Boston Butt Pork Roast: Better Than a Picnic Shoulder Roast?

Boston butt pork roast goes by several names: pork shoulder butt, pork shoulder butt roast, Boston Butt, Boston blade roast, Boston style shoulder, bone-in or boneless blade roast, blade end butt, and the list goes on.

In years gone by, I had no preference when it came to the picnic shoulder or the Boston butt. In fact, I would often choose the picnic shoulder because it's cheaper. However, I now definitely prefer the Boston butt roast - hands down. Here's why:

First of all, the Boston butt pork roast is a superior cut. It has more marbling (aka fat). Intramuscular fat is good and the Boston butt has a generous amount which gives it lots of flavor and moisture.

My Boston Butt Pork Roast Smoked with Hickory and Apple Wood

The picnic shoulder is a tougher cut of meat and has a thick layer of skin which prevents your seasonings and smoke flavor from reaching the meat. So more prep work is required to prepare a picnic shoulder for cooking.

Secondly, you can do more with a Boston butt roast. Of course, it makes excellent pulled pork -- some say the best when compared to a picnic shoulder. That, I believe, is a matter of preference. However, the Boston butt makes an excellent dinner roast for slicing and serving sans BBQ sauce. I love the versatility.

Below you'll find a basic but delicious recipe for sliced Boston butt pork roast. Notice again I said "sliced" roast. This is not the same as pulled pork. The difference is the target temperature of the meat.

For pulled-pork, you want your butt roast to reach an internal temperature of 190F to 195F. This will make the meat "fall off the bone" tender so that it easily pulls apart for sandwiches.

However, at 180F to 185F, the roast will still be super moist and tender. However, the consistency of the meat holds-up well enough for slicing - just perfect for a pork roast dinner with baked or creamy mashed potatoes and veggies or salad.

Boston Butt Pork Roast

Prep Time: 1 hour
Cook Time: 7 hours 30 min

Total Time: 8 hours 30 min

Supplies Needed:
Apple and Hickory Wood Chunks (at least 4 large chunks of each)
Charcoal - 1 large bag
Food Syringe
Food/Oven Thermometer
Aluminum Foil

Ingredients:

• 5-6 lbs Bone-in Boston Butt Pork Roast
  
  
For Rub:
• 1/4 cup paprika
• 2 Tbls ground black pepper
• 2 Tbls course salt
• 1 Tbls sugar
• 1 Tbls garlic powder
• 1 Tbls onion powder
• 1 Tsp dry mustard
• 1 Tsp cayenne pepper
  
  
For Injection Marinade: Chris Lilly's Pork Injection Recipe:
• 3/4 cup apple juice
• 1/2 cup water
• 1/2 cup white sugar
• 1/4 cup table salt (I would start with 1 Tbls of salt. Add more to taste.)
• 2 Tbls Worchestershire Sauce

Boston butt with fat cap down and up.

Directions:

1. Remove pork shoulder butt from package and rinse with cold water.
2. With a sharp knife or kitchen shears, remove fat cap.
3. Inject meat with marinade as you slowly remove the needle from the meat each time you inject it. Do this throughout the meat until most or all of the marinade is gone.

   
   Boston butt with fat cap removed and being injected with marinade

4. Next, rub the meat with your seasoning/BBQ rub and let the meat come close to room temperature (about 45 minutes).
5. While the meat is resting, start your charcoal and set-up your grill for low, indirect heat (225F).
6. Once your coals are ready, place your meat on the grill and insert a BBQ thermometer in the meat so that you can monitor the internal temperature of the meat. That is the key to this entire process. Add 1 chunk of hickory and 1 chunk of apple wood.
7. If you're using charcoal briquettes, add 12 briquettes every hour.
8. Add 1 hickory and 1 apple wood chunk every 30-45 minutes for the first 4 hours.
9. Smoke the Boston butt pork roast until it reaches an internal temperature of 180F (approximately 60-90 minutes per pound). Then remove the meat from the grill, cover loosely with foil and let it rest for 20 minutes before slicing.

Boston butt in the smoker with temperature probe and spare ribs

I made the Boston butt below for a UCLA tailgate party with my job. I was a little pressed for time, though. I smoked the meat at approximately 235F for 4.5 hours. Then I wrapped it in foil and put it in the oven at 300F for 1.5 hours. Straight from the oven I wrapped the roast (while still in the foil) in a large towel and placed it in a cooler and headed to the Rose Bowl.

Before leaving the house, the meat reached about 170F. So the carry-over heat got it to at least 175F. When I took the roast from the cooler at the tailgate party, which was 2 hours after removing it from the oven, it was STILL too hot to hold in my hand! I made ribs too, which was more than enough food.

So I put my Boston butt pork roast back in the cooler and brought it home for a family dinner later that evening. It sliced like heaven and ate even better.

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