Pulled pork on a Weber kettle grill

The best meal that takes a day to make and a few minutes to eat: pulled pork

Step 1: The Grill

BBQ is low and slow cooking. Although most 'Qers make pulled pork on a smoker, the same results can be achieved on a kettle. In fact, the benefit of a kettle is that you can grill and BBQ. By grilling, you use direct heat directly under the meat. (Think: steak) With BBQ, you use indirect heat, which is more like using an oven.

Comments

[TracesDad]

I started Smoking because of this Instructable. I used the dry rub recipe on the first butt i smoked and got more complements than anything. Here we are now 4 years later and i am going back to your method. i will not say that i have mastered anything but i have become very efficient with a smoker. I am planning on lighting up tomorrow morning for Father's Day weekend and I have to say that i am very happy i found this Instructable again. I will be following this to the T !!!! thank you for posting this!

[EricCable]

I am three hours into my cook and it's not looking good. I followed the instructions exactly (45 pieces of charcoal on each side, light 20 pieces and split between the two sides) and it never got above 180 (vent on bottom open, on top closed)

Any suggestions would be appreciated, but probably too late to save this chunk of meat.

[mnlang]

All hope is not lost. Crack the to vent to get some air flowing. The temperature should rise. The meat is still cooking at 180, just slower. Increase the air moving through the grill and you should be fine. Good luck!

[EricCable]

Cracking the top vent helped. Unfortunately, I had piled so much fuel on the grill the temp shot up to over 300. The good news was, it was done at the original finish time, but cooked a little fast.

I did like your rub recipe.

It will work better next time. Thanks

[damocl]

Great guide , thank you

[mnlang]

Thanks, glad you liked it!

[dmoskowitz]

Another brilliant guide! Might I recommend Bear Paws for said pulling (though these are a different brand, they are on Amazon Prime): http://amzn.com/B00ALH3LH6

[mnlang]

Thanks...and yes, those work great! I've used them once before, but have yet to order a pair for myself.

[Quick-tune]

Yuk! what IS that stuff? do you actually eat it? it looks like there's been an RTA!

[dpark2000]

Thanks for the tutorial. Very informative. I've made pulled pork at 275 deg on the gas grill. I'm curious if you have tried a a slightly higher temp? Also, what size of Boston Butt did you use?

[Missourian]

Well done.

[cimz]

I used this instructable to make pulled pork yesterday. Thank you so much for posting! It definitely made the entire process much easier. Thanks!

[mnlang]

Thanks and awesome, that's great! I'm glad you had success!

[ehmbee]

My My My that is some fine looking meat.

[vandal1138]

That's what she said

[ehmbee]

Heh, that never stops bein' funny.....

[mnlang]

It definitely is a cheap way to a great dinner.

[bubbaopus]

 Beautiful cuts of meat there!
Great Rub Mix as well!

[cryptic99]

How often do you add the wood chips?  I would think you would have to add new chips or chunks every hour or so.  also do you prefer chips over chunks?  Thanks for these detailed instructions!!

[mnlang]

Thanks!

Typically, I add them in the beginning and then about an hour in.  At a certain temperature point, the smoke stops having an affect on the meat in terms of creating a smoke ring.  To continue smoking the entire cook is IMO unnecessary, but others may say different.

I go with whatever I have on hand, but typically go towards chips.  They just need to soak long enough so they don't burn up too fast.

Good luck!

[bubbaopus]

 If you buy a metal smoker box, or make smoke pouches from aluminum foil, you'll get a longer smoke... With the pouches, you can make up a bit in advance. I do this on my gas grill...

[vandal1138]

Highly informative sir. Well done. And be sure to keep some sunblock on that icon of yours or it will burn

[mnlang]

Thanks! And thanks for the sunblock warning...because the worse part about the head burn is the head peel...horrible.

[vandal1138]

oooh, I bet that is preeettttyyyy. You should get a good even burn on that bad boy, and see if you could peel it off in one piece. That would would make a hell of an ible. How to shed your head.... If you make that happen I want to be in the credits!

