Juice in Pan under smoker .... safe?

[damnfingers]

TARDISgirl - that was my thinking.  I'm so concerned about the meat being dry that I want to rescue as much drippings as I can to add back in to the finished product.

SuperDave - I can't see any problem with smoke flow around the meat with a foil pan 2" below it.  Thanks for you inputM

[NDKoze]

The problem that others have had is that the pan under the meat causes a heat sink that causes larger than normal temperature swings and thus less than perfect results.

I have never had a dry pork butt, so haven't bothered with trying a foil pan.

Give it a try and let us know how it goes. I too think it is kind of a shame to lose all that awesome rendered fat. But do not want to sacrifice the quality of my meat to get it.

[TARDISgirl]

Not had a dry pork butt yet. I actually save the rendered fat for sauteeing for another meal. Coffee can full of deliciousness

[Pork Belly]

I think the majority of dry pulled pork is from not resting it long enough. If you break it down too soon, all that greasy goodness is going to coat the bottom of the serving dish and never absorb back into the meat. I did two butts in the same smoke last week. One I rested for an hour the other rested three hours. There was a huge difference in them that night and especially later when served as leftovers. The one with the longer rest was far more moist.

[NDKoze]

I usually rest mine for 2 hours. You would be surprised how hot it still is after a two hour rest.

[SuperDave]

You would be surprised how hot it still is after a two hour rest.

Which always irritates me that after 2 hours it is still too hot to pull by hand.  LOL! 

[NDKoze]

You would be surprised how hot it still is after a two hour rest.

Which always irritates me that after 2 hours it is still too hot to pull by hand.  LOL! 

You are right Dave. It IS too hot to pull by hand even after two hours. I have Bear Paws, so not a problem.

[SuperDave]

I like to pull by hand so I can feel the muscle and know which pieces go in my mouth before putting out for mass consumption.   

[Barrel99]

I have had ribs and butts for over 4 hours resting and they are still too hot to handle. I have bear claws too, but my claws always get there first. I guess I am of the mind that I don't want what's in the pan, especially since I never get that much in there to begin with.

[damnfingers]

Due to dinner and time constraints I was only able to rest this last butt for an hour...another reason it may have been drier than the previous ones.  I'm gonna get this right one if these days.

[Elliottbte]

Bringing this up once again.  I've been smoking my butts on the top rack and there is plenty of room to put a pan underneath it to catch any drippings before they get to the bottom of the SI.  Is there any reason not to do this...seems it would keep the bottom a lot cleaner.

I am quite late in posting on this, but my solution to this is simply putting small loaf pans on BOTH sides of the firebox.  This way there is no interference with smoke patterns or heat sink issues above the box.  I put just a small amount of Apple juice since I brine my Butts and Briskets and there is plenty of moisture. These two pans don't catch everything, but they catch a lot and cleanup is so much easier.  The pans are easy to remove and the high sides make safe removal hot hot liquid a bit easier. I can essentially just pull out the foil bottom layer with no issue or mess, and no wiping of the bottom is required.

I usually take the juice from one pan and refrigerate it while the meat is resting.  When it's time to pull/cut the meat, I take off the fat layer and microwave the juice and add a bit to the top of the pulled/sliced meat and stir it around a bit.  The meat doesn't really need it since its moist already but my family thinks the added moisture makes it even that much better.  Finally, I just give the pans a quick wash and reuse again and again.

[Libohunden]

I'm just wondering how much of a heat sink a foil half pan could be?  Has anyone had any problems with this yet?

[DivotMaker]

I'm just wondering how much of a heat sink a foil half pan could be?  Has anyone had any problems with this yet?

Are you talking about on a shelf, under the meat to collect juice?  If that's the case, a 1/2 pan is a pretty good piece of real estate.  It's not a "heat sink" as much as it is a heat "shield."  Larger pans tend to make the box temps read very low, and the meat will not cook "as normal" with the modified heat flow.  Best to leave anything between the heat and the meat out.