How long to let the Boston butt rest after smoking? The thorough guide

Last Updated on: 24th October 2022, 01:37 am

Resting is a really important part of smoking.

Usually, pitmasters think that the smoking is done after taking the Boston butt out of the smoker.

But in reality, if it is not rested properly, then it can result in the spilling of meat juices.

Boston butt is a premium portion of pork shoulder and can be mouth-watering if smoked properly.

But after smoking, you need to handle it carefully to avoid wasting your efforts.

There are several confusions about smoking Boston butt, one of them being how long to let Boston butt rest after smoking.

Boston butt should be rested for at least 15 minutes before serving, according to general rule.

It will give it enough time to reabsorb the meat juices.

Moreover, you should consider resting it for no more than 2 hours to avoid cooling it down.

Here are the main points of what we are going to discuss in this article.

• Depending on size, Boston butt can be rested for 15 minutes to 2 hours.
• You can use the faux cambro technique or oven if you want to maintain the internal temperature of the Boston butt.
• Resting has many benefits, ranging from redistribution of meat juices to enhancing the flavor of Boston butt.
• You should be careful about carryover cooking to avoid Boston butt from overcooking.

How long can you rest a Boston butt

If you are smoking a smaller Boston butt, 15 minutes will suffice, but a larger Boston butt requires at least 2 hours to rest.

As mentioned earlier, the Boston butt can rest for 15 minutes to 2 hours, depending on the size of the Boston butt.

The size of the Boston butt is the main determinant of the time for resting.

The Boston butt size depends on the size of the cow or any other hog when it is butchered.

So, if the Boston butt is smaller, it means it will be softer and require less rest.

During smoking, when the internal temperature of Boston butt reaches the boiling temperature, the moisture starts evaporating. It is also known as the stall phase.

So, due to evaporation, the moisture of the Boston butt is drawn towards the surface of the Boston butt.

Due to this, the deeper portion of Boston butt becomes dry while the moisture is collected on the surface of Boston butt.

If the Boston butt is sliced immediately after smoking, then the meat juices will spill out and affect the appearance of the Boston butt.

That’s why our Boston butt is resting.

so that the moisture present on the surface of the Boston butt should sink in and be reabsorbed by the fibers of the meat.

This process varies depending on the size of the Boston butt, so it’s important to take into account the size before making the final decision.

In short, the Boston butt should be rested for at least some time before slicing to allow it to become tender and juicy.

The resting time of the Boston butt will vary depending on the size of the Boston butt.

Later in this article, we will discuss the most common sizes of Boston butts in correlation with their resting times.

What does “carryover cooking” mean while resting the Boston butt?

Carryover cooking means a continuous increase in the temperature of Boston butt after it has been removed from the smoker.

Carryover cooking usually occurs in the resting phase.

The temperature of the Boston butt can rise from 5 to 15 degrees Fahrenheit depending on its size and texture.

So it is really important to keep in mind that the cooking of Boston butt will not stop after you have removed the Boston butt from the smoker.

A good way is to remove the Boston butt 5–10°F before it reaches the target temperature .

For example, if you are aiming to cook Boston butt at 190°F , then it is a good idea to remove the Boston butt at 185°F and place it for resting.

Otherwise, carryover cooking will result in an increase in temperature and overcooking of Boston butt.

Resting is really a crucial part of smoking whether its resting smoked cheese or meat.

You need to be careful about both the minimum and maximum range of the Boston butt to rest.

If you slice the Boston butt too early, it will result in the spilling of the meat juices.

If you let the Boston butt rest for a long time , it will continue to cook or cool down.

So it is important to set a defined range for the rest of Boston butt.

Depending on size, you should rest the Boston butt for at least 15 minutes and up to 2 hours. This range is really important for Boston’s butt to rest.

You can’t rest each and every Boston butt for 15 minutes or 2 hours.

Take into account the size of the Boston butt and decide based on the ranges given above.

At the same time, you should not get overwhelmed by decision-making because it’s the only way to properly master smoking.

Why do we need to rest Boston butt

Resting is a really important step in Boston butt.

It is not an optional phase; rather, it is mandatory for every Boston butt to rest before slicing it.

There are several benefits of resting the Boston butt. Some of them are given below.

allows redistribution of meat juices.

