Just got a Kamado grill and followed this whole video through for my first ever low and slow cook/smoke and it came out INCREDIBLY AMAZING.!!!! Thank you so much for all the work and effort you put in this. Thanks also for breaking everything down and making it simple to understand and enjoyable to put into action.!
Watched your best ribs segment, just wanted to say thank you. I always did the 3-2-1 cook for ribs and never really perfected them. Your 3HR cook with the aluminum boat trick, holy wow! Knocked them out of the park! Going to do ribs again this weekend! Watching this video next, thank you!
Gotta tell you, I made your sauce for my pulled pork this week At first when I tasted it in the pan I thought, "no way, this is too vinegar-y", but then I decided to go with it since I'd already made a double batch. WOW! I LOVE it! You don't even taste the strong vinegar at all and it's really an easy and AMAZING sauce! My sister and her husband loved it too. Now it's my go-to sauce. Thank you for sharing it with us!
I love your videos and have been watching as many as I can for over a year! I love how you continue to add more and more small details. Things like putting the grates in up to the notches, the time it takes for the fire to build, etc. They may seem small, but to those of us who do not use our Kamados as much as you, every little detail helps. Keep up the good work!
For the longest time i had such trouble regulating the temps for long cooks. I followed your shown method here and it was remarkably easy! Thanks so much for a great video!
I was on the verge of buying a Traeger until I started watching your videos while investigating different BBQs. In the end I bought a Kamado and I wanted to say thanks. Your videos have given me the confidence I can cook anything with this BBQ and today I'm doing my first pulled pork. Very excited. If you're ever in Australia you'll have to come over for a barbie. Thanks again for the videos.
Hi, Jim . . . I had the same experience. Was on the fence for a Traeger, ready to invest, but after watching a couple of James' videos I made my decision. Been happy with my KJ Classic 3 ever since. It does everything and I love trying all of the new recipes and employing the tips that Smoking Dad provides. He's understandably gotten a bit commercial lately, but more power to him :)
Good choice I've tried several pellet smokers and I don't get the hype other than being super easy the flavor is just not there imo, the best I've made has been on a ceramic grill. Only other option imo is an offset smoker.
Got my first Joe because of your videos. Best decision I’ve ever made, the gas BBQ has been shelved and the Big Joe has been used every night for the last few weeks and this was my first cook which went flawlessly. Greetings from the UK by the way and it’s pronounced Wos-Ter-Shire Sauce 😊
Hi James, I love your content!! Your videos helped me getting started with my grill and thanks to you I got some delicious results (ribs, tomahawk, chicken wings...) However I tend to watch your videos 15x to get your recipe. It would be great if you could post some infos in the description of the video or - even better - on a separate blog/website/book. Especially helpfully for me would be grill and meat temperatures and the cooking gameplan. Love your content. Keep up the awesome work. Best regards from Switzerland!
Ive been smoking for a few years now but am a new follower. I found your channel while waiting for my new Big Joe 3 to arrive and am burning through all your videos. Keep up the great work, your episodes are fantastic!
Just got my Joe this weekend, these videos have been very helpful! Thank you! Just wondered if you had strep by step instructions written out anywhere? Would be easier to follow rather than skipping around the video?
Best line: "That color smells awesome!" 😁 This is now my go-to pulled pork recipe and everyone I serve it to thinks I'm a brilliant chef... so, thank you.
Pinning the cooking temp guidelines because I'm tired of rewatching this vid everytime I cook 😅. Starting cook temp ~300f straight on grill until internal temp ~170f. Then, place pork onto foil boat and bump up cooking temp to ~330-350f until internal temp ~200f and meat has tender probe feel.
