Smoked pork shoulder, first try.
I broke in my new electric smoker last week and decided to give it a try. my first victim was a 10 lb pork shoulder. I prepped it by cutting off the skin, most of the exterior fat and any parts where I could see a vain or artery. I then mixed up a generic rub and applied it after wiping the shoulder with a thin film of mustard. Then it was off to the fridge for a little less than 24 hours. My smoking started with prepping the apple wood chips and pouring almost a liter of apple juice into the water tray. Next I brought the temp of the smoker up to 225 F. At this point all had gone according to plan. I inserted the tray of chips and water and set the shoulder in to start smoking. For the first 2 hours all went perfect. It took about 2 hours for the chips to burn up completely and also for the apple juice to evaporate. Because this was my first time I wanted to go easy on the smoke so I just added more water to the tray and misted apple juice on to the shoulder to baste it. This process went on every 1 1/2 until it had been in there for 14 1/2 hours. My main problem I had was I could not maintain the heat at 225 F. After the first 2 hours even with the controls set on high the temp would go no higher than 215F, it was consist at 215F but would not go higher. I have thought about that a bit and believe it was a result of the 24F temperature outside and the fat rendering out and falling directly on the heating element in places. I don't know exactly what to do about those problems but am open to suggestions. At the 13 1/2 hour mark I decided to apply my favorite BBQ sauce as a glaze and go from there. After the 14 1/2 hours which was 11pm last night I took an internal temp and it was 175F so I decided to end the process there as I was getting very tired after a long day and 175F is safe for pork. I let the shoulder rest for 1/2 an hour and then cut it up. I couldn't resist and had to give it a try it smelled so good. I couldn't believe it, it was the best tasting pork shoulder I have ever tasted, even my wife said it was really good and she is not a big meat eater. I could learn to love this smoker real fast if it produces food like this every time. The meat did not fall apart but is very tender, with a very flavourful bark on it.
Jack
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Ready to go in
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My chips of choice.
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Finished.
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Sliced
I will leave a pork butt on the smoker for 8 hrs or so, to get the internal temperature up to 200 I wrap it in foil and put it in the oven set at 250 to 275, depends up how much of a hurry I am in,, getting the intern temp to 200 is key to getting the pulled pork tender.
And a couple of other items to try with the smoker:
Salmon, after removing the pork butt, slide a salmon filet on, I drizzle some olive oil on it, sometimes some parsley or fish seasoning, let it smoke for an hour and a half or so.
Sweet Potatoes, get them medium size and as uniform in shape as possible, clean - trim them like you would for baking, put a little butter on the outside, sprinkle on seasoned salt, wrap real-real loose in aluminum foil, so the smoke can penetrate the foil, smoke for about 4 hours,,when a sharp knife or a fork slides into the center of the potato real easy, they are done.
Spam,, out of the can, put the chunk on the smoker for a couple to three hours, great with crackers and beer.
Any kind of smoke sausage, get a ring or some links from your grocery, Hilshire, Eckridge or the store brand, smoke for an hour or so,, I usually leave it on the smoker for an hour to an hour and a half,,smoked-smoked sausage, the way smoke sausage is supposed to be.
