How many ppl will this Boston butt feed?

[Crestman]

I am going to attempt my first Boston butt on Sunday. I just finished rubbing and it's in the fridge getting happy. Now, I'm wondering if a 7.7lb bone in Boston butt will be enough for 6 adults and 2 kids? I'm now thinking not. I may have to head out bright and early to grab another and get it rubbed asap.

Thanks,

Keith

 

[Lynan]

Hiya Keith and welcome to DC!!
Can you tell an ignorant Kiwi ( aka New Zealander) what a Boston Butt is please??

Ta!!

 

[DaCook]

Now, I'm wondering if a 7.7lb bone in Boston butt will be enough for 6 adults and 2 kids? I'm now thinking not.

I am thinking that you are thinking right. Besides the bone, there is alot of connective tissue and fat that will dissolve, when cooked. If they have small appetites you might make it, but I have my doubts.
Lyn, a pork butt is from the front shoulder of the carcass. It is a tougher cut and usually slow cooked. Great flavour, and it is what is usually used for pulled pork sammies.

 

[ChefScotty]

6.7# yields exactly 2# of usable meat. You'll get about 2 1/3 # which will feed your clan for sure. It looks a lot more than it is once it's shredded. Should also add that's after we've smoked it for 6 hours and then cooked it for 8 hours, so you'll probably get a little more if anything. Hope that's helpful.

 

[Gretchen]

You will have PLENTY. I am not really sure about the above weight--I have never weighed a finished piece, but have made it numerous times for large crowds. That pork butt will serve 15 pretty well.
And ChefScotty is right, when it is shredded it is very "light and puffy" but when it heats up it will collapse and you may be concerned. But rest assured, it is VERY rich and VERY good. I do not agree with those that try to remove all the fat--pulled pork is a treat. You don't eat it very often and it is worth the splurge for the flavor that the fat adds MOST especially the cap that is charred.
Pork butt got its name from being stored in barrels called "butts". As has been said, it is the pork shoulder cut--the top of the shoulder. The bottom of the shoulder (into the front leg) is sometimes called the "picnic". These are fresh pork cuts.

 

[marmalady]

Pork butt got its name from being stored in barrels called "butts". As has been said, it is the pork shoulder cut--the top of the shoulder. .

Wow - Tx, Gretchen - I never knew that!

 

[letscook]

When i am not sure if I am going to have enough, I add some chicken to the selection. That way if some would rather have chicken instead, I will usually take chicken breast and cut them in quarters (so they would fit in the buns as the beef)

 

[licia]

I remember the first one dh cooked on the grill many years ago. I don't remember the size, but I thought it was large. He and I, his brother and wife, ate it all in one meal. I was surprised there wasn't more meat. It was delicious, but just not too much.

 

[Gretchen]

I remember the first one dh cooked on the grill many years ago. I don't remember the size, but I thought it was large. He and I, his brother and wife, ate it all in one meal. I was surprised there wasn't more meat. It was delicious, but just not too much.

"large" and "many years ago" are sort of inexact measurements in my opinion. I have a 3# butt in my freezer right now and it looks "large"--and maybe 4 adults could eat it all, but I think even that would be a lot of BBQ pork and I would fix it for 6 with some kids thrown in.

I have recently cooked 2 7# butts and they also looked "large" (actually VERY large). There is very little bone in these cuts--that was mentioned previously. It is a comparatively small flat bone about 4 inches long.

I did give my opinion based on a number of very recent preparations of pulled pork. And a number of times/year.
Portions of foods are usually based on amounts/weights/person/uncooked "food". If you apply that formula a 7# butt would feed an 8oz. portion to at least 14 people--and that is approximately my experience. It will feed more than that.
As I said, the meat shrinks/sort of collapses when cooked low and slow, but I don't think it loses all that much weight. There is a lot of wonderful juice that cooks out of it that can be concentrated to pour back over it if desired. And in my experience, maybe 3/4C of rendered fat.

 

[AllenOK]

Personally, I would cook two. That's what I did the last few times I smoked a pork butt last year, as my kids can't get enough of it (we have 5). Plus, I can do other things with the leftovers.

 

[Gretchen]

I do that also--cook a couple and freeze (vac seal), mainly because once you start a smoker you might as well cook to the capacity of it.
I prefer to freeze in chunks rather than "pulled". When ready to serve from frozen, gently warm the chunk of meat and then pull--easier to pull warm meat.
The pork is good in Asian style dishes like noodles with peanut lime vinaigrette.
Good for burritos or tacos also.