Followed your method for pull pork and vinegar sauce. Both were a hit with the crowd validated by people going for seconds and thirds. Absolutely delicious! Thanks for putting this and other videos together. Only one thing with me was that I ran out of time and needed to crank up temps to 330 for the last hour and I went with a full foil wrap instead of a boat (6h total in the Big Joe). May be I had a larger piece than yours (4kg) and probably needed to start 1-1.5h earlier. As I FTCed the pork, I quickly followed up with two spatchcock chickens with Alabama sauce made a bit earlier and these came our perfectly as well in just 40min (did dry brine for both port and chicken). Tried now picanha, pork ribs, beef short ribs, chicken wings in the basket, pulled pork and chicken, all using your videos. Everything came out great and reconfirmed to me that my choice of buying Big Joe was a right one.
Thanks for this amazing video! One thing I'm not sure of (or maybe I missed it), but is there a rule of thumb for how long you should cook for based on the weight of meat? Eg. X hours per KG of meat at X temp?
I am currently doing a 9kg shoulder for pulled pork 1:40h in the cook 3hours and half to go to 77c. This is my first try I can’t thank you enough for guidance thanks man! Kind regards from Belgium.
@@SmokingDadBBQ this looks so good and I can't wait to try this next weekend! Not Canada Day weekend! 🇨🇦 lol😂 2 questions! I'm going to assume the weight affects the cook time 1. What weight was this pork shoulder (bought - including the bone)? 2. How many people was it intended to feed?
I'm new to cooking on a kamado grill, so was very excited to try your approach to doing pulled pork. I wish I could say I'd had as positive an experience as everyone else seems to have had. First, I could never get the wood chip hack to work. The only thing in my ash drawer is fine, well, ash. No charcoal, nothing burning at all, so adding a few chips just meant the chips sat there, unaltered by the end of the cook. Otherwise the cook went perfectly until it was time to make the foil boat and crank up the heat -- I opened the vent and the heat rose to 300, and froze there, even with the control vent open fully. I even removed the pork and grates so I could take the pizza stone out of the set up (I don't have a Slo-Roller") and that made no difference. 300 was all it was going to do, no matter what I did or how long I waited. On my old Weber WSM, I would have just opened the firebox and shoved in a chimney of hot coals to raise the temp, and/or used a bellows to stoke the flame, but the inaccessible firebox of the Kamado Joe had me baffled. Faced with the likelihood of dinner at 9:30 pm instead of 6:30, I fired up my gas grill to 350 on indirect and transferred the pork there, so it could finish and we could eat. If anyone can suggest what I might have done wrong that caused the grill temp to act like that, or what I might have done differently to get the temp up, I'd be glad for the help. All of that said, the pork had great color and flavor, and I really liked the North Carolina-style BBQ sauce.
This pulled pork should be a controlled substance. I must confess I was not in the mood to make the rub, so I used Killer Hogs Brisket Rub and the BBQ rub in a 50/50 mix. Loose my mind, slap your mama good! I am 73 and have eaten BBQ in almost every great spot in the US. Your plan, the cook, the wrap the towel, it was heaven!
I'm brand new to smoking/BBQing and have purchased a Kamado Joe Classic this past weekend. I was having trouble with the temps and getting them low enough for a couple of cooks (followed your spatchcock chicken videos :) ) and watching this video has really given me some great tips to try with my next cook. Am hoping to build enough skill this week to cook pulled pork for Xmas! Thanks so much for these great videos.
Hey James couple questions- what do you do for ash removal? Ash vacuum cleaner? Also what are your thoughts on charcoal chimneys? Do you ever use them? Thanks!
Thanks James for making this so easy to follow. Today was my first low and slow, first double indirect, and first pulled pork. It was amazing and the timing and taste were perfect - thanks to this video and your explanations! My family also loved the NC style sauce. Killer stuff!
I’ve been cooking on Kamados for many years yet still love to learn new things. I tried your technique for pork shoulder today, using the “sweater” foiling technique. It was possibly one if the best pulled porks I’ve done. Average temps were 260-285 on the MEATER, I put it into the foil sweater at around 185, it went for about another hour or more at 300+. It was so moist and pulled with ease. I was surprised it too over 8 hours, full foils generally are done at around 6 hours but thus was a huge roast, nearly 12 lbs, so I’m glad I started it plenty early.
