Can you answer this -- Correctly?

[Jaxon]

I smoked a 7.5 lb butt in the offset today using pecan wood for fuel.  I did not remove the fat cap...never do.  I kept the temp on the high side at around 275 for the entire cook.  I smoked for 3 1/2 hours, then foiled and back in the smoker for another 2 1/2 hours - by then it was at 210 IT.  I took it to the kitchen and unwrapped it and let it rest till i could handle it without gloves.  It was one of the best we've ever done.  Flavor was very good and the color - beautiful.  Of course, at that temp it was as tender as my heart.

As I was pulling and chopping, I notice an extra amount of fat and grease throughout. 

My question is this:  Was there extra fat left because of cooking at 275 for only 6 hours?  Well, another question, too, would I have had less fat left behind if I had cooked at 225 for a longer time?

just askin'...

[muebe]

Yes. Longer cooks at lower temps allow the fat to render more completely. But as long as it was as "tender as your heart" then no worries Jaxon

[LostArrow]

Pork butt is not a "low Fat" dish!
The fat is what makes it moist & flavorful !
Dried out smoked meat is not so much you cook the water out butt the fat out.
Sounds like a great cook!

[Jaxon]

I learned a little more about that offset so that I was able to maintain temp in the 275 range for the whole time.  Even while I was doing my yard work.  I had the Maverick remote in my pocket so I could monitor temps from anywhere.  A very low-stress cook compared to so many of the others.

I hope I didn't sound like I was braggin' about this cook...its just that I have had sooooo many that were crappy to average, that it really gets me excited to cook one that is THIS GOOD in taste, appearance, and tenderness/juiciness.

I have been payin' attention to what you folks post about these cooks and it has really made a difference in what I get out of the smoker now.

Thanks a lot!!

[deestafford]

Jack, Just as an experiment, next time trim ALL the fat off the exterior of your butt and smoke it.  I did it the last one I did and it was the best I ever did.  One thing is it didn't have all that fat juice from the outside making it greasy.  I don't think the exterior fat contributes anything to the meat...only the interior fat does.  Of course, an argument could be made that the dripping of the fat during smoking keeps the meat moist and keeps it from drying out.  I have not seen the proof of that.  Dee

[Hub]

Yes. Longer cooks at lower temps allow the fat to render more completely. But as long as it was as "tender as your heart" then no worries Jaxon

I agree with muebe.  The fat "cap" isn't the only fat in the meat, either.  I've seen lot of variance in the amount of internal fat in the butts I've cooked over the years.  With pork, particularly, fat = flavor!  Good fat content also yields better moisture in the final product. 

Hub

[veryolddog]

Just a question for you, Jaxon: where do you place the Maverick BBQ probe inside of the Old Country?

My experience with the Yoder Cheyenne: I place the probe at the opposite end from the firebox near the chimney. I also place inexpensive surface grill thermometers by Kingsford on the grill itself one, about 12 inches from the firebox and one about 1/3 away from the firebox towards the chimney. Then like you, I have the smoker thermometer located on the lid of the smoker.

What I learned:

1. the lid thermometer and the maverick seem to be about 10 to 15 degrees apart with the Maverick reporting a lower temperature.
2. the surface thermometer next to the firebox reports 350 degrees when the Maverick is reporting 225 to 250 degrees.
3. the surface thermomenter in the center of the smoker reports almost the same as the thermometer in the lid and the Maverick.
4. when I slow cook at low temperature like 225 to 230 degree range, I use the left hand side of the smoker.
5. when I want to crisp something, like the skin of a chicken, I move the whole chicken to the right side within 8 to 12 inches of the firebox where the heat is greatest without stoking up the fire and maintaining the continuity of the airflow. I usually do this when the Internal temperature of the chicken is at 130 degrees.
6. The legend is that every smoker has a favorite temperature for thin blue smoke. Mine seems to be 250 degrees.

How does this compare with how your smoker behaves and do you have a similar experience?

Since I have had no experience with traditional wood smoking before, I am trying to find out if my experience is similar to yours. If it is, then this would seem to be "normal"?

Thanks,

Ed

[LostArrow]

Just a question for you, Jaxon: where do you place the Maverick BBQ probe inside of the Old Country?

My experience with the Yoder Cheyenne: I place the probe at the opposite end from the firebox near the chimney. I also place inexpensive surface grill thermometers by Kingsford on the grill itself one, about 12 inches from the firebox and one about 1/3 away from the firebox towards the chimney. Then like you, I have the smoker thermometer located on the lid of the smoker.

