Outrageously good pulled pork without a smoker. Low and slow is how you do it with these easy step by step photo instructions with only a few minutes of active time.
Editor's note: Originally Published November 2, 2013. Updated with updated photos and had been partially re-written for clarification.
This is the pork butt recipe that we use most frequently. Please enjoy one of our personal favorites.
As usual, I had done a lot of research to create this oven pulled pork recipe. I was so confused after about 25 recipes. There was the aluminum foil covering most recipes; there were onions and various veggies. Just wrong!
There were a few with oven temps of 225 and 250 but also a lot of 350 recommendations. There were finish temps of 170 on most of the recipes. And pork being cut with knives. IT IS PULLED PORK!!!!! ...... ARGGGGG.
The Plan:
1) Smokers and grillers will agree on low and slow. You do not turn up the temp. You need time for the connective tissues and fats to melt into their goodness. 250 degrees is a good target temp for a grill and is so easy in an oven.
2) In an oven, smoke was not an option, but some smoke taste is needed. Enter liquid smoke. I just give it a good rub of liquid smoke. Alternatively, you can make a rub with spices like smoked paprika.
3) Otherwise, I treat it like it was on the grill, using the same rub and cook to 195 plus.
The house smelled great all day long.
My Rating:
Ok, a lower 5 only to leave room for grilled pulled pork as a higher 5. But so good without the fuss, I have repeated this many times.
Pro Tips: Notes for Oven Pulled Pork from Pork Butt
What is Pork Butt AKA Boston Butt?
Like many cuts of meat, there are multiple names about the same thing. Pork butt and Boston butt are the same.
Pork shoulder is the thinner area of this cut but is commonly cooked and used the same as the butt. It has a bit less marbling and less fat and is usually not separated from the butt. But usually, the term pork shoulder is used interchangeably with pork butt and Boston butt.
If you are wondering, butt means thick, so that is why the term "butt" is used. Lastly, the picnic ham and picnic shoulder are not the same as this cut.
Bone-in vs. Boneless Pork Butt
Bone-in pork butt will take a bit longer to cook, but not much. Some will argue a taste difference one way or the other. Nope, no difference to me (or most people) in the taste. So use what you have.
But, it does feel so good when you go to shred the pulled pork and the bone just lifts out. I always smile.
Fat Pad Up or Down?
The big debate for many years, fat pad up or down. So, I will use the competition smokers for my reference.
While a few will still argue strongly one way or the other, most think it does not matter. I agree.
When is Pork Butt Done?
I like to take my pork butt to 195+ range and prefer 200-205.
How Long to Cook Oven Pulled Pork?
Others seem to like to say one hour per pound. But then you see them cutting it with a knife. Doesn't work for me.
It seems to always be at least 2 hours per pound plus a little some times. So 2 hours per pound at 250 degrees is a good starting point on timing.
I usually cook about 4 pounds, and it takes 8-9 hours. Remember that bone in takes a bit longer. You MUST check the internal temperature. The minimum is 190 but is low to me. I like mine 200 plus. Do not remove early, or you will be sorry.
The rest before the shred could be as short as 30 minutes, but longer is better. It will stay warm with my method for about 4 hours. Shred just before serving so this gives you a 3 1/2 hour window to hit.
Other options for your pork butt:
Pulled Pork on a Gas Grill – Not That Hard Don't be intimidated, it really is not that hard, just follow the photos.
Crock Pot Pulled Pork from Butt the Right Way Yup, I have totally sold out, but done the right way, you can get great pulled pork from a crock pot.
You will need a rub of your choice and some Liquid Smoke. If using my rub, mix 1/2 cup dark brown sugar, 3 tablespoons kosher salt, 1 tablespoon chili powder, 1 teaspoon garlic powder, 1 teaspoon onion powder and 1 teaspoon pepper.
Place a 4 pound (give or take a little) bone-in (or boneless) pork butt on a large piece of plastic wrap if wrapping. Rub with about 2 tablespoons of liquid smoke (optional).
Use about one cup of rub and coat the meat. That is a very heavy coat.
If you have time, wrap the meat with plastic wrap. You may need a second piece. Refrigerate for a few hours, but overnight is fine. If you don't have time, just apply the rub and pop it in the oven. This is what I usually do.
