Injecting pork butts

cadmaster · Posted: Sep 26 2010 Post subject: Injecting pork butts

i am on my next adventure of smoking.. the 1st time i tried pork butt i failed.. but gonna try a couple or 3 in the next couple of months

i went thru about 14 pages of search topic INJECT/INJECT RECIPE.. and it was a really broad response with over 700 responses, not a thread directly answering question.. but did notice a lot of people inject

question is, for a standard 5 pound pork butt..

- what is the GENERAL amount people typically inject? my injector pen goes from 5ml to 30 ml

- what are the typical ingredients? on the search response ive viewed-ive seen from dr pepper to diet soda to just apple juice and water.. some dont inject at all.. and some have 15 plus ingredients in there injector liquid.. im a keep it simple guy.. i would like to test some, but 15 plus seems like a lot

i appreciate the responses.. thanks fellas
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brock957 · Posted: Sep 26 2010 Post subject:

4 table spoons Tony's
3 cup applr juice
1/2 cup brown sugar or substitute honey
2 tblsp worcestersire sauce
2 tblsp soy sauce
2 tblsp hot sauce
1 tblsp dry mustard.

combine in sauce pan heat until they are well blended.

Refrigerate before using.

I use that, or a variation of that. Sometime use some pineapple juice and apple juice.
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cadmaster · Posted: Sep 27 2010 Post subject:

anyone have any additional response on my questions?

thanks
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BriGreentea · Posted: Sep 27 2010 Post subject:

Never occured to me to blend marinade and heat it. I usually do that making chicken thighs with a butter sauce.
For butts I like using cola...pepsi is good and use a marinade sauce with it and pepper.
As for the amount I just fill the thing all the way and go all over it. I'm not conservative on the amount. I know the more I use the more I can taste it. On the two butts I used I could taste pepsi and hickory smoke in it. I personally like to just throw it over the butt in a bowl and use the liquid and a spice like pepper and inject it from there. Then flip it fat side down and put it in the fridge for a few hours.

One of the first things I do for all my meats before I start is wash it of course, then rub it down with olive oil. For brisket the last one was my best ever using pepper of course because I love pepper, and used limes on top of it and then poured dos equis beer on it then injected it.

I generally keep the marinade not too complicated to 3 ingrediants max. I go more complicated after I drain the meat and place the rub on it and use at least 5-7 differerent ingrediants.
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DJW · Posted: Sep 27 2010 Post subject: I've tried a lot of stuff...

just about everything that'll go in my injector...nothing fancy,rarely anything more than just one ingredient....
Preferences.....Apple juce,Pineapple juiceMaple syrup....all cut 50/50 with lots of pokes.....for sliced meats(like brisket or roasts) i just mop,mop,mop,mop.
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gbque · Posted: Sep 27 2010 Post subject:

Cant remember where I saw this but it was delicious. Take Italian dressing and strain it. Inject with the liquid and use the solids as a base to rub on the outside. I've done it with pork loin on the smoker and it was awesome.
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day_trippr · Posted: Sep 27 2010 Post subject:

I inject butts about half the time, and keep it pretty simple: some AJ, a little brown sugar, and a tablespoon or so of the same rub I'll use later. Warm it up in a sauce pan just to get everything dissolved, cool it in the 'fridge, take it out and inject the butt, let the butt set covered in the 'fridge for awhile, then take it back out, pat dry and rub it up, then back in the 'fridge until it's time to put on the cooker...

Cheers!
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raystevens · Newbie Joined: 04 Sep 2010 Posts: 30

1/3 cup apple juice
1/3 cup white grape juice
1/2 cup sugar
1 Tbls salt
Mix and inject.

Yes, we can taste the difference.

Take Luck!

wallace

Limp Brisket · Posted: Sep 28 2010 Post subject:

Whatever you decide to inject with; inject it full. I inject them in a pan and then tilt pan to suck up more injection and keep it going until I'm satisfied it's full.
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mrcustomsteel · Posted: Sep 28 2010 Post subject:

I'd say minimize the salt and stick with the sweet and mustard. Salt tends to make butts hammy. Slather regularly with your favorite sauce for the last 4 hrs to give them a good bark.
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crashpilot · Posted: Sep 29 2010 Post subject:

How much injection to use?? Just keep injecting until the meat won't hold any more - you'll know.

What to inject? I love your KISS approach!
IMHO, you want a salty/citrus profile with just a teensie bit of capsicum type heat in there. Go through the list you just read, grab the 3 or 4 most common ingredients, and mix it up. I'll tell you this, you won't do it wrong and screw up a butt. I beleive injecting a butt helps, but honestly it really doesn't do very much - some guys swear that injecting has zero effect on the final product.

Best of luck and remember if there aren't any photos, it didn't happen! Wink

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Armageddon · Posted: Sep 29 2010 Post subject:

I've been playing with injections since I'm hoping to get more flavor deeper in to the cut and for my PP, I'm starting to settle in to as much volume as possible with a mix of apple cider vinegar, my rub, some mustard and hot water...I've tried with apple juice also, but just a bit sweet given my rub has a sweet twist to it already.

Kronk · Posted: Sep 29 2010 Post subject:

+1 on keeping it simple. I like the increased flavor and moistness that comes with injectiong but the pockets of slime sometimes left behind in the muscle layers grosses me out. So I rarely inject anymore.
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cadmaster · Posted: Sep 29 2010 Post subject:

great info..i appreciate all the responses.. hoping to try something out this weekend

thanks again fellas
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Goldenboy · Posted: Sep 30 2010 Post subject:

Apple Juice 1cup
Water 1 cup
Sugar 1/4 cup
Salt 1/4 cup

Basically injected brine with apple juice

Definitely keep it as simple as possible and take notes Wink

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Brian Briggs · Posted: Sep 30 2010 Post subject:

I injected one with Dales low sodium marinade and it came out great. I used a small needle (from a farm store) as opposed to a regular injector needle and shot her up like my butt was a junkie.

txluke · Posted: Sep 30 2010 Post subject:

I inject with water, salt, applejuice, and molasses. This is also my brine. I put the pork in a large resealable plastic tub and add the brine till it is covered. I inject till I get tired of it then seal it all up and let it sit in the fridge till I am ready to cook, about 6 to 24 hrs later.
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