Dinner is at 6 PM on Saturday. I’ve got two pork shoulders of different sizes. How do you all go about timing varying weights so that they are done about the same time?
Also, curious to know what you guys pay per pound for pork shoulder.
by Nikkos2000
6 Comments
I would start them at the same time so they both get smoke. One will be done earlier so pull that one first and keep warm until the other one is done.
I would wait an hour before putting the smaller one on. And it’ll likely still be done a bit faster but it’ll be close. Pay 2-3 a lb or on sale can get for 99 cents a few times a year.
Little known fact.. you can rest that pork in foil for HOURS and have it still be super hot.
In northern Wisconsin bone-in pork shoulder is on sale fairly regularly at like 1.97 a pound.
I do these the exact same as a brisket, assuming pulled pork is the goal.
Season and let rest in the fridge uncovered 24 hours (more or less) prior to cooking.
Cook at 225 uncovered the entire time until 190F internal.
Pull and wrap in foil.
Put on sheet tray (or just something to contain leaks) and put in the oven at 150, or as low as it’ll go. Mine only goes down to 170.
Let it rest in the oven as long as you need it to, targeting at least 6 hours, but can go longer. Technically you can leave it indefinitely since it’s above food safe temp, but obviously that would dry out after a while.
Pull/shred and serve.
Following this method, for a dinner at 6:00 Sunday, I’d season Friday afternoon, and start the cook Saturday night, probably 10:00 pm or so.
In Texas, at Costco I pay $2.59/lb for pork butt.
What you have are two picnic shoulder roasts. A whole shoulder (front leg) is comprised of a Boston butt (the upper roast) and a picnic roast (the lower roast). In this picture, the top row are whole shoulders. The bottom left is a picnic, and the bottom right are two butts. [https://i.imgur.com/7rIKA.jpg](https://i.imgur.com/7rIKA.jpg)
Your first decision will be to remove the skin or not. The skin can keep the roast moister, but you don’t get as much bark.
For timing, start the 8# roast first, then put the 4# roast on the smoker after a couple of hours. I use an injection, a BBQ rub, several sprays during cooking, and usually wrap in foil when the internal reaches 160°. Add a few ounces of apple juice to the foil before sealing, then return to the smoker (or an oven) and cook until probe tender.
As others have mentioned, you can rest these roast in an insulated cooler, or cycling your oven. This link might help plan your cook. [https://howtobbqright.com/2017/05/26/smoked-pork-picnic-recipe/](https://howtobbqright.com/2017/05/26/smoked-pork-picnic-recipe/)