10 Best Large Charcoal Bbq Uk

Best Large Charcoal Bbq Uk in 2023

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How to Bbq Pulled Pork

A step by step process in making your own smoked pulled pork.

First, there are two options on what type of meat to use.

Both choices come from the shoulder area. The picnic, or the lower portion of the shoulder, is a less expensive cut that will still have a portion of skin attached. The upper part of the shoulder is called the butt, is slightly more expensive than the picnic but does not need any additional trim work. Personally, I prefer the butt for cooking as it's yield is marginally better and takes less prep time to prepare (removing the skin). The picnic requires the same handling for preparation as the butt with the exception of having to remove the thick skin.

Preparation

There is a layer of fat on the bottom of the butt. Some people trim this layer off to get more surface bark, but I do not as there will be plenty of bark to go around. Most of the fat will render during the cook anyway, and the fat that does not will be easy to remove. So leave it alone.

Most barbecuers' apply mustard or a light coating of oil before applying a rub. The purpose of the coating is to help the rub adhere to the surface. Another option before applying the rub is to salt the surface about 15 minutes before applying the rub, thus letting the salt prepare the surface naturally. If you do the third option, be sure to reduce or leave the salt out of the rub.

The Rub

There is no perfect combination of rub formulas. Your preference is what matters.

The primary components are salt, sweet and heat. How you get there is what determines what ingredients are to be used. I would avoid store bought rubs as they are heavy in salt content and expensive. What is needed is balance of flavors.

Here is an example:

3 tbl of coarse salt
2 tbl of turbinado sugar
2 tbl of black pepper
1 tbl of sweet paprika
1 tbl of granulated garlic
1 tbl of granulated onion
1 tbl of dried thyme
1 tbl of cayenne
1 tbl of brown sugar

Turbinado sugar is used because it is less likely to burn than a brown sugar would. It won't change the flavor whether you decide to use it or not.

This is a basic rub base. You can add ingredients or delete them as you wish, adjusting to your own taste. Just try and avoid buying store bought rubs if you can.

Apply the coating of choice, and then apply the rub (I use an empty Tones shaker bottle) fairly heavily. Let the butt sit, start the smoker, and 15 minutes later, apply the rub again.

Once the smoker is up to temp, the butt is ready to be put on.

Cooking the Butt

The best way to cook a butt is in a smoker.

I use a Weber Smokey Mountain bullet smoker for long cooks. Using about 10-12 lbs of quality lump charcoal, this smoker will burn on the single load for upwards of 24 hours. You can cook a butt on offset pits, and some kettles (Weber), but their use of fuel isn't as efficient as the WSM smoker. Gas grilles would be very difficult to use successfully, as maintaining low and even temps are generally do not fall in their niche.

Other inexpensive smokers such as brinkman work, but require much more attention and are nowhere near as efficient without modifications.

Once you have some sort of smoker available, there is not much left to do except determine and maintain what temperatures to cook at.

You can bbq a pork butt at temps anywhere from 210° to 350°. Somewhere in the middle of this range is probably the best. Cooking at the lowest temperature could extend the cook to upwards of 16-18 hours and possibly leaving the butt slightly dry......while cooking at the upper end may not allow the butt's internal fat to fully work it's magic while rendering down.

I like to cook butts at around a 250° grate temperature. This usually gives up a 12-14 hour cook, and a perfectly rendered butt. (It is important to know the grate temperature on any type of grill or smoker that is used for what amounts to an outdoor baking situation. The lid temps shown on built in thermometers can often times read 50-100° than what the actual grate temp really is).

I use lump, with 4-5 near fist size chunks of smoking woods such as pecan, cherry, hickory. It isn't necessary to pre-soak chunks, just put them on top of the fuel. Avoid mesquite, as it can get awfully bitter on long cooks.

The butt is finished when it becomes fully tender. Some will take the butt off the smoker when it reaches an exact internal temperature of around 190°. But I wouldn't do this.

I will check internal temperatures with a thermapen (a digital instant read thermometer), but tenderness is my guide. The problem with relying solely on a thermal reading, is that there are about seven different muscle masses that connect in the butt. That makes temperature readings a bit inconsistent, and thus taking the chance that the butt may dry out.

When the temp probe goes into the butt like soft butter, then I know the collagen has broken down and the butt is tender. This is the time to pull off the butt.

Wrap the butt in heavy duty aluminum foil with the fat side up, and place the butt in a towel lined cooler for anywhere from 1-4 hours allowing the internal moisture to redistribute.

Pulling and Serving the Butt

Now, the easy part.

After the butt has rested, I'll place the butt in a sheet pan and unwrap there. First, pull out the bone on the side of the butt. The bone will usually pull out completely clean!

You can use 2 forks, your fingers (might be hot), or bear claws ( can be bought on the internet) to pull the pork. I prefer to leave choices of meat when pulling, some chunky, some shredded, etc. But I never chop.

I will apply additional rub to taste for more flavor, along with a tbl/per pound of sauce. Mix it well and serve. I always allow for the guests to choose whether or not to sauce heavily.

I hope this helps reduce the mystery of making your own pulled pork.