Contents
What Exactly is Pork Butt?
Pork butt isn’t actually the backend of the pig. That’s the ham. Pork butt is a squarish cut of meat that comes from the upper part of the pork shoulder of the pig and has lots of connective tissue and fat. It’s also known as Boston butt.
Now, pork shoulder (or picnic roast) is the lower, triangular portion of the shoulder and is more muscular.
Where things get confusing is many stores use the terms interchangeably. Luckily, both cuts work in this recipe, but opt for the butt when you can.
Why This Recipe Works
This recipe delivers fall-apart tender, flavorful pork butt because of the low and slow cooking method that breaks down tough connective tissue. The balanced spice rub adds complexity, while the “fat cap up” technique ensures the meat bastes in its own juices for maximum moisture and flavor.
Resting the roast allows the juices to redistribute, guaranteeing a tender final product. Basically, it’s a foolproof method for delicious, melt-in-your-mouth pulled pork!
What You’ll Need to Make This
- Pork butt–Use a well-marbled cut of pork butt or Boston butt for best results. If your pork comes with the skin on, remove it before cooking.
- Spice blend—Our blend includes brown sugar, paprika, cumin, red pepper flakes, salt, and pepper, creating a sweet, warm, slightly spicy flavor profile.
- Diamond brand kosher salt—Since salt’s weight varies from brand to brand, please weigh your salt and use 9 grams for this recipe. If you don’t have a scale and aren’t using Diamond brand, use 2 teaspoons to avoid oversalting.
How to Make a Pork Butt Roast in the Oven
- Stir together the salt, sugar, paprika, pepper flakes, cumin, and black pepper in a small bowl.
- Rub the pork all over with the spice mixture. It should be coated on all sides.
- Wrap the pork in plastic and refrigerate overnight.
- Roast the pork, fatty side up, on a roasting pan in the oven until the internal temperature reaches 190° to 195°F. Let it rest at room temperature for 15 minutes.
- Use two forks to shred the pork. Serve alone or with your favorite BBQ sauce, if desired.
Common Questions
How do I buy a pork butt?
When buying a pork butt (Boston butt pork roast), look for one around eight to ten pounds. You can find them trimmed down to five or six pounds, but they usually trim off a lot of fat to make that weight, and fat isn’t a bad thing, especially when roasting it.
Also, try to get the butt with the bone. The bone gives the meat much more flavor as it cooks. It also conducts and retains heat exceptionally well, allowing the meat to cook at such a low temperature.
Do I really need to use a meat thermometer for this recipe?
Absolutely. This pork recipe is almost impossible to pull off without a meat thermometer. You can’t judge the pork by sight or feel. I prefer a digital probe thermometer that can be left in the pork as it roasts.
When you insert the thermometer, stick it into the thickest part of the pork butt, and make sure it’s not touching the bone, or you’ll get a false reading.
Serving Suggestions
This Boston butt recipe is stupendously magnificent on its own, butt (get it?!), consider:
- Dousing it with a vinegary barbecue sauce.
- Heaping it upon homemade buns for pulled pork sandwiches.
- Dolloping a tablespoon or three of creamy coleslaw beneath the top bun.
- Stuffing it into burritos with black or refried beans, guacamole, sour cream, shredded pepper Jack, pico de gallo, and chopped cilantro; and then stuff it in your mouth!
Storage
The pulled pork stores well in the fridge in an airtight container for up to 4 days. If you’re freezing it for later, divvy it into 1-pound servings and freeze it in storage bags for up to 3 months. Reheat in a 300°F oven until warmed through.
Helpful Tips
- Letting the pork sit overnight after rubbing it with the spice mixture is optional but I highly recommend it.
- Make sure to let the pork butt rest before shredding it. It will be hot!
- This recipe is suitable for gluten-free and dairy-free diets.
Write a Review
If you make this recipe, or any dish on LC, consider leaving a review, a star rating, and your best photo in the comments below. I love hearing from you.–David
I made this recipe a month ago, and my whole family loved it! Now that my nephew’s in town, and because we all had it on our minds, I decided to make it again. I almost cried when I thought I lost the recipe! Thank you so much for sharing!
Melissa
Roast Pork Butt
Equipment
Ingredients
- 1 tablespoon Diamond kosher salt
- 1 tablespoon light brown sugar
- 1 tablespoon paprika
- 1/2 to 1 tablespoon red pepper flakes
- 1 tablespoon ground cumin
- 1 tablespoon coarsely ground black pepper
- one (6 1/2- to 8-pound) bone-in skinless pork butt , (Boston butt) or pork shoulder or two 3 1/2- to 4-pound pork butts
- Your favorite grocery store or homemade BBQ sauce, (optional)
Instructions
- In a small bowl, stir together the 1 tablespoon Diamond kosher salt, 1 tablespoon light brown sugar, 1 tablespoon paprika, 1/2 to 1 tablespoon red pepper flakes, 1 tablespoon ground cumin, and 1 tablespoon coarsely ground black pepper.
- Rub the one (6 1/2- to 8-pound) bone-in skinless pork butt all over with the spice mixture. The pork butt should be completely coated on all sides.
- If you have time, tightly wrap the pork in plastic wrap, place it on a plate, and refrigerate overnight (8 to 12 hours) to let the flavors "hold hands," as my grandmother used to say.
- Crank the oven temperature to 250°F (121°C). Place a roasting rack in a large pan.
