Smoked Pork Shoulder (brined)

Print Recipe

Smoked Pork Shoulder (brined)

Smoking a whole pork shoulder is a lot of work. I’d say it is one of the most difficult things I’ve ever had to cook. It’s going to take a lot of time and patience. So get ready to keep yourself hydrated and highdrated. This is going to be an all day event.

First rule: buy a bone in pork butt. You’ll learn why later. You can brine your pork butt or use a dry rub. It’s up to you. I wanted salt to penetrate the meat all the way through, so I brined my pork butt for 24 hours. Alternatively, there are many a great dry rub spice blends out there for pork; or you can make your own. Aggressively dry rub the entire pork butt and let marinate for a day in the refrigerator.

When ready to smoke the pork butt, let it sit out at room temperature for an hour. Throwing it straight from the refrigerator to the smoker is going to add on smoking time if you don’t. If smoking a brined pork butt, pat dry with paper towels. Preheat your electric smoker to 250 degrees according to the manufacturer’s directions. Throw in the butt. For smoking a piece of meat this large, you will need to constantly maintain the heat and smoke between 225-250 degrees for 90 minutes-2 hours per lb. You will want to use a probe thermometer to monitor the internal temperature. In order for pork shoulder to pull apart and shred, the internal temperature needs to be between 200-205 degrees.

The pork shoulder I made was 6lbs and took 10 hours to smoke. You will know the meat is done when you can pull the bone out cleanly. The bone is a built in meat thermometer. This is a good reason why to always buy a bone in butt regardless of how you plan to cook it. Plus it adds flavor and moisture, better price point, and the utilization and respect to the animal to not waste it’s body. Let the meat rest covered for an hour. Using two big forks, you can start shredding the meat apart.

Smoked pork shoulder is obviously great with your favorite bbq sauce as a pulled pork sandwich. No questions there. I wanted to go a different route with the pork. Tacos? Fuck yeah, tacos! How about smoked carnitas?! Below I also included the recipe to make the smoked salsa that goes with the smoked carnitas.

Prep Time10 minutes mins

Cook Time10 hours hrs

Brining Time1 day d

Course: Main Course

Keyword: electric smoker, main course, Pork

Author: Alex Gorgos

Equipment

• Electric Smoker
• Probe Thermometer

Ingredients

• 1 whole pork shoulder 6-8lbs

Brine

• 8 cups water
• 1/2 cup sea salt
• 1/2 cup brown sugar
• 1 head garlic minced
• 1 tbsp black peppercorns

Wood Chips

• hickory wood chips
• pecan wood chips

Instructions

• Mix all of the brining ingredients together.
  
• Brine the pork shoulder for 24 hours.
  
• Pat the pork shoulder dry and let rest at room temp for an hour before smoking.
  
• Preheat your smoker to 250 degrees according to the manufacturer’s directions. Place the pork shoulder in the smoker.
  
• For smoking a piece of meat this large, you will need to constantly maintain the heat and smoke between 225-250 degrees for 90 minutes-2 hours per lb. You will want to use a probe thermometer to monitor the internal temperature. In order for pork shoulder to pull apart and shred, the internal temperature needs to be between 200-205 degrees.
  
• This pork shoulder was 6lbs and took 10 hours to smoke. You will know the meat is done when you can pull the bone out cleanly.
  
• Once the shoulder is finished smoking, remove from the smoker. Cover and let rest for an hour.
  
• Using 2 big forks, start pulling apart the pork shoulder until it’s shredded.
  

Tips For Smoking Pork Shoulder

• Always choose a bone in butt. You will know when the pork shoulder is finished cooking when you can pull the bone out clean.

• Brine the pork butt for 24 hours.

• Pat dry with paper towel to allow the smoke to stick.

• Let the pork butt sit at room temp before smoking.

• Hickory, pecan, applewood, and cherrywood are all great options for smoking pork.

• Preheat your smoker to 250 degrees according to the manufacturer’s directions.
  
• You will need to constantly maintain the smoke and temperature between 225-250 degrees for 90 minutes-2 hours per lb. My 6lb Pork butt took 10 hours.

• In order to shred the pork butt, it will need to get to an internal temperature between 200-205 degrees. Use a probe thermometer to monitor the internal temp.

• Once the pork is finished smoking, let rest covered for an hour before shredding.

Print Recipe

Smoked Salsa

Why not smoke the ingredients that go into a salsa? If I’m making smoked carnitas tacos, I have plenty of time to smoke jalapeños, tomatoes, onions, and garlic. I think I’ll keep smoking and continue to come up with these great ideas. Smokedy, smokedy, smokedy…

Also, this salsa will keep in the refrigerator for up to a week.

Cook Time4 hours hrs

Course: condiment

Keyword: condiment, electric smoker

Author: Alex Gorgos

Equipment

• Electric Smoker
• food processor

Ingredients

• 5 Roma tomatoes
• 1 head garlic left whole
• 1 medium white onion peeled; sliced in half horizontally
• 4 jalapeños
• 1/4 cup cilantro
• 4 tbsp vinegar
• 1/2 tsp salt

Wood Chips

• hickory wood chips
• pecan wood chips

Instructions

• Arrange the vegetables on the smokers rack.
  
• Preheat the smoker to 225 degrees according to the manufacturer’s directions. Place the rack in the smoker.
  
• The garlic and onions will take 2 hours to smoke. The tomatoes and jalapeños will take 4 hours. Let cool before pureeing.
  
• Place all of the ingredients in a food processor. Make sure to peel the garlic.
  
• Blend until it reaches the consistency of your liking.