I admit, I’m an egghead. Earlier this year I finally made room on the patio for one more grill- the grill of all grills- the Big Green Egg. My first “smoke” on her was a pork butt, also know as a Boston Butt. I’m a Carolina girl transplanted down to Florida, so of course my first smoke would be a pork butt. If there was a state meat, much like there is a state flower, I believe for NC it would be the pork butt.
I don’t even know why they even call it a pork butt as it comes from the shoulder area of the pig. This is a tough cut of meat that needs some serious low and slow to make it tender.
Your low and slow cook will last about 8 hours at 250 degrees. I used a mixture of peach/cherry wood for a fruity finish on the smoke.
A 6-8 lb pork butt will feed a crowd for some great pulled pork sandwiches. Or, put the pork on a tortilla paired with slaw for a pulled pork taco!! Paired with my cilantro lime coleslaw, a Mango Guava BBQ sauce and some sweet potato fries, and you have a meal that says “I’m sitting high on the hog!”
Wow, that’s a beautiful butt!
Baste that butt!!
Smoked pork butt makes for fabulous pulled pork sliders, and would work well for tacos too. Pair with my spicy slaw and sweet potato fries for an extremely satisfying meal.
Cut the fat on the top into a cross hatch so the rub can get good and rubbed in.
Smoked Pork Butt on the Big Green Egg
Ingredients
- One 6–8 lb pork butt (think 1 hour per pound to smoke)
- Your favorite BBQ rub, I used John Henrys East Texas Chipotle Cherry. Here’s a good rub recipe if you don’t have one: A chipotle brown sugar rub.
- 2 tbsp Olive Oil
- 1 cup mango nectar or apple juice- for injecting the meat to keep it moist and juicy
Instructions
Prepare your grill to 250 degrees. Add wood chips of your choice to add smokiness.
Next, slice the fat layer on the top of the meat in a “cross hatch” direction so as to create cubes on top of the meat. (see picture). This is going to help get more rub “rubbed in” to the butt.
Next, inject the meat once liberally with the mango nectar or you can use apple juice or juice of your preference.
On the egg, place the pork butt (fat side up) on the grates with a piece of foil underneath to catch the juices. Make sure to also have the place setter in place as we are cooking indirect.
Baste with the BBQ sauce periodically as it is cooking. Smoke the meat for up to 8 hours or until the internal temp reaches 191 degrees. Then it is ready to be pulled. If you have the time, you can smoke longer at a lower temp- 225, but 250 worked fine for me. I recommend using the Thermapen to check internal temps as a full-proof method for measuring temperature.
After you pull the meat off, let it rest under foil for 10 minutes. Then you are ready to “pull it” with a fork. You will shred the pork with a fork and it will be perfect for a sandwich or tortilla for pork sliders or tacos. I made sliders paired with my chipotle cilantro coleslaw and sweet potato fries.
Mango Guava BBQ Sauce
Ingredients
Mango and Guava are 2 of my favorite tropical fruits I find down here in South Florida. This recipe is easy to make and accessible to anyone as it only uses mango nectar and guava jam that is easy to find at most grocery stores. It will give you a fruity hot finish to your sliders and a non-traditional spin on bbq sauce.
Ingredients:
- 1 cup mango nectar
- 1/4 cup guava preserves
- 3 tablespoons lime juice
- t tablespoon lime zest
- 3 tablespoons honey
- 1 jalapeno pepper, finely chopped with seeds
- 2 teaspoons minced fresh ginger
Instructions
Combine all ingredients in sauce pan and let simmer for 20 minutes. Serve with you sliders. Pair the sliders with my infamous, quite addictive chipotle cilantro coleslaw.
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Looks outstanding Robyn, I’d jump all over a sandwich from it.
Awesome. One of my favorite recipes that you have posted to date. Being NC born it hits home with me. All you need is a Cheer Wine soft drink and and a Lexington,NC. slaw and you are set:-).
Nice butt there.
ha ha. thanks!! I’ll take a butt compliment any day!!!
Looks good. I really like to score the fat cap too, makes for a pretty picture.
I generally smoke leaner cuts and inject heavily, but for those cuts with a fat cap, that’s a great idea to cross hatch cut through the fat cap to allow the rub to penetrate that side.
Thanks for the great tip! Always learning!
Glad to see you’re becoming an Egghead. I’ll show you the secret handshake when I see you 🙂
Hi Ray! Yes, would love to learn the secret handshake lol. 🙂 Glad to be part of the club. I love my egg! 🙂
Hope all is well!
Your butt looks fantastic Robyn! I was wondering when your Egg was going to show up on here.
How can you tell yours is a girl? I have two but not sure of their gender 😉
Hi, Robyn. Looks like we share something egglse in common. Question — when I smoke I’m using a drip pan between my plate-setter and grill, usually filled with something that adds to the smell (beer, apple juice, veggies, etc.). You use the foil, though — why? I have two butts, one chicken, and a bunch of sausage ready to rock this Friday.
Hey Bob!
I use the foil on the placesetter to avoid the sticky mess that I can make with that mango glaze. I could also use an aluminum pan. Great idea for the extra moisture, I do that often as well. I’ve been wanting to see how wine would turn out? Ever tried that?
I did a cheap chardonnay with a whole chicken and no smoke once, just heat. In that case, any wine flavoring wasn’t enough to make a dent in the rub I’d added, so I can’t report it made any difference.
Understood on the sticky mess — that makes all the sense in the world, especially for one (me) who doesn’t like to clean.
My wife (another Robin!) thinks I should be more focused on Christmas Eve dinner than the huge mound of meat I’m smoking starting at 10pm Christmas night. She’s probably right, but … must…. have…. smoked…. PIG.
I may have to buy the hubby a Big Green Egg just to make this recipe! Hmmm, his birthday is next weekend….
I def. recommend the BGE. It can really transform your grilling experience!!
You mentioned a chipotle brown sugar rub but I did not see the recipe. Would you provide that for me.