As part of our partnership, "Trucker Tom" Moser, Trucking Coordinator at New Belgium Brewing, shares his best tips for how to smoke a pork butt when cooking for a crowd.
Tips for Three Beer Pork Butt
Not that I would ever waste three perfectly good beers on a marinade, rather, that number refers to the few cold ones I plan to crack while this butt smokes low and slow at 225 degrees for the next 8 to 10 hours, depending on size of course (usually 2 to 2 ½ hours per pound).
I like to get a nice 3- or 4-pound pork butt. While you’re at the store, step into the spice aisle to get your rub. Grab a couple packets of “Memphis Pit BBQ Rub,” or make the spice blend yourself. It's a mix of paprika, garlic powder, onion powder, celery seeds, oregano, thyme, cumin, dry mustard, coriander, allspice, brown sugar, salt and pepper.
The day before you plan to smoke this bad boy, I like to put one packet of the rub on the butt, toss it in a gallon bag, throw a splash or two of whatever beer I’m drinking and a couple splashes of apple cider vinegar, seal it up and let it marinate over night.
Also on the day before, toss some hickory wood chips in a bag and let that soak in water over night too.
Early the next morning, pre heat your smoker to 225 degrees, toss a pan of water in the bottom rack to add some moisture, and once it’s up to temperature, rub the butt with more Memphis Pit BBQ Rub. Then, put it on the smoker.
Toss in a small handful of wood chips every 30 minutes or so for the first few hours, and let the games begin (and by games, I mean, go ahead and pour yourself a beer, you’ve earned it!).
Now for the “patience piece”: don’t open that door and let the heat or smoke out, no matter how bad you want to look at it or take a selfie with it, just let it do its thing.
Make sure your heat doesn’t creep up on you, keep it at 225 or as close to that as possible. About 6 hours in, go ahead and check it out, make sure it’s not lonely or burning, but it’s still going to need a couple of hours to get super tender. Think of this as big outdoor crock pot that uses fire and smoke!
After 8-10 hours you should be able to pull it out of the smoker, but continue to practice patience. Put it on a pan and cover with foil, and let it rest for a minimum of 30 minutes.
Then the party starts. It should fall apart easily (meat shredding claws help), be super tender and delicious! Serve it with your favorite New Belgium BBQ sauce on the side.
Trucker Tom’s Pro Tip: Utilize the space in your smoker. You don’t want to smoke just 1 lonely pork butt, smoke 2, or 3, invite over some friends, maybe do a rack or two of ribs. Don’t waste the space!
For more cookout ideas, try one of these unexpected grilled side dishes.
