Best temp for cooking pulled pork (shoulder)

[BARDSLJR]

So, Franklin recommends 275*;  Meathead Goldwyn recommends 225*....they are both highly credible sources. What do you think/recommend?  I have to start a couple of pork shoulders in the morning for dinner tomorrow night, while we are cheering on our Saints Vs Tampa Bay.

[alimac23]

It depends how much time you’ve got, our bbq team have tried both, both five great results but you’ll shave a couple of hours off running at 275.

Personally, I prefer the result that 225 gives.


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[BARDSLJR]

I have two 7-8 lb shoulders....want to start at 7-8AM and take off at 5PM. So we are thinking, then, 275* for that ?

 

[alimac23]

Yeah I’d definitely be running 275 for that time frame.


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[Tucker]

I use 220 f and no matter the size, it seems to take 12-16 hrs to hit internal temp of 195 f.

I usually allow for overnight cook, then wrap/hold in a cooler until serving time.

[BARDSLJR]

All right , then, 275* it is.

[BARDSLJR]

Stay tuned.

[5698k]

Pork is so forgiving, temperature doesn’t really matter, just don’t get so hot as to burn sugar that might be in your rub. Other than that, crank the heat as you care to..


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[BARDSLJR]

Quote

 

So, the adventure begins, or rather, began at 7:30 AM. Two photos: one, the briskets out of the refrigerator, ready for cooking, after being heavily rubbed with Dizzy Pig's Dizzy Dust the night before and left in the fridge to self-marinate overnight. Second, on the smoker as the Guru is just beginning to ramp it up. As of right now, 45 minutes in, we are at about 150* in the smoker. I should mention it is winter here in Denver, Colorado, and we started at 32*F.

[BARDSLJR]

HMMMMM. 10:45AM, about 3 hours in. The Kamado temperature probe read about 250*. The BBQ Guru says "215*"......it's still ramping up. What gives?

[jeffshoaf]

4 hours ago, BARDSLJR said:

HMMMMM. 10:45AM, about 3 hours in. The Kamado temperature probe read about 250*. The BBQ Guru says "215*"......it's still ramping up. What gives?

The dome is usually hotter than the standard grate level. For low and slow, i usually give the kk 2 to 3 hours to get up to Temp and saturate before adding the meat. I also try to get it close to the final temp before plugging in the guru fan since the guru runs wide open to bring the temperature up as fast as possible - that has caused me issues because it overshoots the target temp and shuts down to allow the temperature to drop, running the risk of the fire going out.

All of this is why i tend to do my long low and slow cooks overnight so i don't have to get up at 3 am to light my fire... If the meal is scheduled for the evening, i end up foiling the meat and sticking in a cooler stuffed with towels until mealtime. This also accommodates the occasional slower or faster than expected cook.

Edited January 17, 2021 by jeffshoaf

[tony b]

I don't see your Guru probe in the picture, so I'm venturing a guess. You have it too close to the meat and it's influencing the reading. Move the probe at least a couple of inches away from the meat. Even at heat soak, you will likely see a 20F difference between dome temp and grate temp. That's normal.

[BARDSLJR]

Wrapped the two shoulders at around 3 and am now, at 3:30 up in the 190s for both, so we are well on our way to probably coming off around 5-5:30.

Here's one of the shoulders just as I took off for wrapping.

[tony b]

Looking perfect!

[BARDSLJR]

I should have gotten a picture of he whole shoulder BEFORE I cut it up, but I'll get one of the second shoulder when I unwrap it tomorrow, instead. In the meantime, here's dinner for seven- AFTER we ate. So dinner, and lunch, and dinner, and maybe two or three other meals to come. Oh, and it turned out delicious and nearly perfect.....a good day (except for the Saints' game.)

[alimac23]

Great work! It looks amazing!

I’m glad it turned out perfectly, I really like leftovers with pulled pork. Tacos, pies, bao buns with hoisin sauce. Yum!


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[BARDSLJR]

A word of follow up....I made nachos with the leftovers and the beautifully smoked pork shoulder pushed it right over the edge: I think I had a multiple orgasm of the mouth (can I say that?).

The woods involved were 50% apple, 25% each cherry and plum. The BBQ guru was very slow in ramping up to the temp I set- 275*- so after I wrapped the two shoulders at 3 PM  (they went on at 8AM), I raised the temperature to 300* and corrected the earlier mistake I had made- the damper on the fan was set at about 50% and was essentially choking it off so it couldn't ramp up the KK faster. My bad.  Anyway, you always have adjustments you can make: if a shoulder or brisket is wrapped, it is not likely to dry out just because you raise the temp.

[tony b]

13 hours ago, BARDSLJR said:

I think I had a multiple orgasm of the mouth (can I say that?).

We call that a "foodgasm!"