Pork Dry Pork Problems

[Traeger944]

Hi everyone - I’m excited to say I just purchased the 780 and have cooked the 321 ribs along with pulled pork. For whatever reason both turned out dry and I don’t no where I went wrong. I followed the app closely for temperatures and used the prod for the pork but. Needless to say it’s a little disappointing and frustrating.
Any thoughts or suggestions for a new Traeger Fan?

 

[Timmy]

Check the actual grill temp with a 3rd party themometer. It might be running hotter than what the grill temp reads. My 780 runs about 20f lower than the T themometer on the grill.

 

[Traeger944]

Interesting suggestion. Fingers crossed. I live in Ontario Canada so I wonder if the cold whether would cause any issues?

 

[Timmy]

I did an overnight cook a week or 2 ago, temp was 27f at night.Did not cover or put a blanket on the grill, it did just fine. Maybe use a little more pellets but not much more.

 

[Jim G]

I find that, especially in cold weather, smoke items on the lowest rack setting nearest the heat source.

I did two racks of ribs last weekend. One on Saturday and one on Sunday. Both 321 method. The Saturday was on the top rack and the Sunday on the lowest rack. The difference was unbelievable. In hindsight, I should of tested the temp of the ribs on Saturday. I'll bet they didn't get hot enough for long enough.

 

[Slimpicker]

Did you take your pork butt off at 195° and wrap in foil and a towel and put it in a cooler for 2 hours????

That would have turned a dry butt into a completely juicy one... probably only the most important step when doing a butt...
PLUS, on a Traeger you would probably never have to do the 3-2-1 method to exact... maybe 3 then wrap tight in foil after adding apple juice, watered down BBQ sauce, or any liquid of your choice before wrapping, then after 2 hours open and check.
They should be REALLY moist and that last 1 hour I would never do on a fan blowing Traeger... maybe add your BBQ sauce and 10-15 minutes to burn the sauce on then EAT!!!! do not do the whole last HOUR or you will dry them out for sure.

Sometimes I don't even WRAP in foil... bring them in the house, put in a Turkey cooker, add BBQ sauce, cover and cook for 2 hours... STEAM them to death in BBQ sauce and they will be awesome

 

[Traeger944]

Thanks everyone-really appreciate the insights. I just did a 3rd party temperature check and it’s about 20 degrees below the temp reading on the Traeger. Most likely due to the cold weather. Would this likely be what’s causing the ribs/pork to dry out? To correct the issue, should I simply boost the heat by 20 degrees on the Traeger to make it what the recipe calls for? Thanks again!

 

[RoadRunner18]

PORK BUTT:

When I do a pork butt, I first inject it with apple juice and Butcher Block Pork Injection. Then I apply my favorite rub.

The day of the cook, I set my grill temp for 190 (My Timberline 1300 runs 9-10 degrees hotter than what the grill thermometer says it is - I check it with a FireBoard ambient temp probe.

I smoke the pork butt low and slow, occasionally spritzing it with apple juice, coca cola or Dr Pepper - whatever is on hand, until internal meat temp reaches 160-165 degrees. At that temp the pork butt is pulled from the grill.

I place the pork butt and meat rack in an aluminum pan, and then pour in 1 to 2 cups of apple juice, sprinkle brown sugar and add butter to the top of the pork butt, then cover tightly with HD aluminum foil.

I set the grill temp to 250 and return the pork butt and aluminum pan to the cooker until it reaches 204 degrees.

After removing from the cooker i let it sit wrapped for 30 minutes.

Try this method and your pork butt will come out tender and juicy.

RIBS:

I coat the rack of ribs with a light coating of yellow mustard to hold the rub in place.

Coat the ribs with your favorite rib rub. Place the ribs on a meat rack.

Set your cooker for 180 degrees, and your meat thermometer for 165. Place the ribs and meat rack directly on the grill.

At 165 remove the ribs from the grill, set your grill temp to 250 and your meat thermometer to 200..

Remove the ribs from the meat rack and place the ribs on two sheets of HD aluminum foil.

Give each rack of ribs a coating of clover honey, brown sugar and liquid or melted butter.

Wrap tightly and return to the grill until internal meat temp reaches 200.

Unwrap the ribs and apply a coating of your favorite BBQ sauce and return the ribs to the grill for 15 to 30 minutes to allow the BBQ sauce to set.

Your ribs should come out tender and juicy.

 

[Slimpicker]

Thanks everyone-really appreciate the insights. I just did a 3rd party temperature check and it’s about 20 degrees below the temp reading on the Traeger. Most likely due to the cold weather. Would this likely be what’s causing the ribs/pork to dry out? To correct the issue, should I simply boost the heat by 20 degrees on the Traeger to make it what the recipe calls for? Thanks again!

