Pork butt done 12hr early - handing and reheat?

AP_Jake

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My 9lb pork butt finished in 12hrs. I planned on 24 because that's what the last one took but at 3am I awoke and checked my temp and I was just passing 200.
It's currently wrapped and in a cooler, but it's not going to stay warm for 12+ hours.
How do you go about re-heating before shredding?
 
My 9lb pork butt finished in 12hrs. I planned on 24 because that's what the last one took but at 3am I awoke and checked my temp and I was just passing 200.
It's currently wrapped and in a cooler, but it's not going to stay warm for 12+ hours.
How do you go about re-heating before shredding?
While all pork butts are different, that certainly was a fast cook. I have had a similar problem a couple of times, and from my perspective you have two options:

(1) Shred it, place in a foil pan with all of the juices you have collected and tightly seal with two layers of aluminum foil. For food safety you then need to refrigerate until about three hours before serving and then either reheat the pan in the oven at 200F, or transfer the pulled pork and juices to a low cooker and reheat on low.

(2) wrap the entire butt very tightly in foil and place in a cambro of cooler tightly wrapped in towels or blankets. In this case, you should put a probe in the meat and monitor to make sure the meat temp does not drop below 145F-140F. If it gets to this temp you then either need shred and place in a refrigerator or, preferably, slow cooker and keep above 150.

Which option to use will depend on when it reaches the food safety point.

While both options will result in safe food for serving, neither will result in a firm bark. I have used the first option at many family reunions by deliberately smoking my meat a day ahead and it comes out very good. To help “preserve” the crisp bark, I reserve some of the crust in a separate foil pack, reheat uncovered in the oven or smoker at 300F for a short time or frying pan to crisp it up and then shred and add it into the rest of the pork before serving.
 
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