Followed step by step and got nearly perfect results, thank you for the education!. One q - i had a hard time getting through the stall before the foil boat- my combustion probe said the surface of the pork was around 175 but the core just wouldnt get past 160 - i just let it go till i got to 170 at the core, but that added nearly 2hrs to my cook time so i fully wrapped for the remaining cook instead of the boat and ended up with an 8hr cook / 1hr rest / 9lb pork butt. The dome thermometer was at 270-280 the entire first half of the cook, and 330 after i wrapped it, so I didnt expect it to take that long - any thoughts?
I recently had my first smoked brisket and it was amazing. I was about to buy a traeger pellet smoker because I thought that a smoker is the best way to get smoke flavor. But now I read that charcoal + chunk is way better in that regard. wdyt? thanks. I love your channel
I’ve benefited immeasurably from your RU-vid videos, but would suggest a contest between fat side up vs fat side down on a pork shoulder on a Kamado. I followed your advice to put fat side up, and it took much longer to cook, resulting with a flavorful crust on a layer of inedible fat on top. No bark on bottom thanks to the boat, and a flavorful bark on a layer of inedible fat on top.
Thanks so much for these videos! I smoked my first Pork Shoulder yesterday on my Kamado using all of the tips here. I have a different brand which doesn’t allow for double deflection, however, it still turned out perfect! Kamado smoking requires a very specific game plan which you’ve laid out expertly here. Thanks again for sharing your years of experience and for the myriad of specific details. Next up - brisket!
@@studentism I have a LifeSmart 21" Kamado. It has a double grate and I'm able to put the my deflector plate and a drip pan on the lower grate. It's a snug fit, but that has worked well. Thanks for asking!
Great tips thank you so much. Love this channel! By the way as a tip for you; Worcestershire pronounciation 😊. Drop the CH sound and go like this - “Wustahsher”
I made this last week and it turned out great thanks to your clear instructions. My only problem was that I ran out of fuel (silly on my part, but I might try a different brand with larger lumps), and the temperature started to drop. So finished it in the oven. So delicious. Thanks so much for your channel. I've learned so much that have really made my first few grills come out great.
Hey James, Been loving you videos. I have big meal to prep for, but I don't like the stress of working on the day itself. I have 2 questions for you: 1. If you make pulled pork in advance, should you pull it or leave it whole? 2. In either case how would you go about reheating?
Hey James, I have a challenge for you. A few years back we went on vacation staying a VRBO/AirBNB that had a Green Egg. I brought a pork butt to smoke on it, but the Egg didn't come with the Conveggtor. I ended up making the pulled pork in a crock pot. My challenge is: can we find some sort of rig, using only items you might find in a rental, and use a direct heat kamado to smoke a pulled pork?
its not ideal, but a foil pan with water (normally dont need water in a kamado) but in the absence of any other deflector it works... that or a pizza stone inside, wrapped in foil to keep it clean could work
@@SmokingDadBBQ Oh cool, yeah, I'm envisioning a very wide foil pan with water, and then finding another grate to put on top of it for the pork butt. Maybe something in between the water pan and the top grate to provide support. Further: mix some apple juice into the water pan for a bit of flavor.
I did this cook. Used the deflectors and as pizza stone as I do not have a sloroller. Loaded up the basket about 2/3 ways with coal slanted towards the back, no wood since wife does not like smoked meat. It took the shoulder 7.5 hours to reach the 170 degrees F. The classic joe II was at a consistent 270 degrees the whole cook. I also had to add coal to ash drawer since I could not get to 330-350 degrees. Total cook time was 10.25 hours. The pulled pork turn out tender and delicious. Any ideas why it took so long? Should I have added more coal since I did not use wood? I am new to smoking and this style of BBQ. Fantastic videos, thank you.
Excellent video, James. I haven't done a Butt for a while so I came to my fav KJ guy to get up to speed. Thanks for the hack reminders. That ash tray smoke wood trick is awesome. Use it every time I fire up the KJ3 Classic.Thanks!