What I learned:

1. the lid thermometer and the maverick seem to be about 10 to 15 degrees apart with the Maverick reporting a lower temperature.
2. the surface thermometer next to the firebox reports 350 degrees when the Maverick is reporting 225 to 250 degrees.
3. the surface thermomenter in the center of the smoker reports almost the same as the thermometer in the lid and the Maverick.
4. when I slow cook at low temperature like 225 to 230 degree range, I use the left hand side of the smoker.
5. when I want to crisp something, like the skin of a chicken, I move the whole chicken to the right side within 8 to 12 inches of the firebox where the heat is greatest without stoking up the fire and maintaining the continuity of the airflow. I usually do this when the Internal temperature of the chicken is at 130 degrees.
6. The legend is that every smoker has a favorite temperature for thin blue smoke. Mine seems to be 250 degrees.

How does this compare with how your smoker behaves and do you have a similar experience?

Since I have had no experience with traditional wood smoking before, I am trying to find out if my experience is similar to yours. If it is, then this would seem to be "normal"?

Thanks,

Ed

At LA the smoker has only recently had a thermometer
Like many big cookers it likes to run about 250F + , - , 25F simply because of airflow.
No meat thermometer use a wooden skewer to test for doneness.
Since we now have a thermometer I see temps range from 210-300F on a cook and its all good
I don't worry so much anymore for my home cooks 

[sliding_billy]

Just to throw my $0.02 in... Regardless of the ability for the fat to render, it may have just been an extra fatty butt.  275 is not so hot to in and of itself keep the fat from rendering properly (especially having got all the way to 210 internal)..

[TentHunteR]

Jack, Just as an experiment, next time trim ALL the fat off the exterior of your butt and smoke it.  I did it the last one I did and it was the best I ever did.

What Dee said!

There is still plenty of fat inside to keep it very moist, and you'll end up with more bark.

[muebe]

Well from my experience a 7.5 lb butt reaching 210F internal temp in 6 hours is a fast cook. I have never had a butt finish that quickly. Even at 260F in the pellet grill the fastest has been around 11 hours to reach 200F IT. I have them take as long as 23 hours.

But what matters is that Jaxon was pleased with the results regardless

[sparky]

the fat content could have just been that one butt.  I use to smoke @ 170° for 2 hours and then to 240 -250° until it hit 205° internal.  it would take anywhere from 10 to 16 hours.  used a lot of pellets.  my last 4 butts I have cooked at 275° for 3 hours and then wrap and put back on for another 3 hours.  each and every time I probe them at the 6 hour mark they are 202-206°.  perfect each and every time so far.   

[Jaxon]

Been away for a couple of days...trying to reply

Ed, my brother-in-smoke, I consider slow cookin' to be 200 to 250 or so.  By the time I get to 275, I'm thinkin' pretty hot for butts - and especially for ribs.  This is just MY idea about smokin' temps for MY backyard.  When I cooked this Butt on Friday, I placed it closer to the exhaust - further from the firebox.  To measure the temp at meat level, I pushed my BBQ probe tip THRU the meat so it was protruding over the grates.  I believe I get a pretty accurate reading with that method.  On that end of the grates I am close to 275 when the thermometer in the lid is around 300.  I can build a sustainable fire to hold 325 if I need to - glad I haven't needed to.  Of course, I can always move the meat closer to the firebox for higher temps.  ALSO, most butts are tapered, aren't they?  I place 'em so the larger end is facing the firebox - seems to cook evenly.

Muebe, my mentor (along with others,) I find that I rarely cook 7.5 - 8 lb butts more than 8 hours (one took a little over 9 hours).  I wouldn't cook 'em if they took 11 or more hours.  Then again, mine probably don't turn out as good as yours.

Sparky1, great minds think alike...I believe the combination will work well for me...smokin' for 3 to 4 hours, wrap and finish for 3 to 4 hours depending on the I T.  One of the most important things I have learned is to let the pork "rest" for about an hour under a loose tent.  That has made a world of difference in the juiciness -what I call "the moisture content" of the meat.

SO ---  I guess the answer is, "cook it the way you like it and the don't worry about the fat".  B T W, i went through it well and took out all those ugly clumps of fat you don't want to find in your sandwich.

Thanks, again, folks for all your valuable input.  I think I'm gonna make it.

[muebe]

Jaxon I also don't foil my butts. I like the bark better non-foiled. Foiling does speed up the cooking time however.

And as far as time I just fire up the pellet grill low and slow overnight and they are ready the next morning so the long cook time does not bother me

[Jaxon]

You're my hero Meube...

just sayin'...