Slow-Smoked Pork Shoulder and an Unexpected Dinner Guest!

Slow-Smoked Pork Shoulder and an Unexpected Dinner Guest!

Hey guys!

Whenever we have traveled, over the years, we have always tried to hunt out the best  local BBQ joints. We would spend a couple hours reading review as we drove down the highway towards our stop for the night – it became kind of a game to find someplace new and interesting, and compare it to all the places we had tried before.

We are big fans of good BBQ. It is really easy to find ‘ok’ barbecue, or even ‘meh’ barbecue, but finding really good stuff is like striking gold!  The funny part of this is that while we always seem to go out of our way to hunt it out in our travels, we never go out for barbecue when we’re at home.

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This is a situation where you really need to have a digital thermometer. With the time and money invested in a good smoked shoulder you want to make sure it is exactly the perfect temperature.

I think that is because at home, we have been on a different quest – to master the art of heavenly smoked meat.

After many tasty trials (some of which resulted in dinner being served at midnight as we mastered the art of TIMING), I think we are practically perfect!

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This year, Labour Day weekend for us meant camping with fun friends,

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Dibs on the crazy cute kid in the middle wearing the crazy cat shirt!

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unexpected dinner guests,

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ummmm… Hello?

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and really divine smoked pork shoulder.

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See the deep red smoke ring? YUM!

The key is starting with a really really good rub and smoking it slow and steady. Also you will want to make sure you have a thermometer. I like to use a digital thermometer so that I know the internal temperature exactly.

Yum!

Slow-Smoked Pork Shoulder and an Unexpected Dinner Guest!

Juicy, tender and delicious slow smoked pork shoulder with a sweet heat bark.
Prep Time 20 minutes
Cook Time 8 hours
Total Time 8 hours 20 minutes
Cuisine American
Servings 15 people

Ingredients
  

  • 1 7 - 8 pound pork shoulder roast
  • 2 tbsp everyday seasoning http://foodmack.com/recipe/season-flour-or-everyday-seasoning/
  • 4 tbs sugar
  • 2 tsp onion powder
  • 2 tsp garlic powder
  • 2 tbsp olive oil

Instructions
 

  • Start soaking your wood chunks. For smoked pork shoulder I like to use hickory or cherry. Preheat your smoker. We use a Masterbuilt propane smoker and love it.
  • We were camping so I had already combined the everyday seasoning with sugar, onion and garlic powder. I was also planning on feeding a crowd, so I prepared enough for 4 pork shoulders.
  • Mix the dry ingredients and the oil together. Mix well.
  • I call this a slippery dry rub. I like it better than just using the spices dry. By adding the oil to it you get a really yummy spicy and sweet caramelized bark.
  • Work the rub all over the pork shoulder, evenly and thinly.
  • Place it in the smoker. If I am only doing one roast I always place it directly in the middle. With my smoker the top shelf is actually the hot zone, so if I am doing multiple roasts I will rotate them thoughout the smoking time.
  • Fill the wood chip tray with the soaked wood. I use a combination of wood chunks and wood chips. The chunks provide slow and steady smoke and the chips provide quick and thick smoke. A 7- 8 lb pork shoulder will take about 8 hours to smoke. I make sure the wood tray has wood in it for 6 hours. The final 2 hours I don'y want more smoke, I just want to bring it up to the final temperature and continue to break the meat down.
  • Check the water tray and the wood (as well as the meat) every hour or so. Rotate meat if needed. TEMPERATURE: You want the smoker to be between 225 degrees and 250 degrees. Do not go over 250 degrees.
  • Expect the neighbors to wander over at some point.
  • After 6 to 7 hours the internal temperature of your roast should be around 185 -190 degrees. Cover with tin foil (not pictured) and bring it up to 200 - 210 degrees.
  • The finished roast is juicy, very very tender and full of deep rich smoky, porky-tasting goodness!

Notes

NOTE: How to plan how much meat to smoke for a crowd:
IF you have a 7 lb pork shoulder roast, plan for about a 40% loss of meat (so expect it to end up at 60% of its original weight - in this case around 4 1/2 lbs). A good portion is 1/3 lb per person, so a 7 lb roast with the shrinkage will feed about 12 - 15 people!  Shortcut: a roast will feed a number of people around double its uncooked weight (e.g. 7 * 2 = 14 people)

4 Comments

  1. Marjorie

    Looks yummy. I need someone to invite me for the beauty. I could be the unexpected guest.

  2. Just put 2 pork shoulders in the smoker. The rub smells amazing and the thought of a carmelized bark makes my mouth water.
    I am also smoking a brisket and some baby back ribs at the same time so its like an algerbra equation on the timing.
    I started the smoker at 170 degrees so its going to be long and slow.
    I post after I’m done. Thank you for keeping it simple my wife and I had a great time this morning cooking together

    • Hi Corey!

      How did your pork shoulders turn out? I would love to see pictures!

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