First, this channel is my bible for cooking on my Kamado Joe grills. I have a question, I am almost 4 hours into a pulled pork cook I am using a Meater probe but I have a 30 degree F difference between my Meater and my Kamado temperature gauge. Which can I trust> Also, my meatere proab tracked a almost 25 degree build up in ambient temperature, I made no changes to any setting the temp just went up, what would cause that? Thanks!
When following the smoking directions, do people shoot for the Kamado Joe dome temperature or the Meater ambient temperature?? These are at least 20 degrees apart for me…
I’m a newbie with a KJ Classic 3. I’ve done the pulled pork twice with FOGO super prem lump (3/4 full 1st time, full basket 2nd time) at 270 temp. Instead of being able to increase temp at foil boat stage (about 6 hr mark) I had to add charcoal as temps started nosediving. Thoughts ??
Nice summary! Something to try: Truff hot sauce as the binder. Immediately got a "this is the best pulled pork you've ever made" from the family. Otherwise my process is pretty much what you showed here (though I prefer a paper wrap at the very end after foil boat to soften up the bark a little).
Worcestershire is easier to say than you think. I couldn't say it until I met a friend from Boston - the letters don't make much sense in that word! Anyway, just try: Wuh (as in wood) + stuh (as in stuck) + sheer (as in sheer a sheep).
Use some of that wonderful sauce in some grated cabbage and you'll have a NC red slaw. The tangy slaw works well with the smoky pork. It's Lexington, NC style. Great cook as always.
Awesome video, looking forward to trying this very soon. Do you have any advice regarding different cook time for different size pork joints? If I have a smaller or larger shoulder how long it might need on the grill? Thanks
Just one more thing, if you can get it, in the U.K. we can get Henderson’s Relish which is hand made in Sheffield. Very similar (but superior) to Worcestershire sauce (which Americans and Canadians struggle to pronounce 😀) cheers Nick
If the point of the foil boat is to keep the bark, and the meat/bark side is facing down on the foil swimming in drippings, how does the bark firm up? Looks like only the fat cap facing up will set up. Thanks
Can you please mention the weight of your meat slab? I am trying to figure out the cook time per kg/pound until foil boat then additional time per kg/lb to rest. Knowing what weight you cooked would would help me dial in my times for different weights of meat.
Great video. I like cooking at 270 degrees because it is faster. Do you advise cutting the meat in half so the cook time is faster and there is more bark?
In a different instance, even with your new double indirect using the soapstone on the JOE JR, do you think the pork should be foil boated at 160 or 165 to prevent underside burning since it's so condensed?
Hi James, you may have been asked before - but your ad for coffee reminded me - what are your thoughts on using a ceramic coffee grinder for grinding pepper instead of some of the other much more expensive products? For me in Australia I can get a Porlex mini coffee grinder for less than a 1/3 of the price of a pepper cannon and it seems to do the same job. Maybe faster. I don't mean to create beef but was interested in if you had insight to the benefits or negatives to either...
Can I get some written instructions or targets? Here's what I think I'm doing, but I'd love for someone to tell me if this is right. 1. Heat the kamado to 270 2. Put the pork on and set your probe to 170 3. About 3-4 hours later (when you reach 170) put it in a foil boat (is this part necessary or only if you need to accelerate the cook?) and reset probe to 200 4. When the roast reaches 200 (and passes the probe test), wrap up in foil and a towel and place it in a cooler for one hour. 5. Add wood chips and spray with apple cider vinegar hourly Do I have that right?
I am adding a kamado Joe Big Joe to our outdoor island. Wanted to see how wide a space would you recommend, for the drop down in the island. Also do you think 36-in drawer underneath would be overkill or look odd?
