Question heading into first butt

[Bearded]

My question is in regards to the rest.

Once I pull the butt off the grill I know it should rest for 30-60 minutes.

Is this done on the counter?

Do you only use the cooler and towel trick when trying to keep the meat warm for longer than the rest? Does the towel trick work for ribs as well as briskets and butts?

Thanks for any advice or input. Wife's birthday is Sunday so I am making my first butt for pulled pork, smoked Mac and cheese and coleslaw.

I will follow up with pics here.

[Foster Dahlet]

Let internal temp drop to 170 then wrap the butt in foil.  Grab a cooler.  Put towels in bottom of the cooler, put the butt on top of the towels and throw a couple more towels on top of the butt, then close the cooler.  Let it rest a couple hours and it will come out great.

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[Foster Dahlet]

As for ribs, you do not want to do the faux cambro method I just gave you. Just let em cool a little bit and serve. If you are trying to time everything, the butt or brisket would finish and come off the grill and go into the cooler a couple of hrs before the ribs come off the grill.  Then you can serve it all at once.

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[Bearded]

Let internal temp drop to 170 then wrap the butt in foil.  Grab a cooler.  Put towels in bottom of the cooler, put the butt on top of the towels and throw a couple more towels on top of the butt, then close the cooler.  Let it rest a couple hours and it will come out great.

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Awesome. Thanks. What's the shortest rest you recommend? And do your till recommend doing the cambro for this shortened rest?

[SMOKE FREAK]

IF you're only going for a short rest then cover it with foil and place it in the microwave with the door shut. 30 to 60 minutes will probably bring it down to temps where you can pull it without burning yourself.

[Ashley Coalburn]

If you're pulling it, no need to rest at all if you don't want to. Cook to internal of 203 degrees and remove. I pull pork with a Kitchen Aide mixer and bread hook, so I just break it into chunks and put it in the bowl. Works like a dream and no need to wait.

[Bearded]

Awesome! Thanks for all of the info! I will update tomorrow with pics and how it turned out.

[Foster Dahlet]

On the bottom of this you will find guide to resting times.

https://www.virtualweberbullet.com/letting-meat-rest-after-cooking/

This article gives more information than you will ever want.  Lots of resting smaller meats is unnecessary, but if you scroll down it explains why people rest roasts, butts, brisket and the like.  They call it "holding"  though. 

https://amazingribs.com/more-technique-and-science/more-cooking-science/science-juiciness-why-resting-and-holding-meat-are

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[Ashley Coalburn]

For the sake of this discussion, if the purpose of resting is to retain moisture and we're pulling the pork, simply mix whatever runs out back into the bowl of pulled pork. No waiting. This is easy if you put the whole butt on a baking sheet for pulling or chunking. Something with short sides and non-porous (rather than say a wood cutting board) to retain the moisture. Been doing it like this for years. I have rested butt too, and saw no difference if the liquid is retained and returned to the bowl.

Getting up early to add resting time for something as simple as pork butt doesn't make sense. A Brisket or another large hunk of meat to be sliced, yeah, worth it. 

[1911Ron]

I put mine into a large mixing bowl and shred it with metal claws (i've melted plastic ones!)  all the moisture stays in the bowl.

[Foster Dahlet]

For the sake of this discussion, if the purpose of resting is to retain moisture and we're pulling the pork, simply mix whatever runs out back into the bowl of pulled pork. No waiting. This is easy if you put the whole butt on a baking sheet for pulling or chunking. Something with short sides and non-porous (rather than say a wood cutting board) to retain the moisture. Been doing it like this for years. I have rested butt too, and saw no difference if the liquid is retained and returned to the bowl.

Getting up early to add resting time for something as simple as pork butt doesn't make sense. A Brisket or another large hunk of meat to be sliced, yeah, worth it.

Yes, I guess for the of the discussion that has not been my experience at all.  Allowing the liquid to reabsorb into the outer parts of the butt happens during the rest.  Pulling shredding it early will jot ruin it, and it will taste fine.  But I find I have drier meat and juicer meat, the liquid not evenly distributed. 

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[Ashley Coalburn]

For the sake of this discussion, if the purpose of resting is to retain moisture and we're pulling the pork, simply mix whatever runs out back into the bowl of pulled pork. No waiting. This is easy if you put the whole butt on a baking sheet for pulling or chunking. Something with short sides and non-porous (rather than say a wood cutting board) to retain the moisture. Been doing it like this for years. I have rested butt too, and saw no difference if the liquid is retained and returned to the bowl.

Getting up early to add resting time for something as simple as pork butt doesn't make sense. A Brisket or another large hunk of meat to be sliced, yeah, worth it.

Yes, I guess for the of the discussion that has not been my experience at all.  Allowing the liquid to reabsorb into the outer parts of the butt happens during the rest.  Pulling shredding it early will jot ruin it, and it will taste fine.  But I find I have drier meat and juicer meat, the liquid not evenly distributed. 

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When I shred it's typically in stages, since 3lbs. seems to be about right for the Kitchenaide. As each batch is done it gets dumped into a large bowl. Once all of the batches are shredded and the juice returned, everything gets mixed to make sure that not only is the juice evenly distributed, but the bark. As with any smoking, there is no right or wrong, just alternative methods. This one is offered if someone doesn't want to cambro.

[Foster Dahlet]

For the sake of this discussion, if the purpose of resting is to retain moisture and we're pulling the pork, simply mix whatever runs out back into the bowl of pulled pork. No waiting. This is easy if you put the whole butt on a baking sheet for pulling or chunking. Something with short sides and non-porous (rather than say a wood cutting board) to retain the moisture. Been doing it like this for years. I have rested butt too, and saw no difference if the liquid is retained and returned to the bowl.

Getting up early to add resting time for something as simple as pork butt doesn't make sense. A Brisket or another large hunk of meat to be sliced, yeah, worth it.

Yes, I guess for the of the discussion that has not been my experience at all.  Allowing the liquid to reabsorb into the outer parts of the butt happens during the rest.  Pulling shredding it early will jot ruin it, and it will taste fine.  But I find I have drier meat and juicer meat, the liquid not evenly distributed. 

Sent from my LM-X420 using Weber Kettle Club mobile app

When I shred it's typically in stages, since 3lbs. seems to be about right for the Kitchenaide. As each batch is done it gets dumped into a large bowl. Once all of the batches are shredded and the juice returned, everything gets mixed to make sure that not only is the juice evenly distributed, but the bark. As with any smoking, there is no right or wrong, just alternative methods. This one is offered if someone doesn't want to cambro.

True dat.  There is more than one way to skin a cat in the world of bbq and taste is often subjective.

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[Bearded]

Thanks everyone for all of the information. There are so many ways to do things. That's the excitement of smoking I guess. You just have to make more so you can experiment more! [emoji854]

Results are here.
http://weberkettleclub.com/forums/index.php?topic=46511.0