pulled pork cooked on the Cobb grill???

[Terry R.]

Has anyone used their Cobb grill to do a pork butt, to pull? I would like to try doing this with some hickory chips at the beginning of the process. What process, do you use, if you do? Do you do a dry rub, mopping sauce while cooking? Do you serve with a different sauce? Just waiting for a good sale to give this a try, so I thought I would learn as much as I could, about how I might attack this cooking project. Thanks. terry r.

[Dennis mn]

I've done it several times. Both in the Cobb while on the road, and in the Big Green Egg at home. The results are the same. Cook low and slow. I use a dry rub, then serve with a sauce. I have access to red and white oak for smoking, so I haven't used hickory in years.

[fusedlight]

Low & Slow is the trick for pulled anything. On my Cobb, rather than use a full load of briquettes I'll put in a half load an replenish. Use a dual-probe external thermometer and keep the topside down around 300F or lower. You're looking for a meat target of around 190F. One thing you could do to get things nice and juicy is to put the meat in a foil pouch, but open up the top for the start. Most of your smoke flavour happens in the first 1/2 hour anyway. Seal up the pouch to let the meat finish in its own juices.

[Johnny M]

Originally Posted by Terry R.

Has anyone used their Cobb grill to do a pork butt, to pull? I would like to try doing this with some hickory chips at the beginning of the process. What process, do you use, if you do? Do you do a dry rub, mopping sauce while cooking? Do you serve with a different sauce? Just waiting for a good sale to give this a try, so I thought I would learn as much as I could, about how I might attack this cooking project. Thanks. terry r.

I have been smoking butts for about 25 years now but haven't used a Cobb grill or Green Egg...I used to use store brought types like the Brinkmann Smoke n Grill...these don't seal well so you have a lot of heat loss so you have to tend to the fire constantly to keep the temperature right, you can modify these types with fiberglass stove/oven seals to hold the heat better but I custom built a reverse flow smoker rather than upgrade to a store bought offset smoker...the difference is you get better and more even heat with a reverse flow type which you won't find in any store. I built mine out of tanks from a water heater and 11 guage mild steel. The inside has a baffle plate that makes the heat and smoke from the firebox travel under the cooking area to the opposite end of the smoker then rise up through an opening and travel back (hense the reverse flow) across the cooking meat then up the smoke stack on the same side of the smoker as the firebox. The key to telling a reverse flow from an offset smoker is the stack on a reverse flow is always next to the firebox and under the grill plate there is the solid baffle plate.

Anyway, the reverse flow smokers will hold heat very well if made properly (there is a formula for sizing the fire box proportionate to the smoker cook chamber and also the size of vents & stack) and the cooking temperature will remain very even over the length of the cook chamber where an offset smoker will always be hotter nearest the fire box and cooler to the opposite end...I can run my reverse flow all night with a full load of logs at about 225 degrees Fahrenheit.

The reason I am telling you all of the above information is this:

THE KEY TO SMOKING QUALITY BBQ IS TEMPERATURE, TIME AND SMOKE...A good quality smoked butt will be fall apart tender if cooked correctly rather than having to physically pull the meat apart with effort...you can cook one until the meat is cooked inside but it can be tough to pull apart...I cook mine slow at around 225 F for about 10-14 hours depending on how big the butt and it will fall apart every time...one key to buying your butt is the marbling, the more the better except I don't like huge amounts of solid fat on mine, about a 1/4" or so on the outside with good marbling. This marbling of fat melts as the roast cooks slowly and steams and tenderizes the meat giving it the fall apart quality. I have tried in the past cooking them for 4 to 8 hours and the quality is just not the same as 10-14 hours, I usually average about 12 hours on a medium size butt.

Anyway, hope this helps you out with your smoking....

[Terry R.]

Thanks for the replies. Does everyone use foil at some point in the process to seal in moisture, or if you are cooking low and slow enough, is it not necessary? terry r.

[Glenn Baglo]

I have cooked low and slow on the BBQ ( indirect ) with plenty of hickory chips for 4-6 hours and then let it cool, wrap tightly in foil, refrigerate and the next day it goes in the house oven for another 6-8 hours.
That way, I don't have to stay up all night to tend the BBQ.

[Raz]

Originally Posted by Johnny M

THE KEY TO SMOKING QUALITY BBQ IS TEMPERATURE, TIME AND SMOKE...A good quality smoked butt will be fall apart tender if cooked correctly rather than having to physically pull the meat apart with effort...

Anyway, hope this helps you out ....

yeah, it made me real hungry Raz

[Darral T.]

Originally Posted by P. Raz

yeah, it made me real hungry Raz

AGREE WITH RAZ!!

[Johnny M]

Originally Posted by Terry R.

Thanks for the replies. Does everyone use foil at some point in the process to seal in moisture, or if you are cooking low and slow enough, is it not necessary? terry r.

Foil is used to keep the meat from drying out, I have used foil in the past but found out that it is not necessary if the temperature is right, now if your smoker runs hot then yes you might want to use foil to keep it from drying out, also the dryness is affected by the marbling I spoke about, if you get a really lean cut of meat it will tend to be on the dry side as the less marbling a cut had the less steam and moisture is produced within the cut. Foil can be used to keep the outside from drying out in the later stages of cooking but keep in mind the foil will keep out the smoke which gives the bbq is unique flavor so the longer you cook with foil on the less pronounced your smoke ring will be...I generally like to see a good pronounced smoke ring of around 1/4" or so...

