Baked Boston Butt

Don't have a backyard BBQ Pit or a Smoker, but love the taste of BBQ pork? Here's your opportunity to turn your oven into an awesome substitute. This is one of my go-to recipes when I need to feed a lot of people and the weather isn't cooperating or in the unfortunate circumstance of needing to bring food to the funeral home. I can bake a Boston butt over night in the oven and it's ready to carry the next day or start it when I get up and let it cook all day. My secret to making this good? LOW AND SLOW as always and keep it double-wrapped! I also let it cool down several hours wrapped before I attempt to cut or shred. I bet I have fixed this no less than 15-20 times and I've never used the same exact spice concoction, but it always tastes the same. You can slice, chop or shred the meat, and serve it on a bun or plate. There's so many ways you can do this, you're bound to like one of them! I like to eat it plain and some of our bunch likes Andy BBQ sauce and our new favorite, Cattleman's Kansas Style BBQ sauce.

Take two sheets of extra long heavy duty aluminum foil. Triple fold the centers until you have one large sheet that will retain and fluids.Center in an oversized (at least 9x13) heavy duty pan and lay your Boston butt in the center of the pan.Liberally coat the meat with your favorite BBQ seasonings. I like McCormick's Applewood Rub, Lawry's garlic salt with parsley, black pepper and Lawry's Seasoned Salt. You cannot put too much...remember, you are baking a huge chunk of meat. Pour about a 1/2-1 cup of water in the bottom as pictured. Don't flood it, just add enough to cover the bottom nicely.

 Tightly wrap the aluminum foil so that the meat is totally encased and nothing can escape.

 Now, cover the pan tightly with aluminum foil. Don't skimp!!! You want to keep all that heat inside.

Place the pan in a cold oven and set the temperature to 225-250 degrees. For a regular sized butt (around 6-7 lbs.) let the meat cook for 8-10 hours. (The butt is done when the bone easily slides out.) At that time, I turn the oven off and let it sit in the oven for a few more hours as the oven cools. Once it cools a little, I take it out of the oven, pull the bone and any other fat and slice, chop or shred for eating.

I have never over-cooked one. I have had a Boston butt big enough that I had to cook it for over 12 hours to get it done. The water in the bottom of the pan will not go away if it is wrapped properly and you slow cook. The juice that results make one heck of a gravy. I like to pour a little over my chopped meat and re-wrap it to keep it moist until serving time.

This platter was reserved to top some baked sweet potatoes the next day.