Pulled Pork

Fosco had a really long post describing in detail how he made his famous Alabama-style pulled pork for his family. Read it if you want to know everything about the process. If you just want the bare facts, read on.

I took 3 pork shoulders: 1, 9 lb bone-in and 2, 7 lb boneless butts. I prepared a double batch of “Southern Succor” rub from the “Renowned Mr. Brown” recipe to rub on the pork butts. Then I made an injection marinade of apple juice, salt, sugar, water and W sauce plus some of the rub. My pork shoulder injection technique needs serious help. I made a total mess of the kitchen when I sprayed marinade all over as I pulled the needle out of the butts. 😛

After injecting the butts, I rubbed them down then put them in a roasting bag and set them in the fridge to marinate.


The pork butts marinated almost 24 hours and then got a final rubdown before going on the Weber Smokey Mountain smoker around 10 pm over a full load of charcoal plus pecan chunks and an empty water pan. The 9 lb bone-in butt went on the bottom grate and the 2, 7 lb boneless butts went on the top grate. Dome temp was about 225 with two bottom vents closed when I went to bed at 12.

Woke up at 7 am and went outside to find the cooker chugging away at 250. Internal temp on one of the butts was 179. Annie watched the temps while I was at work and pulled the butts off when the temp hit 195 at about 10:30 am. 12.5 hrs cooking with NO REFUELING and NO FUSSING WITH THE VENTS. (God, I love my WSM!)

Foiled the butts for an hour, then started pulling. The two boneless butts went to a party but we kept the bone-in butt. This was really good pulled pork! Great flavor and it shredded very nicely. The kids were all over it. I think I prefer the flavor of the pulled pork from the boneless butts because I can get more rub to the interior of the meat better than injecting.

Eat it plain, or enjoy with a vinegar-based Carolina sauce.

Aloha, Nate

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