When ready to cook, prep a large rimmed baking sheet with foil and a rack. Give it a heavy spray of PAM.
Place meat on rack and place in a 250-degree oven (not convection). I did not bother to preheat. I went with fat cap down. You can shorten the time some by increasing the temperature of the oven to 300 degrees but I suggest 250.
Bake until internal temp of 195 plus (200-205 is better). About 9 hours for me usually. This will vary some with the thickness of the meat, bone-in vs. boneless, and the oven. You have some flex time in the next step to get your timing right.
Remove from the oven directly onto a large sheet of heavy-duty foil. Wrap tight with the foil then wrap with several towels. Place wrapped meat in a small cooler if available and rest for 1-2 hours until needed. It can stay warm for up to 4 hours is well wrapped in a cooler.
Shred with forks. It will fall apart.
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Oven Pulled Pork from Pork Butt
Ingredients
- 4-5 pounds Pork Butt - aka Pork Shoulder or Boston Butt
- rub of your choice - good quality
- 2 tablespoons Wright's Liquid Smoke - optional but recommended
My Rub
- 1/2 cup dark brown sugar
- 3 tablespoons kosher salt - Morton
- 1 tablespoon chili powder
- 1 teaspoon garlic powder
- 1 teaspoon onion powder
- 1 teaspoon pepper
Instructions
- You will need a rub of your choice. My rub: mix 1/2 cup dark brown sugar, 3 tablespoons Morton kosher salt, 1 tablespoon chili powder, 1 teaspoon garlic powder, 1 teaspoon onion powder and 1 teaspoon pepper.
- Place a 4 pound (give or take a little) bone-in (or boneless) pork butt on a large piece of plastic wrap. Rub with about 2 tablespoons of liquid smoke (optional). You can skip the plastic wrap if not applying rub ahead of time.
- Use about one cup of rub and coat the meat. That is a very heavy coat.
- If you have time, wrap the meat with plastic wrap. You may need a second piece. Refrigerate for a few hours, but overnight is fine. If you don't have time, just apply the rub and pop it in the oven. This is what I usually do.
- When ready to cook, prep a large rimmed baking sheet with foil and a rack. Give the rack a heavy spray of PAM.
- Place meat on rack and place in a 250-degree oven (not convection). I did not bother to preheat. I went with fat cap down. You can shorten the time some by increasing the temperature of the oven to 300 degrees but I suggest 250.
- Bake until internal temp of 195 plus (200-205 is better). About 9-10 hours for me. This will vary some with the thickness of the meat, bone-in vs. boneless and the oven. You have some flex time in the next step to get your timing right.
- Remove from the oven directly onto a large sheet of heavy-duty foil. Wrap tight with the foil then wrap with several towels. Place wrapped meat in a small cooler if available and rest for 1-2 hours until needed. It can stay warm for up to 4 hours is well wrapped in a cooler.
- Just before serving, shred with forks. It will fall apart.
Recipe Notes
Pro Tips:
- Cooking time can vary, but you can use the wrap time at the end to adjust the shredding time by a few hours.
- If you don't have a rack, you can elevate the meat on balls of rolled up foil. Please do not leave it to cook in the muck. (see the crock pot recipe)
- The liquid smoke is nice, but some object, so skip if you wish. If you use it, quality matters a lot. I use only Wright's.
- My rub is provided for you but use the rub of your choice.
- If you use my rub. The salt is calculated on Morton Kosher salt. 1 teaspoon table salt = 1 1/4 teaspoon Morton kosher salt = 2 teaspoon Diamond Crystal kosher salt.
- I find my rub still is good with half the salt if that is a concern for you.
- 195 is the minimum, but I much prefer 200 to 205.
- This will freeze great for 3-4 months. Good in the refrigerator for 3-4 days.
- Bone-in or boneless does not matter. But bone-in may take a bit longer.
- Fat pad up or down does not matter.
- I frequently just wet with the liquid smoke and apply the rub. And then directly into the oven. It is still great.
- DO NOT cover with anything like foil or a lid in the oven.
- Nutrition is hard to calculate. The fat drains, the rub forms bark and also drains some. So a lot of things are included in the nutrition numbers that may not be there.
