You don't need an expensive smoker for this - a kettle grill set up for indirect heat works fine, you're just banking your charcoal to one side and keeping the pork on the other, away from direct flame. Whatever you're using, the target is the same: a steady 225F for the better part of a day. Resist the urge to peek every twenty minutes - every time that lid comes off, you're adding time back onto the clock.
What you need
- 1 pork shoulder, 7 to 9 lb, bone in
- 1/4 cup RiverKingz All Purpose Rub
- 1 cup Big Muddy Mango Smoke, plus more to serve
- 2 cups wood chips or chunks, if you're using a charcoal setup (hickory or fruitwood both work)
- Buns and coleslaw, to serve
How it goes
- The night before, coat the shoulder heavy in RiverKingz on every side, wrap it and let it sit in the fridge overnight. This isn't optional - it's what gives the bark time to set up.
- Bring the smoker to 225F and get it holding steady before the meat goes on. If you're using a kettle, bank your lit coals to one side and put a drip pan of water on the empty side under where the meat will sit.
- Set the shoulder in fat side up and let it ride, untouched, until the internal temp hits about 165F - roughly 5 to 6 hours. Add wood chunks every hour or so if you're chasing more smoke flavor.
- Wrap the shoulder tight in foil once it hits 165F and take it back up to 203F, another 3 to 4 hours. This is the point in the cook where the temperature stalls for a while - don't panic and crank the heat, just let it work through.
- Rest the wrapped shoulder for at least 30 minutes before you touch it, longer if you can manage it. Wrapping it in a towel and setting it in a cooler holds the heat and lets the juices redistribute. It keeps pulling easier the longer it rests.
- Pull the pork by hand, discarding the bone and any big chunks of fat.
- Toss the pulled meat with the mango sauce right at the end, after it's off the heat - never before, or the sugar burns long before the pork is actually done.
- Pile it on buns with slaw and extra sauce on the side.
Worth knowing
- If your smoker runs hot or cold, trust the meat thermometer over the clock every time. Every shoulder cooks a little differently.
- The stall around 160-170F is normal, not a sign anything's wrong - that's evaporative cooling doing its thing. Wrapping in foil is what pushes through it.
- This freezes well already sauced. Portion it out and you've got dinner solved for a month.
Pit note. Sauce goes on after the pull, never before. The sugar in it will burn long before the pork is actually done.