Resting a turkey allows the redistribution of the meat juices.

When turkey is rested, the meat juices will sink in and be reabsorbed by the meat fibers.

Due to this, the meat juices will not spill out upon slicing.

Meat juices are one of the most important parts of smoked turkey.

This is usually the moisture present in the Boston butt.

When smoking Boston butt, the butt is poked on the surface to check the color of the meat juices to check for doneness.

So you know that meat juices are present on the surface of Boston butt and spill out upon poking Boston butt.

But do you know from where these juices come? The answer is that it is actually the moisture of Boston butt that is drawn to the surface during evaporation.

It is drawn to the surface during the stall phase.

But once the turkey is done smoking, the tar still remains on the surface of the bird.

As a result, if the turkey is sliced immediately after smoking, the meat juices will escape and affect the texture of the Boston butt.

increases the tenderness of the Boston butt

In addition to the redistribution of meat juices, resting also helps to make Boston butt more tender and soft.

The tenderness of Boston butt usually occurs for two reasons: due to carryover cooking and by retaining moisture if covered.

Carryover cooking is one of the most neglected phenomena in the smoking world.

After taking the Boston butt out of the smoker, it will continue to increase in temperature for some time.

This increase in temperature will break down the fibers of meat and make it more tender.

Secondly, if the Boston butt is covered during the resting, then it will retain the moisture of the butt and cook it by steaming for some time.

It will help the Boston butt become even more tender and juicy.

After resting for some time, the Boston butt will be soft enough to be pulled off easily.

enhances the flavor

Resting Boston butt also helps in increasing the flavor of Boston butt.

It’s like giving a final chance to the rub and other stuff to sink into the Boston butt completely.

The rubbed particles will sink deeper into the Boston butt along with the meat juices.

In addition, if you have applied sauce to the Boston butt by mopping during smoking, then resting will have an even greater effect on flavor.

The sauce and rub applied to the Boston butt will mix up and enhance the flavor of the Boston butt.

Should you wrap your Boston butt while resting?

Wrapping or covering the Boston butt during rest is another hot debate topic in the bbq space.

There are thousands of schools of thought on this issue.

One prefers to cover their Boston butt, while the other prefers to rest their Boston butt uncovered.

And apparently, both of them are right.

There is no hard and fast rule about whether or not to wrap your Boston butt during rest.

It’s your personal choice.

There are benefits to both approaches, and you have to decide which one you prefer, depending on your personal choice.

Covering Boston butt during resting makes it more tender and juicy because it allows easier redistribution of meat juices.

In addition, it also cooks Boston butt by steaming for a while, which makes Boston butt softer and increases its tenderness.

On the other hand, resting Boston butt without covering it helps us retain a better and crispier bark.

As mentioned above, while wrapping, the moisture trapped inside the foil can affect the bark of Boston butt and make it messy.

So it’s a personal choice whether you want to cover Boston butt or not.

If you want a tender and soft Boston butt, then make sure to cover it.

If you want a crispy and good bark , then you don’t have to cover Boston butt while it’s resting.

Is it bad to rest the Boston butt for too long?

The simple and straightforward answer to this question will always be yes.

It’s a rule of nature that an excess of anything is hazardous, and so is the case with resting Boston butt.

You have to set a defined range for resting the Boston butt.

As per general rule, the Boston butt should be rested for no more than 2 hours.

After 2 hours, the Boston butt will start to cool down and become hardened.

So you should consider serving your Boston butt after resting it for a maximum of 2 hours.

As discussed above, resting has many benefits, ranging from the redistribution of meat juices to making the Boston butt tender.

But if overdone, these benefits can turn into cons.

You should consider deciding on a range for resting Boston butt for only 2 hours maximum.

The most common effect of resting the Boston butt for too long is that it will start to cool down and become hardened.

If your Boston butt is cooled down, then it will not be very presentable while serving it to guests.

You can avoid the cooling down of Boston butt by resting it in an oven or by using the faux cambro technique.

But you might end up overcooking the Boston butt if you rest the butt for too long.

You need to be really careful about the internal temperature of Boston butt while resting it in an oven.

How do you rest the Boston butt with the faux cambro technique?

The Faux cambro technique is one of the most effective techniques for the resting of the Boston butt.

It can help you store your Boston butt for up to 4–8 hours, depending on how effectively you carry it out.