[tsangell]

Great pics, bro. You put some thought into them.

[mnlang]

Thanks Tsangell. I have this strange disorder that compels me to photograph food!

[tchiseen]

Great work, and thanks, I am now starving and dying for pulled pork.

[mnlang]

Thanks Tchiseen...I know exactly how you feel.

[Tobita]

I feel stupid for thinking C, H, and O stood for cool, hot, oh my!

[mnlang]

Ha! Yeah, for some reason I probably could have used fractions or something, but at the time it just seemed right...it must have been the beer talking :)

[Tobita]

I didn't mark it on my barbecue, for the first couple of months, i peered through from the inside to see what difference it made :P

[mcmaaori]

We have a webber and use it like a mini hangi maker. Meat falling off the bone is the best way to eat it.

[mnlang]

No kidding...that sounds pretty cool!

[AuntieMmmm2]

Thanks for the detailed information. We do a lot of smoking and use the same indirect cooking with the chips. We haven't done a pork roast yet, but I'm sure we will do one now. Do you have a favorite rub? Great Post...

[mnlang]

No problem! I have enjoyed experimenting with the rub I posted, but to be honest, I kind of tend to move from one to the next.

[gamnoparts]

Awesome pics & overall a good instructable. I have to agree w/ alphapyro about the briquettes & the flavor. I switched to the lump charcoal earlier this summer & won't go back. Although, it does burn hotter, and a lil faster. FWIW, adding wood to your fire won't detract from your lawnchair security post (too much). ;) Also, if you can get your hands on some cherry wood, it makes phenomenal smoke chips (most fruit trees do).

[mnlang]

Thanks! Cherry...yes, I don't know how I left that off. Good to know wood is a viable option. As you pointed out, my security post is too important to bypass! :)

[fireman115]

Yummy.....Nice Ibl

[alphapyro]

Good information here. I do have concerns over the minion method you are describing. Using the briquette charcoal can impart some not so pleasant flavors by not letting it burn until it is ashed over. This is especially true if you are using the "K" brand. While I don't want to start a BBQ purity war or anything wouldn't it be better to NOT add more charcoal and instead use just wood? Also, if you are restricting the top vent you are potentially trapping smoke. Stale smoke will bitter your meat and damage the flavor. As well, you can tell when the meat is done with that tasty bone can effortlessly be pulled out of the butt. Just wanted to bring some of these issues to light for aspiring BBQ smokers

[mnlang]

Hi Alphapyro - You bring up some great points. Indeed, one of the "cons" of the minion method is the use of unlit charcoal. I have discussed this with a number of fellow grilling/BBQ friends who have used this method and personally, I have never detected any off flavors. Nor have my friends. Apparently my taste buds aren't that fined tuned! However, if you are, most certainly this might not be the method for you. I use Kingsford briquettes for smoking in the kettle instead of lump hardwood charcoal because I find the Kingsford briquettes burn a little slower and hold their heat over time. Adding wood is an interesting idea and one I have not thought of before. I guess it certainly would be possible, but I have no idea how that would work with heat control over time. I imagine it could be more labor intensive, but that is just a guess. Although the top vent is restricted, the non-sealed nature of the kettle allows smoke to easily escape between the lid and the bottom part of the kettle. Furthermore, the wood chips tend to burn off within the first few hours so there really is not that much smoke being trapped. I remember reading that a smoke ring can only be produced until the meat reaches an internal temperature of 140 degrees. Although smoke can still impart flavor later in the cooking process, the smoke ring is not impacted past that point. You are absolutely right about the bone! In fact, I swore I had a picture of just the bone sitting there with all of the meat completely pulled away. Unfortunately, I couldn't find it. A clean bone (and clean plates) is the way to know you did a great job. I am glad you brought all of those ideas up. There are a ton of different ways to smoke a shoulder. Although this way works for me, it might not work for everyone. The fun thing is trying and experimenting. Mike