[Dennis mn]

I have never used foil when doing BBQ for the exact reasons that John stated. If you keep the temperature proper it is not necessary.

[Terry R.]

I tried the pork butt on the Cobb. Biggest problem is the ash in the bottom had to be dumped a couple of times and that meant the pork was not cooking during that short period of time, added to that was time needed to come back up to temp. Got tired or it all by the end of the day. I finished it off in the juices, I had collected during the time it was in the foil, still cooking.

All in all, it tasted very good, was finally tender and easily pulled. Would I use the Cobb again? Only to give it the initial smoke, then into a little roaster on a rack, where I can more easily monitor the cooking temperature.

I had coated it with mustard and then a homemade rub, letting it rest over night. After about 3 hours, I started basting it with a vinegar sauce I had, from Old Carolina. When it reached 165, I wrapped it in foil and let it cook until the thermometer said it was 225, but it was not
tender so I put it into the crockpot, with the juices.

I think I would have had better luck with coconut charcoal, but I wanted to use up some Kingsford I had. There would have been a lot less ash and I would not have had to add charcoal as often.

• Back to top

[Johnny M]

Originally Posted by Terry R.

I tried the pork butt on the Cobb. Biggest problem is the ash in the bottom had to be dumped a couple of times and that meant the pork was not cooking during that short period of time, added to that was time needed to come back up to temp. Got tired or it all by the end of the day. I finished it off in the juices, I had collected during the time it was in the foil, still cooking.

I don't know that I have actually seen a Cobb grill, can you post a picture? Maybe I can offer some suggestions

[Terry R.]

Here is a link about them. I love mine. I have made some very tasty meals. It is extremely versatile and great for 2-maybe 4 people. I even bake bread on mine.
About The Cobb Grill | Cobb Grill America

[Uncle Cereal]

Allow me to comment even though I don't answer the question...

I had never heard about the Cobb grill before reading this but I am a pulled pork guy so I read with interest.

For me, pulled pork is work. I can it when pork shoulders are on sale. I probably use six or seven for one batch, or something crazy like that!

I'm going away fishing in the near future and share the meal preparation with the other guys. I'll take two or three jars of pulled pork and a bag of hamburger buns and voilà! I'll even bring a jar of my coleslaw as a side dish. Since everything has been properly treated, it doesn't use up fridge or cooler space. Perfect! I just need to make a roux with butter and flour to thinken it and I'm all set within minutes!

Back to the Cobb grill: the concept sounds interesting, but the reviews say it's a pain to clean. That might be a good discussion for another thread...

[ATHiker]

The only time I use aluminum foil is when I remove the pork roast from the smoker. I wrap it in aluminum foil and place it in a cooler for 30 - 45 minutes to rest.

[Dennis mn]

Originally Posted by Uncle Cereal

Allow me to comment even though I don't answer the question...

Back to the Cobb grill: the concept sounds interesting, but the reviews say it's a pain to clean. That might be a good discussion for another thread...

I don’t think of my Cobb as a grill. I think of it, and use it as a charcoal heated oven.

I have read of a weakness being the difficulty to clean.

1. It isn’t necessary to clean after each use.

2. Through it in the dishwasher when returning home, and put it through a “Pots and Pan Cycle”. It comes out looking as new.

[elvisglazier]

My Cobb oven is probably my single favorite piece of kit when I go camping.

I have smoked several pulled porks in it and I have been very successful.

I too do a coat of mustard and my special rub then Ziploc it and let it sit overnight.

Low and slow is the key to this. I usually wake up at 4AM to start the process. That way the pork is good to go for supper.

Idon't burn briquettes. I use pieces of kiln dried hardwood (usually oak) for heat. Once that gets going, confident that it won't go out, I will add water soaked wood chips for smoke.

I use a small foil pan underneath the shoulder just to catch the drippings for awhile. I use these juices in my sauce later. I also ball up small pieces of foil to plug a few of the holes on the lid. I use (or not use) them to help regulate temperatures and keep the smoke inside the Cobb. I also keep a thermometer inside one of the holes to monitor the temperature. I try to keep it around the 200 - 225 range for the first three hours. This will be all the useful smoke the pork will need. After this point all you are doing is cooking. Whether you foil or not is a matter of personal preference. I prefer not to as I like to hang out in the cookpit as long as possible and drink a few beers as I prep everything for dinner. Also, I get a lot of people commenting on how dedicated and patient I am.

Your not doing a huge shoulder as the Cobb is quite small so going 14 hours is unnecessary. Just keep checking the temperature of the meat. 205 in the center is done.

I put it in the metal bowl I'm going to shred it in and cover it with foil and let it rest for half an hour. I use this time to make my sauce and sometimes I'll bake a little cornbread in the Cobb after the pork is out. Any drippings I don't use in the sauce gets tossed into my baked beans.

At home I will have baked the buns already. I prefer a brioche but store bought is just fine as the bun is really just the delivery system of all the pulled pork goodness. I'm just super bougie. I like to eat better when I camp then I would at home.

Typically I would pull the pork, sauce the pork, then serve the sandwiches with an unhealthy amount of pork, a healthy amount of coleslaw and a little extra sauce on top. Serve with tater salad, cornbread, and beans.

I'm hungry now.

If you're successful with this the next meal you can do is smoking a pastrami in the Cobb and making the king of all Reuben sandwiches. Hint... It's all about the homemade Russian dressing!

Enjoy!!!