I love low-and-slow classic barbecue, but I frequently discover that when people own a grill, it’s typically a gas grill. Even though it makes sense to start with this grilling technique, we all occasionally still yearn for and want to recreate traditional smoked BBQ without using a charcoal grill.
You’re in luck, because this article will teach you how to smoke food on a gas grill and, more specifically, how to turn pulled pork into a delicious reality. Check out the complete recipe guide here to get the fundamentals down before learning more about how to make a smoked pork shoulder or pork butt!
Although this recipe is simple, there are a few technical considerations to be made before beginning. I’ll go over how to set up and cook your roast on indirect heat, how to fully pull and serve your pulled pork from beginning to end, and how to prepare and add smoke to your gas grill (there are a few techniques you can use). Let’s dive in!.
Fall apart tender and smoky, barbecued pork shoulder, cooked low and slow on a 2-burner gas grill.
Barbecue. Nothing beats a tasty pork shoulder that has been cooked “low and slow,” as they say, over wood smoke. A succulent roast is guaranteed by the prolonged cooking time and low temperature.
Actually, the smoke is what makes barbecuing so appealing in the first place; otherwise, a slow cooker would work just as well.
The problem is that you really need a smoker or a barbecue with a separate box for wood chips to do this properly. I dont have either. I may eventually purchase a smoker, but in the meantime, I do have a 2-burner gas grill that works just fine.
The good news is that you can make a respectable barbecue on your grill if you keep an eye on the temperature and maintain the smoke. It simply requires a lot more attention and finagling.
Over the past few weeks, I’ve cooked six pork shoulders on my grill to perfect the technique. The strategy I employed to achieve the best results is detailed below.
Instead of an 8-pound picnic shoulder roast, I discovered that a 4-pound Boston butt shoulder roast works best with this grilling technique. With an 8-pound roast, you essentially need to rise early in the morning in order to finish the meat by dinner.
The timing of the barbecue is easier to manage with a 4-pound roast or two 4-pound roasts cooked simultaneously.
For the meat to be sufficiently flavor-infused with smoke, it must be smoked for a number of hours. After that, finishing in a 300°F oven while wrapped in foil is just simpler.
On a grill, whether it’s gas or charcoal, it’s difficult to maintain a steady low temperature. The last hour or so of cooking’s juices and rendered fat can be captured by wrapping in foil and baking.
BBQ sauce is not really necessary if the meat is well-rubbed and smoked for a long time. However, feel free to add some of your preferred barbecue sauce once the pork has been torn apart at the very end.
Any seasoned grillers out there? I’d love to hear your advice on how to make the best barbecued pork shoulder.
♨️How to Make Smoking Pulled Pork on a Gas Grill
1) Pork butt. I suggest a 4-6 pound Boston butt. This approach should work for up to 8 pounds, possibly more. Of course, the cooking time increases. Assume about ½ pound per serving.
2) A gas grill with a lot of gas. I have natural gas, so Im good to go. Start with a full tank if you are on one. It is always good to have a backup tank. If you run out with no backup. Pop it in the oven at 250. See the oven recipe linked below.
3) A rub. Whatever rub you prefer, make sure it contains sugar, salt, and a variety of spices. Since I had this planned, I applied it the day before and chilled it, but some cooks apply it an hour before cooking, and I think this is also beneficial. If you don’t already have one, I’ve provided a suggestion below.
4) Some method of smoking. I have a smoking box built-in my new grill. I used a cast-iron smoking box on my previous grill (see link in The Cooking for Two Shop). (You could use a bag of wood chips wrapped in aluminum foil. Although cherry, pecan, mesquite, and apple are also frequently used, I prefer to use hickory. While some people enjoy oak, I really detest oak because of this.
5) A device for monitoring the grill’s surface temperature My ThermaQ Blue from Themoworks, which is available in My Shop, is what I currently use. There are many other devices that will work. Another option is to use a cheap surface thermometer, but this is not ideal because you will need to constantly check it.
6) Time. lots of time. I spent 11 hours on the grill before taking a 2-hour break before dinner. Bigger will take longer.
NEED HELP WITH THE GRILL?
What is the best meat to use for pulled pork?
First things first: choose your pork. The best cuts of pork for this recipe are a butt or a shoulder. The pork butt (also known as “Boston Butt”) is located higher on the foreleg than the pork shoulder, which is located further down. These cuts are actually both from the pig’s shoulder.
(These cuts were once kept in barrels referred to as “butts” ” That’s what the name is from. Not from a pig’s butt. Therefore, we are unable to include any amusing jokes about “I like big butts and I cannot lie” here. What a waste. ).
Pork butt has slightly more intramuscular fat marbling than pork shoulder, but both have a lot of connective tissue and collagen that will turn into gelatin as they cook slowly, giving us the desired fall-apart-tender texture. Whichever cut you use is going to turn out delicious!.
I recommend buying a bone-in pork butt or shoulder. The bone will cause the meat to cook more slowly, which is what we want, and the bone marrow will also enhance the flavor. But a boneless cut will do in a pinch.