Smoked Pork Butt, or Boston Butt as it is sometimes called, is relatively easy to make compared to other smoked meats. This North Carolina staple is also very versatile. Make sandwiches, tacos, mix into a salad, whatever you come up with, pulled pork works great. Be careful, you’re going to want to “pig out” on this stuff. (See what I did there? Sorry.) And don’t tell your friends it’s not really a butt, it’s a shoulder but they don’t have to know that.

Music: purple-planet.com

Prep Time:  10 minutes

Cook Time (approx.):  6 to 8 hours

Smoker Temp:  250°to 275°

Wood:  Any fruit wood. (Apple, Cherry, Peach, etc.)

Ingredients:

• 3 lbs. of pork butt or Boston butt
• Olive oil
• ½ cup BBQ rub
• 4 oz. brown sugar

Steps:

1. Coat all sides with olive oil.
2. Season all sides generously with BBQ rub.
3. Sprinkle brown sugar evenly on all sides.
4. Place in smoker at 250°
5. Baste every 2 hours.
6. Pull off at 165°internal temp.
7. Baste and wrap in foil.
8. Place back on smoker.
9. Cook to 200°to 205°internal temp.
10. Let rest in foil 30 to 45 minutes.
11. Shred.

Tips:

• Make sure you have some foil pans handy. These will save you a ton of cleanup.
• I like the bone in shoulders because I feel like they cook more evenly but boneless works just as well.
• You can also throw in a hickory or even mesquite wood chunk during cooking to add to the smoke flavor.
• That bone is hot! Even after resting.  If you watch the video close enough you will see me burn my hand on it then I throw a glove on.
• If you can’t slide the bone out clean by just pulling then your shoulder isn’t done.Wrap it up and throw it in the oven to finish.
• Check the temp in several spots before claiming victory.

Health Nut:

• Use mustard instead of olive oil as a coating agent.
• Use a low or no sodium rub.
• Use apple cider vinegar to baste.
• Trim the fat off before or even after cooking. I don’t recommend this, but you want abs.