pot of boiling water and they all registered 210f. Not sure how I am going to figure out which probe is correct or close to the correct temp. 
The grill thermometer is reading this. 


and this, as I adjust the knobs. 



This is a low as I can turn down the burners. Only way to reduce heat any further is to turn off one burner and this is the current temps after not messing with anything for a while.



The temps differencial between the probes seems to have closed up the heat spread, but the blue probe is still a lot lower than the other three. 
Anyways, it is what it is. I have another electronic thermometer, but I cant seem to get it to turn on. I'll have to make do with what I got for now and try to adjust on the fly before taking off the grill.


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## muddstopper (Jun 26, 2020)

decided to recheck the thermometer in ice water since the probes seem to be reading different. 



All 4 probes read 32f in ice water and 210 in boiling water, so now what?


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## CentaurG2 (Jun 26, 2020)

muddstopper said:


> decided to recheck the thermometer in ice water since the probes seem to be reading different. View attachment 838635
> 
> All 4 probes read 32f in ice water and 210 in boiling water, so now what?



I don’t get the point of the probes. Just use the thermometer on the grill. I looked up your grill online and it is similar to my old weber. Try putting a pan of boiling water on top of the “tents” over the burners. Leave the 3 middle burners off and control the heat with the 2 side burners. You can then cook the butt as long as you like. It will not dry out as it is constantly bathed in steam from the pan. Just check it every so often and refill the pan with boiling water. Any pan will do.



Chicken wings tonight on the Big Green Egg. Busha Browne jerk seasoning, lime and some dark rum. I use a vortex fire ring to direct the heat from the lump charcoal. Handy thing. It limits the amount of carcoal you need to use and can create a “jet burner” for searing steaks/burger and you can then move the food to the “cool zone” and cook around the outside edge. Wings you flip it upside down and just cook them around the edges.



https://vortexbbq.com/


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## muddstopper (Jun 26, 2020)

I am using the probes to check the internal temps of the meat. Right now, I am just trying to figure out if the probes are giving a accurate reading. That is the reason all 4 probes are in the grill. I would assume that all probes placed right next to each other would give the same reading, but they don't. They do read the same in boiling or ice water and seem to be dead nutts on. While cooking, I use one probe inside the grill to check grill temp, and one probe to check meat temp. The thermometer in the lid doesn't match the probes by a big margin. I don't need precision accuracy, but if I can figure out what the lid thermometer needs to read, then it would make my chances of having repeat results more likely. Probes are reading correctly in boiling water and in ice water, but seem erratic when inside the grill. 1 or 2 degrees is close enough, but 10 or 15 degrees bumfuzzles me. Right now, my meat tastes great, it just isn't the pull apart BBQ I am looking for and I am suspecting I am not getting temps the required temperature for the pull apart. My cooking times also seem to be a lot longer than others cooking similar size portions, which shouldn't be if everybody is cooking to the same temp. I don't know what I am doing, but I am eating well trying to figure it out.


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## SS396driver (Jun 26, 2020)

Remember there is always heat movement in the grill. I have moved my air temp probe around on the grate and it can vary by as much as 10° . So I place the probe near the meat so I can get an idea of the temp around it. I have seen my smoker drop by 15° temporarily with just a light breeze. Especially in winter


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## CentaurG2 (Jun 26, 2020)

muddstopper said:


> I am using the probes to check the internal temps of the meat. Right now, I am just trying to figure out if the probes are giving a accurate reading. That is the reason all 4 probes are in the grill. I would assume that all probes placed right next to each other would give the same reading, but they don't. They do read the same in boiling or ice water and seem to be dead nutts on. While cooking, I use one probe inside the grill to check grill temp, and one probe to check meat temp. The thermometer in the lid doesn't match the probes by a big margin. I don't need precision accuracy, but if I can figure out what the lid thermometer needs to read, then it would make my chances of having repeat results more likely. Probes are reading correctly in boiling water and in ice water, but seem erratic when inside the grill. 1 or 2 degrees is close enough, but 10 or 15 degrees bumfuzzles me. Right now, my meat tastes great, it just isn't the pull apart BBQ I am looking for and I am suspecting I am not getting temps the required temperature for the pull apart. My cooking times also seem to be a lot longer than others cooking similar size portions, which shouldn't be if everybody is cooking to the same temp. I don't know what I am doing, but I am eating well trying to figure it out.