It might sound complicated, but it is really simple to store Boston butt by using the faux cambro technique.

Here is a step-by-step guide to resting your Boston butt by using the faux cambro technique.

1. First of all , you should consider getting a good quality cooler that has no leakage.
   
2. After that, fill the cooler with hot water.The concentration of the water depends on the size of the cooler.
   But if you have a bigger cooler , then 3 gallons of hot water is enough.
3. After that, close the lid of the water and leave it for 15 minutes. Now line the cooler with clean towels.
   Make sure to line the towels effectively to provide insulation.
   
   
4. After that , take out your Boston butt from the smoker and place it on some sort of table for a few minutes. It will allow Boston butt to breathe easier.
   
5. Now wrap the Boston butt in foil, but make sure to not wrap it tightly.
   
6. Lastly, place your Boston butt into the cooler and close the lid. Make sure to check for any leakage before leaving it out there.

By resting your Boston butt this way, you can easily store it for 2 hours in its original texture.

You can store it for an even longer time, but it will start to cool down and get messy due to the moisture trapped inside the foil.

It is an effective way to rest your Boston butt because it will keep the internal temperature of your Boston butt constant.

By wrapping Boston butt in foil and placing it in a cooler, we basically minimize the chances of heat loss and increase insolation.

In the oven, how to rest Boston butt

If you want to rest your Boston butt without cooling it down , then an oven is an effective tool to do that.

You can rest your Boston butt for up to 8 hours before serving.

It is typically used after finishing your Boston butt hours before serving.

Although it is a good technique and can help you store your Boston butt for hours, there is still a risk while doing this.

While resting your Boston butt in the oven , you might end up overcooking it, which might affect the texture of your Boston butt.

If you want to rest your Boston butt in an oven, choose one with a low temperature of 160°F-170°F.

If you can’t find such a one, then make sure to find one with at least a lower range of no more than 180°F.

There are no complications involved in the process of resting your Boston butt in an oven.

You just need to set your oven at the lowest temperature and put your Boston butt in the oven.

You don’t need to wait for the oven to reach the desired temperature; rather, you can place the Boston butt inside the oven as soon as you remove it from the smoker.

While putting your Boston butt into the oven , make sure to place a temperature probe into the Boston butt.

It will help you to stay informed of the internal temperature of Boston butt and avoid it overcooking.

If the internal temperature of Boston butt exceeds 160°F , then you should consider removing it from the oven.

Is there a difference between resting and holding while smoking meat?

Usually, resting and holding Boston butt are confused with each other and used interchangeably.

You can even see pro pitmasters using these terms alternatively because there is no information available on such topics.

The difference between holding and resting Boston butt lies in the internal temperature of Boston butt.

In resting, we cool down Boston butt a little bit to allow redistribution of meat juices, while in holding, you need to maintain the internal temperature of Boston butt for a longer time.

While resting Boston butt, we tend to place Boston butt at room temperature to allow the meat juices present on the surface to sink back into the Boston butt.

Moreover, we do it for a maximum of 2 hours to avoid cooling it too much.

While holding, we are more concerned with keeping the temperature of the Boston butt near 160°F to ensure that the Boston butt is served fresh.

That is, we are more concerned with storing than with resting.

In short, resting can be done at room temperature to allow the meat juices to be absorbed back.

While holding should be done by faux cambro or by oven to make sure the internal temperature of the Boston butt remains constant.

What’s the difference between Boston butt and pork shoulder?

Boston butt and pork shoulder are two of the premium cuts of meat that come from hogs.

They usually come from the same portion of the hog and are often considered to be the same .

But there is a difference between them .

Usually, Boston butt and pork shoulder come from the shoulder of the hog.

Usually, the upper portion of the shoulder blade is known as the “Boston butt.

While the lower portion of the shoulder is known as the pork shoulder,

Because it contains more fat and other ingredients, Boston butt is usually of higher quality than picnic shoulder.

While picnic shoulder is tough in texture, it can still become one of the finest cuts if smoked properly.

Final verdict

Boston butt should be left to rest for at least 15 minutes before serving.

On the other hand , you should serve it within 2 hours maximum.

Because after 2 hours, they will start to cool down and become hardened.

if you want to read more then check out our guide on Do you flip meat when smoking?