16 hrs to get 6.9 lb Butt to 176 at 225 - Higher Temp?

[Gary]

After brining it in DivitMakers brine for 15 hours, I put a 6.9 pound Boston pork butt in my SM1 at 0630  at 225 with 1 block of SmokinLicious Cherry and went fishing . At about 1200 it was 162 and still smoking. I opened the smoker and took the block of wood out and immediately closed it back up.

 It went up to 169 by 1400 where it remained until about 1900.  By 2230, 16 hours into the smoke,  it got to 176 when I decided to take it off and go to bed. In getting it off the smoker it was so tender it came off in parts so I pulled the bone out and "rough pulled" it into a bag which I put in fridge. Took a taste or two and it was good. Plan to fine pull it today after warming it up in hot water. Based on my past two experiences I plan to use 2.5 hours per pound as my rough guide for estimating time with pork butts.

The Auber had it right at 225 every time I checked it. Question: If I had turned it up to 250, about three hours into the the initial 169 "stall," would that have got me through it and up to 190 to 200? Would it have impacted the quality of the meat? Should I start at a higher temperature all the way through? 8.5 hours to get from 169 to 176, when I know the unit is at a constant 225, is frustrating especially when it was going up so slowly.

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[gregbooras]

Gary,

After reading your post one thing that stood out for me was your statement that

 "176 when I decided to take it off and go to bed. In getting it off the smoker it was so tender it came off in parts".

I am sure others will jump in here, but I think your temp was wrong on your Butt, at 176 degrees I don't think the bone would pull out. My guess is the your temp gauge on the pork was reading really low.

Greg
 

[smokeasaurus]

I agree. You might have tender slices but 176 is still part of the stall.....shouldn't be able to pull yet.......

[gregbooras]

If you don't mind how much wood did you add to the smoker?

I only ask because there is really no reason to remove wood from the firebox, as long as you weigh the wood you use.

Greg

[Gary]

Gary,

After reading your post one thing that stood out for me was your statement that

 "176 when I decided to take it off and go to bed. In getting it off the smoker it was so tender it came off in parts".

I am sure others will jump in here, but I think your temp was wrong on your Butt, at 176 degrees I don't think the bone would pull out. My guess is the your temp gauge on the pork was reading really low.
Greg

Greg,
I just ran a test of the Auber Probe against my Thermapen and they are within a degree of each other. Although, I usually do, I did not use the Thermapen last night however.

I also talked with a lady a Auber Support who suggested I could run a boiling or ice water test to check the accuracy of the probe. She checked the PID on my unit and said they have suggested settings for the Smokin It Model 1 which are P=60, I=850 and D=130. I changed mine to match and we'll see what happens next time. 

Godspeed,

Gary

[gregbooras]

Gary,

Well at least it sounds like the pork turned out great, so the rest is just the learning curve!

Best Greg.

[Gary]

If you don't mind how much wood did you add to the smoker?

I only ask because there is really no reason to remove wood from the firebox, as long as you weigh the wood you use.

Greg

Don't mind at all. I used one piece of SmokinDelicious Double Filet  Cherry which is 2"X2" in width and height, with a length of 3." Didn't weigh it, but it is their standard piece. I took it out because I have read that after meat gets to about 140-160 its not taking smoke any more and I had a real bad experience with over smoking when I used pellets on Chicken Breasts last time. When I got home the temperature was in the 160s so I just thought I would take it out just to make sure there was no "over smoking." That was the only time I opened the smoker until I took the meat out after 2030 last night.

[gregbooras]

If you don't mind how much wood did you add to the smoker?

I only ask because there is really no reason to remove wood from the firebox, as long as you weigh the wood you use.

Greg

Don't mind at all. I used one piece of SmokinDelicious Double Filet  Cherry which is 2"X2" in width and height, with a length of 3." Didn't weigh it, but it is their standard piece. I took it out because I have read that after meat gets to about 140-160 its not taking smoke any more and I had a real bad experience with over smoking when I used pellets on Chicken Breasts last time. When I got home the temperature was in the 160s so I just thought I would take it out just to make sure there was no "over smoking." That was the only time I opened the smoker until I took the meat out after 2030 last night.

Hey Gary,

Just my 2 cents and I want to help.

I have found with this smoker that if keep track of what and how you smoke, you will be able to not only be able reproduce smokes, but improve on them.

If you don't have a digital scale.... please buy one.

I also have wood from SmokinDelicious and I used your measurements and the wood weight came in from 3-4 oz.

For a Pork Butt I would have used about 5-6 oz. of wood for my smoke.

But I can also say that I have cut back on the amount of wood I use for things like chicken and turkey.

This is why I would suggest a log, I just keep all my recipes in a word document and make notes. If the chicken tastes like it has to much smoke, reduce on the next one (note smoke level increases the next day)!.

Anyways, congrats on your pork butt and move on to the next smoke .

Greg

[DivotMaker]

Gary, glad your butt came out good, but I, too, am confused by your temps!  If the butt was truly at 176, the bone would not have pulled clean; this is the temp I smoke them to slice at, and I have to cut out the bone, every time.  We're missing something, but I don't see what.  It's probably either probe placement, or maybe it was against the bone?  Not sure, but you had to be in the high 180s to low 190s for the bone to pull clean, and the meat to pull easily.  Hmmm.....

[Gary]

Gary, glad your butt came out good, but I, too, am confused by your temps!  If the butt was truly at 176, the bone would not have pulled clean;...Not sure, but you had to be in the high 180s to low 190s for the bone to pull clean, and the meat to pull easily.  Hmmm.....

That's what the Auber read. I should have taken the time to double check with the Thermapen as I usually do, but I didn't. I must have placed the probe wrong. Thanks for your patience guys.

[elkins20]

Gary,

After reading your post one thing that stood out for me was your statement that

 "176 when I decided to take it off and go to bed. In getting it off the smoker it was so tender it came off in parts".

I am sure others will jump in here, but I think your temp was wrong on your Butt, at 176 degrees I don't think the bone would pull out. My guess is the your temp gauge on the pork was reading really low.
Greg

Greg,
I just ran a test of the Auber Probe against my Thermapen and they are within a degree of each other. Although, I usually do, I did not use the Thermapen last night however.

I also talked with a lady a Auber Support who suggested I could run a boiling or ice water test to check the accuracy of the probe. She checked the PID on my unit and said they have suggested settings for the Smokin It Model 1 which are P=60, I=850 and D=130. I changed mine to match and we'll see what happens next time. 

Godspeed,

Gary

Hey Gary, I noticed a couple of things in reading your post. 1 when I do a Boston Butt I do it at 235 but use a ramp. First step is to run it at 140 for 45 min. then up the temp to 235 until an internal temp of 195 the third step is to hold at 140 for 8 hours. That way I can pull it and wrap it in foil and rest in the cooler. The second is my pid settings on my auber after my autotune, p=61 I=362 D=340. I turn out good smokes in it. Also have heard that meats under 7# run longer than cuts over the 7# mark. Next time try a BB weighing around 7+lbs. and see if you do not get it done at a more reasonable time frame. I agree with the others if the bone came out clean you was at a higher temp. than 176.