Smoked Pulled Pork Butt & Chinese Cabbage

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Boston Butt isn't a butt, it's a cut of meat just off the shoulder of the pig. Why it's called a butt is another story. Smoked Boston butt is the meat in pulled pork sandwiches and dinners which are famous in the Southern United States. Our local independent grocery had Boston butt on sale, so I purchased an almost 5 pound butt. A larger butt is preferable but I purchased what they had.

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Remove the butt from the package and place on a rack over a cookie sheet and pat dry. Spread Dijon mustard over the whole butt. Slather it on, don't be shy. In a separate bowl mix 2 tbs of smoked paprika, 2 tbs garlic powder, 2 tbs onion powder, 2 tbs ground dried cumin, 1 tsp ground cayenne pepper, 1 tsp dried thyme, 1 tsp dried oregano, 1 tbs salt, 1 tsp freshly ground black pepper, Spread the rub over the mustard coated butt, rubbing and patting it in as you go. Take 1 cup dark brown sugar and pat it all over the butt on all sides. Wrap butt in a loose fitting plastic bag and place in fridge overnight. 

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Meanwhile start on your cabbage. Chop two small or one large yellow onion, sauté in olive oil. Cut and peel a 2 inch piece of ginger root and grate. Add 2 large clove of garlic chopped fine. Add 2 red chilis chopped or some cayenne or red pepper flakes. Add 5 tbs rice wine vinegar, 2 tbs soy sauce, 4 star anise, 4 tbs dark brown sugar, 1 tsp sesame oil, 1/2 tsp salt, 1/2 freshly ground pepper. Cook till soft. Fish out star anise. Stir in 2 tbs toasted sesame seeds.

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The next day take the butt out of the fridge, unwrap and let the butt come to room temperature, approximately one hour. After the hour wait I inject the meat with frozen apple juice concentrate which has been thawed but not diluted using a food grade syringe. While I was waiting for the meat to come to room temperature I soaked two cups of wood chips in water for 30 minutes. The wood chips used can be mesquite, hickory or fruit wood chips. In the South hickory or fruit wood is customarily used. In Texas they might use mesquite chips.

My gas grill has three burners. I preheat the grill to 275 F using one burner. Place the wood chips in foil or in a stainless steel wood chip container and set on the grill. The wood chips will be placed on the grill side without direct heat. The meat also goes on the side without direct heat along with a bowl of frozen apple juice concentrate which is thawed but not diluted. After placing the meat on the grill, try to maintain the temperature at 275 F. The idea is to smoke (cook) the meat low and slow.

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After an hour of cook time I check the wood chips to be sure there are still enough in the container and also check the bowl of apple juice so neither run empty. An 8 to 10 lb butt takes about 12 hours of cook time. I'm guessing mine will take less.  A few hours into the cooking and I put some of the apple juice into a spritzer and spray the meat to keep it moist. When the meat reaches an internal temperature of 165 F I remove meat from grill and wrap tightly in aluminum foil,. Then I place meat back on the grill. I continue to cook meat till it reaches 200 F. Then I remove meat from grill, keep it wrapped, and let it rest for one hour. After that I open up the package and place the meet in a baking dish and start to pull the meat apart. You can pull the meat with gloved hands or two forks or two tongs.

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Some folks like to add a vinegar based BBQ sauce into the meat, some like a particular favorite sauce, some like it plain. The usual would be to serve the meat in a sandwich along with coleslaw, but I decided to make the Chinese cabbage this time. Enjoy.

Update: after today's fiasco I think I'll let the experts cook my pulled pork. You tube videos make it all seem so easy, NOT. The BBQ burners wouldn't light, chips didn't smoke. Then the chips caught on fire big time, smoking up the whole neighborhood. After 6 hours and internal temperature of 140 F, I've brought the butt inside and I'm cooking the butt in the oven. Meanwhile hungry as I am I have surreptitiously taken out some Amish reserve blue cheese and I'm lapping it up like a creature in the middle of the desert at an oasis. Hopefully this indulgence will hold me over till tomorrow.