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5 from 2 votes

Pork Shoulder on Charcoal Grill

Making delicious pulled pork on the charcoal grill!
Prep Time1 hr
Cook Time4 hrs
Resting time1 hr
Total Time6 hrs
Course: Main Course
Cuisine: American
Keyword: barbecue, grill, pork, pork butt, pork shoulder
Servings: 20 people
Calories: 352kcal
Cost: $20

Equipment

  • Charcoal grill

Ingredients

  • Pork shoulder about 6lbs

Brine (salt to water ratio)

  • ¼ cup kosher salt
  • 1 cup water

Seasoning

  • yellow mustard
  • black pepper
  • garlic powder
  • brown sugar

Others

  • apple juice
  • bbq sauce

Instructions

  • Dissolve the salt in lukewarm water. The salt to water ratio we used is 1/4 cup of kosher salt to 4 cups of water. Add some ice cubes to cool down this warm water before adding it to the pork. Soak the pork in. Leave it in the fridge for 1 hour.
  • An hour later, fill the charcoal into the chimney, light up some paper, and put the charcoal chimney on the top.
  • Use a paper towel to pat dry the pork. Squeeze some yellow mustard and make it cover evenly on the pork. This will help the powder seasoning mix stick to the pork. Cover the pork evenly with black pepper, garlic powder, and brown sugar.
  • When there are white ashes covered on the top part of the charcoal, it is ready to grill! Pour the lighted charcoal to the grill, also lay some unlit charcoal together, so it will extend the cooking time. Let it heat up for 5 minutes, then use a wire brush to clean the grate. Then wipe it with a paper towel that is soaked in oil, and repeat this process several times.
  • We are going to place the pork on the side of indirect heat. Before adding the pork, place an aluminum pan with 1 cup of apple juice underneath. This will help to keep the pork moist during the smoking process, and also catches the juice that drips off.
  • Lay 2 chunks of wood on top of the charcoal. Close the lid and cook for about 3 hours.
    I usually come back to check the temperature every couple hours, and spray some apple juice on the surface. So the pork won’t dry out.
    If the grill temperature drops below 300, add more charcoal in, together with a block of wood chunk with.
  • Now after 3 hours of cooking time, we’ve already got a lot of smoking flavor. Then we are going to transfer this pork into the apple juice pan.
    Clean the crate, and cover the tray with a heavy-duty aluminum foil. Add more charcoal in and let it keep cooking for about 1 hour.
    Cook until the internal temperature reaches above 200F. If it is below this range, it will get cooked but won't be as easy to pull.
  • Remove the pork from the grill, and let it rest for 1 hour, so that it will keep the maximum of the juice.
  • One hour later, it is time to pull! You can add some bbq sauce or other seasoning you like to mix well here. Enjoy!

Nutrition

Calories: 352kcal