Two hours? How much pork you smoking? I can’t do a butt in less than 10, no matter how hot the day.
I’m throwing in my hat with the rest of the WSM owners here. If you’re looking for a smoker, just pass up all the others and get the Weber. Sure, it costs more, but you’ll never be sorry.
The last time I cooked pork butt I put two of them in the WSM and cooked them low and slow at 225 until they reached 200 degrees, which was about 12 hours or so. I only needed to fill the charcoal ring once and didn’t have to add more during the cook. It’s very easy to control the heat with a WSM.
You’ll need a remote dual thermometer giving you readings of the meat and the smoker.
This web site is the SDMB for WSM enthusiasts.
A previously posted recipe and just all-around good read.
Really?? I keep the coals good and hot. Maybe change them once or twice. And keep the air flow things on the grill closed on the top but not the bottom.
I’m trying to think how big my first one was (that took 2 or 3 hours). Maybe 4 lbs? Not too huge.
Alton Brown’s method - hotplate, chips in a pan, inside of 2 adobe pots - took about 10 hrs too.
Dude, why? I’m just a Clevelander - we eat sausages with spicy mustard here not pulled pork…school me 
I must admit tho last time I made pork I made my own mustard sauce. Is it Maurice that offends you or the mustard? Or the pickle?
Mustard sauces are a staple of South Carolina BBQ.
These people are not of The Holy Mother Church, and are to be cast out, forever denied the Food of The Gods.
My obligatory link to Dave Lineback’s NC Q pages.
http://www.ibiblio.org/lineback/lex.htm
This will give you more hours of reading than you have.
If you’re finishing a 4 lb butt in 2 or 3 hours, you’re definitely way above BBQ temps (225F - 275F) and well into grilling temps (325F+) Does the pork really pull when you do it this way? I can’t imagine the fat has enough time to render out and the collagen has enough time to melt into the meat.
For a 4 lb butt, I would expect a minimum of 6 hours of cooking time, more like 8 hours. This assumes a temp around 225-250F.
Actually, “grilling temps” might not be the best nomenclature here, but the point remains that your fire is outside the realm of “low and slow” over wood, which is BBQ.
A classic, although not really vinegar-based, Carolina-style barbecue.
Screw that. If you really want good Q and the ability to grill, step up to the plate and get an egg.
Nothing finer anywhere. Low and slow at 200F? No problem. Grill at 1,000F ? Got you covered.
You’ve already had some good advice here, so I won’t muddle the water any further.
I just wanted to welcome you to the path of the One True Barbecue. If you ever hear of a cook-off in your area, go. Go now, and taste the nectar of the gods.
That’s what my dad has at his house. He’s had it for more than ten years. One caveat, make sure you keep it cleaned and good airflow, plus clean around the temp gauge or you’ll get temps that are way out of whack and start overcooking stuff.
Yes, but whatever you do, don’t google “butt rub” and “probe” together.
Yep. I’ve had one for 4 years now. I recommended the WSM b/c I can’t bring myself to advise anyone to buy an Egg unless I know they will get $600 worth of enjoyment out of it. (Though, I still think a Tec makes a better steak. I really think the egg shines at lower temps.)
Zipper - I was mostly kidding. I think Maurice’s sauce is waaaaay too strong to put on smoked pork, especially in the quantities he uses. However, mustard can certainly be used to accent a sauce, and is often located in Tomato-based sauces without anyone really knowing.
Wisenheimer.
Temp gauage, pfft. Part of learning the craft of BBQ (IMHO, of course) is learning how to read the fire and the meat. I have yet to use a thermometer while smoking, and my results are consisently good.
Rick, that Big Green Egg is great, I’m sure. Looks like the perfect little smoker, but for a beginner (who often thinks that $200 for a WSM is a lot of cash to shell out), it’s a bit pricey. Oh, and I grill on my WSM, too…I don’t see why you would think you couldn’t.
So, let me say the WSM is the most affordable smoker that will give you consistently good results and teach you proper fire and vent control. There are, of course, better products out there, but I wouldn’t start a beginner out on anything less than this.
But if you’ve got the cash to shell out for an egg (pun intended), go for
Actually, believe it or not, it was page 4 of the results before the first sex toy link appeared.
Yep. And I still use the wooly-worm to predict rainfall.
Other than limited access to one, I can’t think of any good reason NOT to use a grill thermometer. Not one.
You don’t need one. That’s good enough for me. I’d rather learn to cook by intuition, if I have to. You have more flexibility that way. And it’s less stress than obsessively monitoring the temps. I just trust the meat to cook. And it does.
At any rate, I subscribe very much to the ways outlined in the 5-step method I’ve linked to above, and that’s how the barbecue pitmasters do it. As long as the cue turns out good, who cares how it’s done.
From the site I cited above.
That worked for me, so I’m sticking with it. Sometimes I know my fire runs a little hot; sometimes I know a little cool, but I don’t stress about it and fiddle with the vents or anything as long as the meat is cooking right.
I know more than a dozen pit masters who use thermometers. I also know that, with certain cookers, it is extremely foolish to continue opening the lid or door to check the fire or meat. It would be impossible on mine.
Personally, I don’t “obsessively monitor temps”. I check them every now and again, and have a certain range that I’m happy with.
Personally, I think it is very foolish for someone who doesn’t know what a finished product or perfect fire looks like to avoid thermometers. I’ve spent a great deal of time in professional kitchens, and I think thermometers ensure a fantastic finished product 99 times out of 100.