ADJUST THE RECIPE SIZE:
You may adjust the number of servings in this recipe card under servings. This does the math for the ingredients for you. BUT it does NOT adjust the text of the instructions. So you need to do that yourself.Nutrition
Nutrition is generally for one serving. Number of servings is stated above and is my estimate of normal serving size for this recipe.
All nutritional information are estimates and may vary from your actual results. This is home cooking, and there are many variables. To taste ingredients such as salt will be my estimate of the average used.
Originally Published November 2, 2013
Happy in Texas
I will have to agree that the lower temperatures are a better way to go. I have a friend that uses a grill to smoke and cook the meat and he likes to keep it around 270 for the target temp.
I didn't want to stay chained to my grill for 12+ hours so I decided to go with a target temp of 225-240F @ 1.5 hours per pound in the oven.
My first pork butt/boston butt was 9.21 lbs. It was already bag/plastic wrapped so I removed it from the fridge and brought it up to room temp by soaking it in a large bowl of warm-hot water while leaving it in the plastic bag. This took about 15-20 min. I made a dry rub while I was waiting. I used the rub recipe in Jeff Phillip's Smoking Meat book called the Big Bald BBQ Rub which can also be found in the smokingmeatforumsDOTcom.
I coated the entire pork butt in mustard as directed by several popular forums. Adding the dry rub made a nice paste. I made sure the mustard got into every nook and cranny of the pork but. I figured that my pork butt might taste like a large mutant hotdog at the end ... but the mustard flavor pretty much disappears completely.
After the mustard, I added the rub. Basically, the rub includes sugar, paprika, black pepper, lemon pepper, kosher salt, powdered garlic, powdered onion, cayenne pepper, chili powder, and lemon pepper.
Based on several finishing sauce recipes for pulled pork that I found in the forums, I also included about a tablespoon of allspice. I also included Lime Pepper seasoning (I cut the amount of lemon pepper by 1/2 and added the lime)
While these ingrediants would make you think that the drippings would have a heck of a kick, they didn't really have the level that I was expecting. I am not a big fan of hot sauces, so this was well within my comfort zone. Nice flavor, but nothing that would cause a novice to start sweating, or think about sweating.
I started out at 225, and after the fat cap split (I put the fat side up) around the 4 hour mark, I spritzed with apple cider vinager every hour for about 3 hours. Then I wrapped it in butcher paper (waxless) and then in foil and put back into the oven. I pulled the drippings pan and poured off the drippings and put the pan back under the butt in case my wrappings leaked (they did not). I bumped the heat up to 240 since the internal temp was only around 165.
At the 12 hour mark the oven safety feature turned off the oven. I was asleep and didn't notice immediately. When I came down at the 13 hour mark the meat was at 190F. I turned the oven back on and set the temp to 300 for 90 minutes. This brought the temp into the 203-205F range which was my target temp.
Since I wanted to get back to bed, I opened the oven door for about 20 minutes to dissapate the heat, then I closed the door and let the roast coast/rest for about 5 hours until I got up again. The internal temp was a bit over 160 so no food safety issues. I wouldn't have been worried if it was 60F lower since it had been wrapped the entire time.
I took the roast out of the oven and pulled the pork. It was pretty hot but it was so tender, moist, and juicy, that it pretty much fell apart.
I saved the additional drippings while setting aside the fat.
I cooled the drippings so that the fat congealed so that it could be removed, but found that it was pretty easy to pour the drippings into another bowl while the fat remained in the original bowl. A slotted spoon helped with this process.
after I pulled the pork, I put the very moist pork on some racks and cold-smoked them. There is a YouTube video of a $1 cold smoker setup using a cardboard box and some sawdust from a pecan tree or whatever smoking wood that you like to use. I used Pecan since we had one cut down recently and I saved a garbage bag full of the sawdust. But I also have mesquite chips as well. I put the sawdust in an aluminum baking pan and used bow torch to start it (youtube has videos of how people do this).
With the racks under some sort of enclosure (any type of box, teepee type thing, traditional BBQ with smoker, whatever) I cold smoked the racks of pulled pork for 1 hour. I also experimented with 30 minutes of smoking but 1 hour was the sweet spot. Even 30 minutes had good flavor but I wouldn't go longer than 60. It would be a waste of time.