You are over thinking the whole process and relying too much on technology. Time and temp on an outdoor grill are really subjective and influenced by outdoor temps/wind/rain. You need to cook food till its done but not overdone. The above mention thermapen is an instant read thermometer that will tell you the temp of your food. They are amazingly accurate and work instantaneously. You can use it to measure the temp in a room, burgers, sugar/candy or even bread if you are into baking. Cook enough and you will get the swing of when food starts looking/smelling done. When it starts looking done, give it the test. You will eventually get to a point you don’t need the thermapen. You will know when it is done. If the pen is too dear, just use the probes you have. You only need one in the center of the meat. Cook until it is done.


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## SS396driver (Jun 26, 2020)

muddstopper said:


> I am using the probes to check the internal temps of the meat. Right now, I am just trying to figure out if the probes are giving a accurate reading. That is the reason all 4 probes are in the grill. I would assume that all probes placed right next to each other would give the same reading, but they don't. They do read the same in boiling or ice water and seem to be dead nutts on. While cooking, I use one probe inside the grill to check grill temp, and one probe to check meat temp. *The thermometer in the lid doesn't match the probes by a big margin.* I don't need precision accuracy, but if I can figure out what the lid thermometer needs to read, then it would make my chances of having repeat results more likely. Probes are reading correctly in boiling water and in ice water, but seem erratic when inside the grill. 1 or 2 degrees is close enough, but 10 or 15 degrees bumfuzzles me. Right now, my meat tastes great, it just isn't the pull apart BBQ I am looking for and I am suspecting I am not getting temps the required temperature for the pull apart. My cooking times also seem to be a lot longer than others cooking similar size portions, which shouldn't be if everybody is cooking to the same temp. I don't know what I am doing, but I am eating well trying to figure it out.



Did you read my prior post ?
The lid temps could be as much as 50 to 75° higher than at the grate. Think of it this way summertime your house is all closed up it 80° on the first floor you go to the top of the stairs to the second floor and its much hotter . That's the nature of heat it rises and gets stuck near the lid

First thing I tell friends when they get a smoker or grill disregard the temp probe in the lid


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## muddstopper (Jun 26, 2020)

Of course I am overthinking things. Still the meat needs to be done and the only way to know if its done is experience, which I don't have, or checking the temp. I am doubting the accuracy of my thermometer, so I am trying to check it everyway I can. I suspect my meat isn't getting as done as I think it is hence not pulling apart. Whether one cooks low and slow or high an fast does depend on the temps inside the grill. 



SS396driver said:


> Did you read my prior post ?
> The lid temps could be as much as 50 to 75° higher than at the grate. Think of it this way summertime your house is all closed up it 80° on the first floor you go to the top of the stairs to the second floor and its much hotter . That's the nature of heat it rises and gets stuck near the lid



Yes I read your post. I am not relying on the lid thermometer, just want to know what it says the temp is, in regard to what the actual grill temps are. This just makes it easier to glance and see if things are cooling off or over heating inside. I am hanging my probe right at the top of the meat. I have already experience what a little rain can do to the heating temps. And it is raining now, so I have moved the grill under cover.

All the pictures I posted are of a empty grill. I was experimenting with the burners just to see if I could get the temps low enough to smoke while using two burners. The grill just seems to me to be to big to get even heat using just one burner. I don't know if I am right or wrong, but meat goes on about 9pm tonite. The best I think I can hope for is going to be about 270f with both burners as low as they will go. It will either be done or burnt by morning. I will be checking a few times thru the nite.