In a previous video you said you didn't suggest the deflector in the bottom position when using the classic 2. This video shows doing exactly that. Did your position on this change after more research? I'm doing a pork butt Saturday on my new classic 2 and wondering how to place my deflector plates.
anything on the way down is fine, so then it depends how long you are going to hold. a 4hr or longer rest i would wrap and rest 195-200.... a 2hr rest its ok to wait a little longer
Well my junior normally never holds the final 120°Celsius somehow, instead he goes down to 90°C sometimes so I always have to adjust the top dome-.- but PP is a winner, always :-D
Thanks for all the great content! Very new to the Kamado Joe world. The chips that you add to the ash tray, are they pre soaked or completely dry? Thanks
A couple of questions. I may have missed this in the video, but did you spritz at all during the cook? On the rub, if I'm using a brand rub like one of the Meat Church products, should I skips the salt and pepper? I don't want it to be too salty. Lastly, while I know probe tender is the ultimate indication of when to pull off the grill, is there a rule of thumb estimate for cook time per pound at 250?
Great video. I was having some challenges dialing in the temp. More so getting a false reading for temps. I think gradually coming down was my missing link.
Thank you for all of your help! Couldn't be happier with my Kamado! I've seen some comments online mentioning the Slo-Roller being made of Teflon and toxic. I noticed yours does not have the black coating. Is that a different version? Sanded?
It’s just aged and worn out. I have seen these too and now that it’s lowered to 300f I have been opting more and more to do double indirect with deflector plates and a pizza stone instead
@SmokingDadBBQ Thank you for the kind reply. I will mostly likely be going the double indirect method also. Kind of a bummer that KJ allows these things on the market. They should have just used a different material. Also, I followed your Pulled Pork Guide yesterday. Turned out delicious!
Out of curiousity, why specify "Diamond Crystal" kosher salt? I know that Diamond Crystal is a good brand, and made in the United States, but does it bring an objective benefit such as consistency or trace minerals?
its the amount of sodium per volume thats what i am after, if you find a substitute by all means feel free to switch... most people grab mortons which i can't remember the exact percentage but is something like 30% more salt by weight for the same amount and can trip people up
Hi James, what do you think is the right setup for a pulled pork on the jr to have enough fuel. Double indirect with heat deflector and soapstone hack you made?
Love your videos. One of your earlier videos on direct low and slow advised starting with deflectors in bottom position partially open like a pizza slice to pre-warm the Kamado. You’re tip solved a problem I could never figure out. How would you apply this same principle to double indirect (I’m using pizza stone with deflectors)? Thanks for all the great videos!
Hi James. Hope you're well! I'm cooking pulled pork this weekend for around 30 guests. I've ordered a whole shoulder (around 6kg) the butchers here in the UK are not too familiar with the term boston butt. My question is, should I order 2 boston butts instead of a whole shoulder? I'm going to get him to cut it in 2 anyway to hopfully speed up the cook a little. Or will a boston butt and picnic, which is what it will end up being, be okay? I appreciate your advice. Thanks, Daniel.
Great video!! I have a new KJ Classic and bought the Slo Roller and it works great but for some reason I can't configure it like this and use the heat deflectors since the Divide and conquer ends up lay on top of the SR top so I had to forego it
Another banger, James, I dig the method and will try it this weekend. Question... I understand the need to let meat rest before cutting into it, like with a steak or burger, but with pulled pork the meat will be shredded into a container. Wouldn't all the meat juices eventually be mixed in, rather it rests or not?
thx again for a very informative video but I do have one question...... not sure if it's just a matter of taste or if I'm doing something wrong but.. The three times I have tried dry-brining, the various meats have come out very salty. I am using your exact ingredients and amounts but still comes out salty. Do you have any idea what I may be doing wrong or is this something you have never come across before? I doesn't put me off your videos but I am struggling to convince myself that dry-brining overnight is any better than maybe an hour before cooking. Cheers.
Good video James. Actually doing my first pulled pork this weekend but going for the WSM rather than my Joe JR. Also going to try a Carolina vinegar sauce (from the Weber bible). Fingers crossed. Keep the videos coming