The racks of pulled pork were still very very moist. The overall temp inside the smoking enclosure only went up 3-5 degrees. I immediately bagged and chilled the pork after 1 hour.
I lightly simmered the drippings for a few minutes to make sure there weren't any food safety issues, and then poured all of the drippings (minus the fat that was skimmed off) back into the bags of pulled pork.
When making the sandwiches later on, we toasted hawaiian slider and regular sized buns with butter in our oven broiler.
Some of the family likes pickles and onions added, some like their favorite bbq sauce, and some like a finishing sauce added to their pork. There are a lot of interesting recipes. It just depends on the individual.
I liked doing the cold-smoke after the oven cooking. It was simple to do. It did not take much in materials (a couple hands of sawdust and a few mesquite wood chips) ... and it had a great smoked flavor. Trying to light the sawdust with a match or lighter did not work well. A propane or butane torch worked really really well and only took a couple seconds.
The initial 9.21lb roast was bone in. I am currently cooking one right now that is 5lb with no bone. We will see how that goes.
If you have any need for smoked spices. I would recommend spreading your seasonings out on some aluminum foil and smoking them while you do the pork. It is easy, takes no extra time, and you can pour them back in the original bottle afterwards. I do this with paprika, pepper, garlic and onion powders. The give a nice flavor when doing hamburgers or other things on the stove when you don't have easy access to the grill.
Monica
I booked marked this page because I cannot tell you just how much conflicting information I got on how to cook a butt. The information on this post is clear, super helpful...and I'm on my way! Wish me luck ! Lol
Dan Mikesell AKA DrDan
Hi Monica,
Welcome to the blog.
I try to be informative. I always told my students it is much more important to know "why" than "what" usually so you can fix things when something doesn't quite work.
I have a 4 pounder in the refrigerator now for tomorrow.
Dan
Kim
We had this for dinner last night and it was delish!! I put it on the smoker for about an hour to add the smoked flavor. We’ll definitely use this recipe again! Thanks for sharing! I also appreciate all of the helpful hints and ways to tweak the ingredients & cooking times.
Bob Gilda
I look at the nutrition facts and often see "Per Serving." Yet no where is the amount of a serving stated. For example, Oven Pulled Pork from Pork Butt. What is amount of a serving that has 680kcal?
Dan Mikesell AKA DrDan
Hi Bob,
Welcome to the blog.
There are 8 servings in 4-pound pork butt. So with cooking, it will be 6-7 oz. Remember the nutrition is calculated by a machine, there is drainage and it is a natural product, so variable, unlike factory produced foods.
Dan
Karen
So glad I found your site. I’ve got a big boy 7lbs. I’m calculating 14hours at 250, boneless pork shoulder butt(off the label lol). I’ll let you know how it turns out. Your recipe is the most straightforward I’ve found and went through quite a few.
Dan Mikesell AKA DrDan
Hi Karen,
Welcome to the blog.
Your time estimate may be a bit high. Everybody talks about weight but the cooking time is somewhat more related to the thickness which is not totally proportional to weight. Check it at 10 and 12 hours to be sure.
Enjoy your pork.
Dan
Karen
Thanks for the quick reply Dr Dan!! Yes and good because I’m wanting to cook it overnight so if I start cook time around 11pm I’ll check my temp at 9am.
Jim Holstein
I cooked a 5# loin at 325 until 175-deg per the thermometer dial. It was excellent for the 2 of us. We each had 2 slices, lots left.
How can I make some pulled pork from the remainder?
Dan Mikesell AKA DrDan
Hi Jim,
Welcome to the blog.
Making pulled pork out of already cooked pork loin will probably not go very well. With pork butt, you have all the fat and melted connective tissue, but with loin, the fibers just tighten up. If you want to try, I would do some thinner slices and braise in some broth over at a low simmer. But again, I think you are fighting a losing battle.
Dan
Jeanne
Thank you sooooooo much for this recipe and instructions. I did not have liquid smoke, so I used a chipotle chili powder. I followed all other instructions. This was unbelievably good. Will recommend and share to everyone. I didn't know it could be so easy.