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## muddstopper (Jun 26, 2020)

7.45pm. 11lb Butt has been injected with apple cider vinegar and apple juice and rubbed since 9.30am. Setting on the kitchen counter coming up to room temp. Will go on grill in about a hour.


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## muddstopper (Jun 26, 2020)

Meat on at 9pm. Grill temp at 257f. Weather is rain, rain, rain. grill under cover. Hopefuly the wind doesn't blow rain in on grill.


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## muddstopper (Jun 27, 2020)

1am, meat is looking good. grill temp, if it is to be believed, says 286f. It don't seem as hot as it has in the past. Lid thermometer says 275f so I am guessing actual temp around 250f. Anyways, meat temp says 126f and bark is starting to form nicely, I think, its darker than a stack of black cats, but I broke off a piece of bark and it tasted done and good. Added more wood chips. Rain has stopped. Might turn meat over and add more rub in a couple more hours. Nap time.


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## muddstopper (Jun 27, 2020)

5:30am. 


temps, 


The grill temp read 254f before I opened the lid. Pulled a piece of the bark just to sample, ummmm, umm, good! Wrapped in foil and put back on grill. The meat almost was pull apart ready, but the bone isn't loose yet. I'll check it again in a few hours and it may be there.


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## SS396driver (Jun 27, 2020)

Looks like your mastering your grill. When that bone pulls out with a light tug it's a wonderfull feeling. My go to with pulled pork is 205 to 210


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## muddstopper (Jun 27, 2020)

Just pulled off grill and placed in cooler. 11:20am. I didn't try to pull the bone out, the meat wouldn't hardly hold together to put in cooler. Temp probes said 192f, but I have lost all faith in this thermometer. I will be buying one of those pen probes before the next go around. It looks like a 11lb butt cooked for 14hrs with my grill turned as low as it will go is the timing I will be looking at in the future. I have two smaller butts in the freezer I plan on trying next. Probably be the 4th of July. I have tried a bite of the bark and it was good. I mixed two different rubs and not sure how I feel about the second one. Seems to have a little more garlic than the first brand I tried. When all pulled and mixed together it might be just right.


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## medalist (Jun 27, 2020)

I have a Weber larger kettle grill.
I use it for both grilling the usual but also for smoking. Look up "snake method" on YouTube. This is how I smoke kingfish with overnight brining.
Keeping a low temp (200) is not hard with snake method.
Having a good instant read meat thermometer is a good consideration.


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## muddstopper (Jun 27, 2020)

Meat set in a cooler for just over 1 hr. I wanted a pic of the finished butt, but the wife wanted a bite. So she unwrapped the meat and started digging in. Heres a pic of the leftovers. We had already eaten most of it. 


I believe the head count was nine that had partaken from the butt. No complaints so I guess it was a success. Bone pulled clean and you couldn't pick the meat up without it falling apart.
Next butt will still be trying different things. I don't care much for the pecan/cherry wood chips. Apple is much better. I also don't care much for the new rub. It was good, but I just like the other brand better. I will have a new instant thermometer for the next one. Also discovered I don't care much for the bulleye sauce. It is alright, but I ate most of what I had without any sauce. The bigger thing I need to change is trimming off more of the fat. I had to scoop off way to much while pulling the pork. With the loss of fat, I also lost bark and flavor. Neighbors cats will eat well tonite.


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## SS396driver (Jul 1, 2020)

All my probes are thermoworks I check my smoke thermometer(made by thermoworks) with the thermo pen instant read . Well worth the investment. I take as much fat off as I can. Whether its pork or brisket the fat keeps the smoke from the meat. The only thing I dont trim it off of is pork bellies. Ok now I need to do bellies drizzled with homemade maple syrup


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## CentaurG2 (Jul 1, 2020)

muddstopper said:


> Meat set in a cooler for just over 1 hr. I wanted a pic of the finished butt, but the wife wanted a bite. So she unwrapped the meat and started digging in. Heres a pic of the leftovers. We had already eaten most of it. View attachment 838985
> I believe the head count was nine that had partaken from the butt. No complaints so I guess it was a success. Bone pulled clean and you couldn't pick the meat up without it falling apart.
> Next butt will still be trying different things. I don't care much for the pecan/cherry wood chips. Apple is much better. I also don't care much for the new rub. It was good, but I just like the other brand better. I will have a new instant thermometer for the next one. Also discovered I don't care much for the bulleye sauce. It is alright, but I ate most of what I had without any sauce. The bigger thing I need to change is trimming off more of the fat. I had to scoop off way to much while pulling the pork. With the loss of fat, I also lost bark and flavor. Neighbors cats will eat well tonite.



Bullseye on already smoked meat might be a bit much. You will probably start hearing Reggae music. Most grocers have a wall of BBQ sauces. Give anyone a try. Sweet Baby Rays is popular here but it is mostly sugar. I like Stubbs original but it is very tomato based. You can also make your own. The aforementioned Busha Browne jerk seasoning is super on pork, chicken or fish.



http://www.bushabrowne.com/product_jerk_seasoning.php


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## muddstopper (Jul 1, 2020)

There is a BBQ place in Spencer NC. Right out side Salisbury. The name of the place is Steves BBQ. They used to have the best BBQ sauce I ever ate. I haven't been there in several years. At one time it was located right at the edge of the town, then it moved closer to the interstate. I will say my opinion was the bbq was better when they where in their old restaurant. Anyways, the BBQ was more a Lexington style, not none of the thick tomato or mustard/vinegar sour crap. I wish I had the recipe, but I don't ever pass that way anymore, and I don't know anybody to ask to see if they can get it. I think I will look up Lexington style bbq sauce and see what pops up.


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## SS396driver (Jul 4, 2020)

The instant read classic thermopen is 25% off. This one isnt water proof but for bbq that's fine. 








Classic Super-Fast® Thermapen®


Specializing in cool, unique and professional temperature tools. Super-Fast thermocouples, thermistors, infrared thermometers, data logging and more.




www.thermoworks.com


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## SS396driver (Jul 4, 2020)

Candied Pork bellies on the smoker . Used my maple syrup from this spring


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## muddstopper (Jul 5, 2020)

Well, I had boston butt bbq again this week, wife cooked it in the oven. Took a fraction of the time to cook and don't tell her, but it wasn't near as good. Tried the baby rays bbq sauce, pretty food stuff. Anyways, bbq 4 weeks in a row, I think I will give it a rest for a while. I'll do a couple more practice smokes with smaller butts and may try another big one for Labor day.


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## CentaurG2 (Jul 6, 2020)

Looked up Lexington BBQ sauce and came up with this recipe.



https://www.finecooking.com/recipe/lexington-style-barbecue-sauce




Made up a batch for the fourth and put it on some baby back ribs cooked on the Big Green Egg. They went so fast I only got one but it was good!



We also served some buffalo chicken wings on the gas grill. Used this recipe and it came out great. It is a bit fussy but well worth trying.



https://www.cookscountry.com/videos/3948-grill-fried-chicken-wings


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## muddstopper (Jul 7, 2020)

Got to admit, those chicken wings looked good. I will have to give them a try. 
Lexington style sauce isnt what a lot of folks expect. Its not thick like bullseye, baby rays or most of the store bought sauces. Its more a dip than a sauce. The recipe you posted is one of hundreds out their. I will have to try it, but I dont like chili pepper. I will probably use cayenne pepper instead. When using cider vinegar, I always choose Mother's apple cider vinegar. I actually take a spoonful every morning, well more like a swig.


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## xraydaniel (Dec 11, 2020)

Smokin butts is the way to go. Simple on the kettle and gets a great smoke ring from black cherry. I run it low and slow to 160F and then wrap and ramp to 205F. Wrap in a towel and in the cooler for an hour then pull when tolerable to your hands if using them or the bear claw things.


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## siouxindian (Dec 12, 2020)

them butts your own raised or store bought? it doesn't matter just wandering.


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