How to BBQ Boston Butt

Where did the name Boston Butt come from anyhow?If you are a southerner and you know folks from Boston, then , there's your answer. Okay, I'm kidding of course and my good friends Pat and Donna Emanuele in Cape Coral, Florida are from Boston and they love BBQ, cold beer (at least Donna does!)so I count them Southern--- Okay so what's the real story, well below is a definition I stole to keep it simple--

In pre-revolutionary New England and into the Revolutionary War, some pork cuts (not those highly valued, or "high on the hog," like loin and ham) were packed into casks or barrels (also known as "butts") for storage and shipment. The way the hog shoulder was cut in the Boston area became known in other regions as "Boston Butt." This name stuck and today, "Boston Butt" is called that almost everywhere in the US,… except in Boston.

Now that you know the origin of how it came about, lets' do some up.
Preparation- Like almost all BBQ that I do , I prepare the night before and then refrigerate. I like my Boston Butts bone in but if the bone has been removed , that's fine also. I like to inject the meat with a creole-garlic injection made by Tony Chachere's that I buy from Bass Pro Shops although it is widely distributed elsewhere. The purpose of the injection is to enhance the flavor of the finished product and to add moisture during the cooking process. Be liberal in the injection process. Next I take the remaining injection and rub into the outside of the meat. After that I then add my dry rub which I have developed and rub it in very liberally. Then I place the meat into a glass casserole dish and cover with foil and let it sit in the refrigerator overnight. The next day the combination of dry rub and creole garlic turns it into a paste like " mucky rub."

Next Day- Depending on what time element I'm working with determines what I do next. For this piece we will assume I have about 6 hours to work with before the hungry crowd shows up.

The Pit- I'm going to use a standard Weber Grill for this and I can put 3-4 butts up to 8# each on . BTW, if you are planning on doing sandwiches, each butt will yield +/- 12 sandwiches depending on serving size. I will use some Kingsford charcoal heaped into a pile on one side and get that going. If you are using charcoal lighter BE SURE to let the lighter burn off completely unless you like the taste of lighter fluid in your meat. This is done when the coals have turned gray. Once that is done then I add my smoking wood which is mesquite. You can use oak, pecan or hickory also or mix them up. You can't go wrong! I let the wood burn down a bit and once that is done, I put the grill back on, let that heat up and then I put the meat on the opposite side from the fire. Open the bottom draft completely and the top draft about 1/2 to 3/4. You will have to experiment a bit with this to get the fire at the right temp. Given that I only have 6 hours in this piece to get it done, my temp will be in the 250-275 range. I will smoke them for about 3-4 hours this way, adding charcoal and wood as needed. The last 2- hours I will do what is called the Texas Crutch. I will wrap each butt in aluminum foil and put back on the grill. This will create an advanced cooking environment and will trap all of the fat, juices, spices inside. The result will be butt that is juicy, flavorful and fall apart delicious. This is where "pulled pork" comes from which is the process of pulling the meat apart for sandwiches.

Sauces- There is no need to add sauce during cooking or toward the end, but you can add your favorite BBQ sauce and trimmings to your sandwich and be one happy camper at the end of th day.

May The Q Be With You!