What's Cooking this Weekend??

[StPeteBBQ]

What's on everyone's grill this weekend?

Me, I'm gonna do the old standby: Pork Butt... and if Sam's has them, I'll put a big ol' chuck roast on the bottom grate. Overnight cook; the butt should take 13-14 hours, and the chuck, well that depends on how big the sucker is... usually takes 3 hrs/lb. 15 hours for a 5 pounder.

Pulled pork and shredded beef... Yum, yum! :D

[sharky]

I'm going for beer can chicken and possibly grilled pizza!


Can I smoke a butt on the weber Kettle grill?

[StPeteBBQ]

It could be done... but you'd have to tend it pretty carefully.

You need to maintain 225 - 250 for roughly 2 hrs/lb. So if you've got an average butt of 7 lbs, you need to allow at least 14 hours of indirect cooking. Indirect cooking on the kettle means very little room for coals. You need a lot of coals for a 14 hour cook, so you'd have to keep adding them throughout the cook.

You'd also need to do what is called the Minion Method of firing the coals. This is simple and involves placing a very few lit coals on a bed of unlit coals. That way only a few coals are burning, and a new supply is available.

One way to do this on the kettle would be to form a circle with the coals around the outside of the charcoall grate, and don't fully close the circle, but leave a 4 or 5 inch gap. Put 4 or 5 lit coals on one end of the circle and let it burn around the circle. Still not sure if that will give you the required cooking time. Temp control is also more difficult on the kettle. Do you have the Silver or the Gold? The silver (without the fancy ash catcher) is better because it has the 3 temp controls, I think. Leave the lid control at least half open throughout.

My little smoker does this well because I can put 15 lbs of coals in the charcoal ring and 10 lit coals on top and it will burn for 20 hours, if there's not a lot of wind.

If you try it, don't get discouraged when the butt hits a "plateau" at 165* - 170*. That always happens and it is normal. It might sit there for 2 hours or more. That's the point when the "magic" is happening. All the fat and connecting tissue is being rendered out then. You'll want to let it get to 195*, then wrap in foil, towels, and put it in a dry cooler for a couple of hours. It will still be over 190*, don't worry. You will have pulled pork to die for.

You could also foil after 170* and even finish it in the oven.

Baste it thoughout with apple juice and EVOO mixture, in a spray bottle, using the "half" method. If you figure the cook will be 16 hours, baste first at 8 hours, then at 4 more, then at 2 more, etc. Put just apple juice in with it if you foil.

[SeanB]

The only thing I know for sure is that I am going to spatchcock a chicken. I might try to pick up some corn on the cob to throw in with the chicken.

[sharky]

StPeteBBQ -

That would be why I enjoy Grilling more than BBQ. I like instant gratification. I like sitting outside for an hour or 2 and cooking a complete meal!

I have the Silver series webber:-)

[StPeteBBQ]

One of these days I'll surprise you with a hot pork butt... that'll make a believer out of you... :)

Try the ABT's (http://www.sharky.com/forum/showthread.php?t=76) on the Kettle one of these days... only takes an hour...

Hey, did you get my e-mail earlier? To your biz acct?

[sharky]

I didn't. Let me check spamarrest. If you didn't reply to their automatic message it didn't come down for me.

[StPeteBBQ]

Didn't get any message from Spamarrest.

[sharky]

I got it and will be getting you set up Monday monring:-))

On another note I ruined some baby backs last night. lol. I bought them from Roberts Meat Market yesterday with the rub already on them. They turned out really dry. Next time I will rub them myself about 24 hours ahead of time!

[StPeteBBQ]

Ruined ribs is a bummer... :mad:

However, look on the bright side - ruined ribs on the grill (a couple of hours?) isn't near as bad as ruined ribs on the smoker (5-6 hours).

I did a pork shoulder picnic and a chuck roast on Friday night. Put them on around 9 PM. The shoulder was 9 lbs before trimming. The chuck roast was 4.5, no trimming.

The chuck was done at 9:00 in the morning. The picnic was at 176* 20 hours after I put it in... stubborn SOB. I removed it, foiled it, and stuck it in the oven at 250* for 2 more hours.

PITA picnic, but it sure is good :D . Pulled pork omelets for breakfast this AM. Shredded beef sammiches for dinner last night. Foodsaver bags in the freezer for the rest of the week.

Shoot me an e-mail when you get things set up. No rush.

[Deuce]

Grilling is easy, smoking takes talent..... j/k :) I enjoy both but I find that our guests really enjoy the smoked foods as it is something that they don't usually have.