Basically you also don't want to rely on the Traeger meat probe either, we can give you a thousand ways of cooking all this but unless you have a good accurate meat thermometer to tell you the internal temp and when to do things like pull, wrap, turn up temp, then you still are not gonna get the best results.

 

[smiller8892]

Hi everyone - I’m excited to say I just purchased the 780 and have cooked the 321 ribs along with pulled pork. For whatever reason both turned out dry and I don’t no where I went wrong. I followed the app closely for temperatures and used the prod for the pork but. Needless to say it’s a little disappointing and frustrating.
Any thoughts or suggestions for a new Traeger Fan?

Hi there,
Did you calibrate your Traeger probe before using it? If not, you must do that. I got a ThermPro Pen electronic Instant read and a dual probe temperature unit as well. They never need calibration and are super accurate. And, the Traeger probe can lose its calibration setting over time! I don't even use it anymore for that reason. Cheap system for such a great grill.

Pen: https://www.amazon.com/ThermoPro-Di...9&sr=1-1-80ba0e26-a1cd-4e7b-87a0-a2ffae3a273c

Dual Probe: https://www.amazon.com/ThermoPro-Wi...ld=1&keywords=thermopro&qid=1608156618&sr=8-2

Good luck,
Steve

 

[Traeger944]

Hi there,
Did you calibrate your Traeger probe before using it? If not, you must do that. I got a ThermPro Pen electronic Instant read and a dual probe temperature unit as well. They never need calibration and are super accurate. And, the Traeger probe can lose its calibration setting over time! I don't even use it anymore for that reason. Cheap system for such a great grill.

Pen: https://www.amazon.com/ThermoPro-Di...9&sr=1-1-80ba0e26-a1cd-4e7b-87a0-a2ffae3a273c

Dual Probe: https://www.amazon.com/ThermoPro-Wi...ld=1&keywords=thermopro&qid=1608156618&sr=8-2

Good luck,
Steve

Thanks! I never even thought to calibrate it. I’ll try that first and then go with the thermopro. Thanks again!

 

[Timmy]

I dont use the Traeger probe anymore either. I got a Fireboard 2.

 

[smiller8892]

Hi everyone, the bottom line is this. Get a thermopro or similar electronic temperature unit for the inside temperature of the grill then get a thermopro or similar electronic unit gor the meat probe as well. This removes the temperature variables of the Traeger from your cooking. Then your recipes should be fine as written. For whatever reason Traeger doesn't adjust well to temperature and it's calibracion loses its memory. I guarantee this will solve people's problems and give you peace of mind. It certainly solved mine.

 

[Traeger944]

Hi everyone, the bottom line is this. Get a thermopro or similar electronic temperature unit for the inside temperature of the grill then get a thermopro or similar electronic unit gor the meat probe as well. This removes the temperature variables of the Traeger from your cooking. Then your recipes should be fine as written. For whatever reason Traeger doesn't adjust well to temperature and it's calibracion loses its memory. I guarantee this will solve people's problems and give you peace of mind. It certainly solved mine.

Thanks. Seems like the Traeger can be a little tricky in cold weather, but these suggestions sound like they’ll help. Current temperature outside the house is 14 F or -10 C. Hello winter.

 

[Sterling20]

Hi everyone - I’m excited to say I just purchased the 780 and have cooked the 321 ribs along with pulled pork. For whatever reason both turned out dry and I don’t no where I went wrong. I followed the app closely for temperatures and used the prod for the pork but. Needless to say it’s a little disappointing and frustrating.
Any thoughts or suggestions for a new Traeger Fan?

I had the same problem with the 3-2-1 method. This was my reaction with positive results. I monitor the temperature instead of using the timelines of a recipe. Every time I followed a recipe timeline, the results were not that good. I use the traeger probe to roughly keep tabs on the temp. When I must leave the house. I purchased a wireless thermo pro thermometer. They are pretty cheap and work well. The thermo pro wireless only works on WiFi but it it dead on the temp. I also purchased an instant read temp probe. Saying all that, I think that once you use the probes a few times and write down the times you will eventually establish times that work for your grill and you. Note: I have a Silverton 810 from Costco. Additionally, I started out with the wireless setup with one probe, I have it for 2 years with no issues. I graduated recently to the 4 probe setup. Some of the name brand probes are really expensive so I tried the thermo pro with good success. I am not endorsing the brand. I’m just trying to tell you my experience so if you need to save some cash. They are a option. Good luck.