Beth
Hey Dr Dan, I'm going to oven bake a 9 pound bone in Boston Butt. Planning to bake (per your instructions) 14-16 or even more hours at 250 to get to around 205 degrees. I want it to pull very nicely! I then have to travel with it & reheat to serve in a couple days.
So, my question is: after I finish baking it, do I wrap the whole unpulled butt, ice it down quickly & refrigerate, then reheat & pull on the day I serve it? OR Do I pull it right after taking it out of the oven and just reheat the pulled pork on the day I serve it? I sure don't want to dry it out. How long should I plan to reheat after pulling out of the fridge on the day I serve it? I have really enjoyed reading your recipe (so wonderfully detailed) and especially all the comments - I have read them all. Saw one that regarded reheating I think after it was pulled. Just want your thoughts on this.
Thanks!
Beth
Dan Mikesell AKA DrDan
Hi Beth,
Welcome to the blog.
First, your time estimate for 9 pounds is about right I think but have not done one that big this way. At about 10 hours into it, I would check the temp and make sure it is reasonable. I like 200-205 in the thickest part.
About the cook now, eat in a few days thing. This comes up a lot for us also. I try to have always shred and serve if possible. I frequently will put it in at midnight for mid-day the next day. Remember, you have a few hours (up to 3-4 if correctly wrapped) of rest time and you can also cook at 225 or 275 degrees instead of 250. So a lot of built-in "fudge" time. So if visiting family, I would take it raw and a bag of rub. I would "borrow" the oven for overnight and then wrap the devil out of it in the morning when done. That would be the best result.
But if that is not possible then I have the following suggestions. So, cook fully and let it rest for per the instructions. Then shred the day of cooking. You can not get good results by waiting to shred. I just won't shred right. And you can't reheat it well.
It is technically good for 3-4 days after cooking but really best the first two days. So, if I aiming for 3-4 days out, I cook, rest, shred and then freeze it. To thaw, I move it from the freezer to refrigerator for a day or so.
I like to reheat on a sheet pan, I sprinkle with a little water on my hand (don't overdo it). Cover tightly with foil and into the oven at 250-300 until hot. The time varies by how you shredded it and the amount on the tray. You can then turn the oven down (keep it covered) or transfer to a crock pot on low to keep warm. (usually 45 minutes or so in the oven for me). I know that is not very exact but you get the idea.
Never reheat with sauce applied, the acid will destroy the texture.
I hope that helps.
Dan
Rick&Sherry
This recipe is Butt Roast perfection! We now make a big bowl of rub (enough for 6 roasts) to put in freezer. Iv never cooked roast without foil until now. Thank you for all the time you spend searching the internet & comparing the recipes & ingredients to come out with the perfect End Recipe. Love coming here, I just wish I could Post a pic of my Roasts/Turkey etc. Happy Holidays,
Charlene a kirkland
Cooking a few weeks before needed. Should I wait to shread or do it same day cooked?
nancy
how long for an oven cooked 13lb bone in pork? can I use 3 packets of slow cooker seasoning mix, as a rub, it calls for ketchup, brown sugar an vinegar to be added with the powder to a slow cooker, but meat doesn't fit....please help, I am cooking this for 25 people
Nancy
Dan Mikesell AKA DrDan
Hu Nancy,
Welcome to the blog.
I have never done that size. I will tell you that the smokers usually run 225 to 250 degrees and they calculate 1.5 to 2 hours per pound. I don't see why it would be very different. So by that math, you are looking at 20 to 26 hours. I always seem to take a bit longer than 2 hours per pound.
But again, I have never done this size. If you bump it up to 275 degrees, it will be a bit faster. If you cut it in half and cook as two 6.5 pound butts it will be more in the 10 to 13-hour range. BUT ALWAYS REMEMBER YOU ARE COOKING TO A FINAL INTERNAL TEMP NEVER BY TIME. You get some flex time with the wrapping at the end.
I have a hard time getting excited about your slow cooker package rub but use it if you want. I would make up a batch of mine, cheap and good.
Lastly 13 pounds bone-in will probably feed the 25 people but not much leftovers.
Good luck with it.
Dan
A
John
OMG, This is the best meat of any kind I ever ate. 4lb partially frozen, cooked exactly as written. Started at 11:30 pm until 11:00 am, 200% temp, was perfect. Glad I found your recipe. Thank You Dan.