 

[JoAnn L.]

I cooked a pork butt in the crockpot the other day, I just rub it with salt, pepper and garlic salt. You don't add liquid. When it was done the pot was filled up half way with a fatty liquid. The meat was very tender and flavorful. I was going to use the leftover for BBQ pulled pork sandwiches. When I got it out of the refrigerator to cut up it was full of harden white fat. I got rid of as much as I could but it was still very greasy. I bought the one that is wrapped in string and an air tight plastic wrap. Should I have bought a different type of pork butt for the crockpot?

 

[Gretchen]

pork butts are pretty much all the same. I would guess that the crockpot just extracts much more meat juice and fat from the meat than the dry long slow roast does. There is no doubt that pulled pork can be made in a crockpot, but you miss the wonderful crunchy brown crust that forms when it is roasted. There is also no doubt that the butt is a fatty cut. It is what it is, as the saying goes. And it IS the cut of meat you want to make pulled pork. Other cuts like the loin and fresh ham (the rear leg) are too lean.

 

[JoAnn L.]

Good advice

pork butts are pretty much all the same. I would guess that the crockpot just extracts much more meat juice and fat from the meat than the dry long slow roast does. There is no doubt that pulled pork can be made in a crockpot, but you miss the wonderful crunchy brown crust that forms when it is roasted. There is also no doubt that the butt is a fatty cut. It is what it is, as the saying goes. And it IS the cut of meat you want to make pulled pork. Other cuts like the loin and fresh ham (the rear leg) are too lean.
***************
Thanks, I think from now on I will roast it in the oven.

 

[sparrowgrass]

If it will make you feel better, do two. No more trouble than one, and you will have all those great leftovers. Leftovers that freeze really well.

 

[Constance]

My husband reads this forum, but doesn't post because he's a poor typer.

Anyway, here's this from a man who has cooked a bunch of them: he thinks it will be enough, although you might be pushing it a little. It depends on what all you are serving with it and what kind of eaters your guests are.
Why don't you put some brats on with it? They won't take long, 30-40 minutes, and you can slice them in chunks and serve them for appetizers.

 

[Poppinfresh]

Pulled pork is something of a specialty of mine. When I get my Boston Butts, they usually come in at about 8 pounds. This will very comfortably feed 4 with leftovers for lunch for 2 the next day, so yeah I'd say you should be for the most part OK

As others have said, it gets puffy when you pull it. And you've also got to keep in mind that unless you're serving it au natural, the barbecue sauce will add more substance and weight to the overall product, as well.

 

[ChefScotty]

I was going to use the leftover for BBQ pulled pork sandwiches. When I got it out of the refrigerator to cut up it was full of harden white fat. I got rid of as much as I could but it was still very greasy.

The fat hardened in the fridge. Pull all the pork and put the left overs into a container, it'll be fine for days and really doesn't dry out a lot. We always have enough cooking liquid so we defat it, add some water and store it that way, then it's also easier to reheat since it's overly moist and we just sauce it.

 

[Gretchen]

Pulled pork is something of a specialty of mine. When I get my Boston Butts, they usually come in at about 8 pounds. This will very comfortably feed 4 with leftovers for lunch for 2 the next day, so yeah I'd say you should be for the most part OK

As others have said, it gets puffy when you pull it. And you've also got to keep in mind that unless you're serving it au natural, the barbecue sauce will add more substance and weight to the overall product, as well.

Surely you do serve it au naturel without BBQ sauce until it reaches the table. That would be the true Carolina way of serving pulled pork.
And being in western NC when I serve it (often, as sort of a specialty of mine) I have to serve at least two sauces--Eastern, which is basically HOT pepper slightly sweetened vinegar, or western--a tomato based sauce that is nothing like KC Masterpiece.
How do you cook your pork, out of curiosity? Smoked, roasted, combo of those, crockpot, pressure cooker?

 

[Crestman]

Finally have my internet back.

Thanks for all the replies!!

I'm going to have to hope this will be enough. I am serving it with cob corn and some roasted potatoes.

I do have another question though. I put the butt on at 6:30 this am. I have a grill temp at 220deg and my internal temp of the butt is already at 115deg. That's only 2 hours!!!...I was planning on a 11 hours or so. At this rate, it will be done by 11:00 this morning!!!....Should I take it off around 180deg and then put it back on an hour before we want to eat? I'm going to be pulling it so I want 205. Why is this thing cooking so fast?

Thanks

Keith