Smoked Pulled Pork Shoulder

All-day applewood pork butt on a charcoal smoker — low, slow, and pulled, with the full fire-tending playbook

Feeds 10–12 · 30 min

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The pork
1 bone-in pork shoulder / "butt" (8–9 lb)
Quick brine (optional, 1 hr+)
2 qt cold water · ¼ cup kosher salt · ¼ cup brown sugar
4 smashed garlic cloves · 1 Tbsp peppercorns · 2 bay leaves
The rub
¼ cup brown sugar · 2 Tbsp smoked paprika
2 Tbsp kosher salt · 1 Tbsp coarse black pepper
1 Tbsp each garlic powder · onion powder
1 tsp each cumin · mustard powder · cayenne (to taste)
For the fire & smoke
hardwood lump charcoal + charcoal briquettes
applewood chips (foil pouches)
a foil pan of hot water for the chamber
To finish
Carolina vinegar sauce + sweet & tangy BBQ sauce · buns & slaw

Brine (optional, 1 hr+). Dissolve the salt & sugar in the cold water with the aromatics, submerge the shoulder, and chill at least an hour (longer is fine). A short brine only seasons the outer layer — that plus the rub is plenty. Or dry-brine: just salt it and rest uncovered in the fridge.
Pat dry & rub. Dry the shoulder bone-dry, then pack the rub over every surface. A dry surface is what takes smoke and forms bark — wet skin just steams.
Build the fire — Minion method. Fill the firebox with unlit fuel (mostly briquettes for a steady burn, some lump for heat), banked to one side. Light just 12–15 coals, let them ash over gray, and pour them on one end of the unlit pile. The lit coals creep slowly across, giving hours of steady heat instead of a spike-then-die fire.
Set up the chamber. Put a foil pan of hot water in the cook chamber — it steadies the temperature and keeps humidity so the bark doesn't scorch (the single best fix for a leaky smoker). Set the shoulder fat-cap up on the cooler side, away from the firebox.
Hold ~250°F. Aim for 225–275°F at the grate. Control it with the intake vent only (open = hotter, close = cooler); keep the exhaust at least half open always, or the smoke turns bitter. Check every 30–45 min; otherwise keep the lid shut.
Smoke with apple — first 4–5 hours. Set an applewood foil pouch (chips in foil, holes poked) right on the coals; add a fresh one every 45–60 min for the first 4–5 hours only. After that the bark is set and more smoke just adds bitterness.
Feed the fire & clear ash. As coals burn down, add unlit fuel to the edge of the live ones (never a big unlit pile on top — it smothers and drops your temp). Knock ash away from the intake so air keeps reaching the fire.
When to take temps — pit often, meat rarely (then closely). Check the grate every 30–45 min all cook long (and right after any refuel), nudging the intake. Leave the meat alone at first — it climbs slowly and every lid-open costs ~15 min. First internal check around hour 5–6 to catch the stall and decide on wrapping; after wrapping, check every 45–60 min; then from ~195°F check closely for the 200–205°F finish. A leave-in probe lets you watch the meat without ever opening the lid.
Ride the stall — wrap at ~160°F. Around internal 150–165°F the temp parks for a couple hours as moisture evaporates. Once the bark is set and deep mahogany, wrap tight in foil to push through and save 2–3 hours (costs a little bark crispness; guarantees tender).
Fire fighting you? Finish inside — no shame. If the pit won't hold heat after the first several hours, you've already got what the smoke gives: the bark and smoke ring set in the first ~4–5 hours, and smoke stops absorbing after that. Wrap the shoulder (foil + a splash of cider vinegar) and move it to a 275°F oven to ride out the stall and finish to 200–205°F. You lose nothing but the last of the bark crisp, and you stop babysitting a losing fire.
Cook to done — ~200–205°F. It's done when the thickest part (not touching bone) hits 200–205°F and a skewer slides in like soft butter and the blade bone wiggles loose. Under that it won't pull; that window is where the collagen has melted.
Rest — 1 hour. Wrap in foil and a towel and rest in a cooler at least an hour. This is non-negotiable — it reabsorbs the juices instead of pouring them out.
Pull & sauce. Pull out the bone (it should slide free), shred with forks or hands, discarding big fat lumps. Toss the meat through the Carolina vinegar sauce to cut the richness; put the sweet sauce on the table.

✨ Untested — Claude drafted this one from scratch; it hasn't been cooked and amended in our kitchen yet, so treat the amounts as a starting point. Low salt — salt at the end and taste as you go; broth, cheese, and canned goods already bring salt.