- Place the pork butt, fat cap side up, on the rack. Roast the pork, uncovered, until the internal temperature reaches 190° to 195°F (88° to 91°C). By this point, the exterior should be crispy and dry. This is similar to what’s referred to as “bark” when smoking on a grill. This can take anywhere from 4 to 10 hours, depending on your oven and the size of your pork butt.
- Remove the pork from the oven and let the roast rest for 15 minutes on a cutting board.
☞ TESTER TIP: If you’re craving super-moist meat for pulled pork, remove the pan from the oven, tightly wrap the pork butt in a couple of layers of heavy-duty aluminum foil, and let it rest for 30 to 45 minutes to soften the exterior.
- Shred the roast pork butt with a couple of forks, evenly mixing the crisp, dry edges with the insanely moist, tender pork inside.
☞ TESTER TIP: You may want to slather the pulled pork with barbecue sauce to impart flavor and sauciness, but I urge you to try it naked first.
Notes
- Rest--Letting the pork sit overnight after rubbing it with the spice mixture is optional but highly recommended.
- Cool–Make sure to let the pork butt sit before shredding it. It will be hot.
- Storage–The pulled pork will store well in the fridge for up to 4 days. If you’re freezing it for later, divvy it into 1-pound servings and freeze it in storage bags. Reheat in a 300°F oven until warmed through.
- Dietary–This recipe is suitable for gluten-free and dairy-free diet.
Southwestern Rub Variation
.For a Southwestern vibe, mix these together and use in place of the rub above:- 2 tablespoons chili powder
- 1 tablespoon smoked paprika
- 1 tablespoon ground cumin
- 1 tablespoon dried oregano
- 1 teaspoon garlic powder
- 1 teaspoon onion powder
- 1 teaspoon cayenne pepper
- 1/2 teaspoon chipotle powder
- 1 tablespoon light brown sugar
- 2 teaspoons kosher salt
- 1 teaspoon black pepper
Nutrition
Nutrition information is automatically calculated, so should only be used as an approximation.
More Great Pork Butt Recipes
Recipe Testers’ Reviews
The oven-roast pork is excellent. I rubbed it on and then refrigerated the pork shoulder roast overnight so the flavors would meld.
The hands-on time is minimal—about 15 minutes to assemble the spice mixture and rub it all over the pork butt. I used about 1/2 the stated amount of red pepper flakes because I thought 1 tablespoon would give too much heat for my taste. I used a bone-in pork shoulder roast that was four pounds, and it took 6 hours in a convection oven set to 225°F.
I served the pork with the classic coleslaw recipe and a bit of Bobby Flay’s barbecue sauce on a soft roll. The pork definitely needs some kind of sauce.
Sometimes we either don’t have access to a smoker or can’t commit 6 or 8 hours to low and slow cooking on a grill. And while slow cookers can make WONDERFUL slow cooker pulled pork, one thing will be missing, and for me, that’s an essential part of pulled pork—the BARK!
When you rub a piece of pork with a spice rub and cook it, low and slow, on a smoker, grill, or in an oven, after several hours, the rub mixes with the hot fat and juices and eventually gets a hard crust called a BARK.
For my money, this is the VERY best part of ANY barbecue! Anyone who loves meat must LOVE a crisp, spice-rubbed exterior.) This bark can be achieved in your oven, and–as long as you have a clock and a thermometer–you can create a nice crust on your pork butt with this recipe. The rub mentioned here is great, but if you have your favorite rub on hand, by all means, use it.
From here, shred the roast pork butt by any means necessary (two forks work nicely) and top it with your favorite sauce, coleslaw, or, as I do, both.
Yes! I am making it toDAY! I have a small 3.60 butt in my freezer that I thawed out all during the day and come evening I did as you instructed and rubbed the mix in well. I had no garlic powder but fresh garlic, so I roasted it up and made a paste-y type rub. I mmmmust have garlic! Also added chives as well as onion powder. Used smoked paprika because it is Divinity!
This being the end of the month and on disability, sides are scarce, but I found a recipe for Syracuse salt potatoes, as I have a friend who adores potatoes and mine are the small red ones. And for myself and others, I am stewing cannellini beans with diced tomatoes, sautéed onions and garlic, fresh herbs from my garden! and I have pushed a rind of real Parm-Reg down into them.
Waiting for roast to hit 170 as you said and then will wrap in foil and return to oven till it hits 190-200. My apt smells heavenly! Thank YOU!
Kim, how did it turn out?
Sorry it took so long for me to reply. It was Wonderful!!!? Making tomorrow and friends are happy…thank you!
Excellent, Kim!
Ok, yesterday I made two 8-pound pork butts for family visiting this weekend. My kitchen smelled SO GOOD all day! But you are correct, it is so delicious that you just want to nosh on it, which it turns out my family, plus a neighbor who just happened to stop by, did last night as I was shredding it! Long story short, another 7-pound butt (I got to say “butt” again!) is in my oven as I write this to make SURE we have enough for this weekend! Thanks for posting such a fantastic recipe!!
And I “trusted thyself” and left them uncovered the entire cooking time (10 hours) until they reached 200°. They were perfect!
Oh, and I just ran into said neighbor. He is headed to the store to buy a pork butt and asked me how I did mine! Good recipes spread fast!
Julia, yours may be my favorite reader comment EVER! Properly roasted pork butt (I love saying it, too) tends to have that sort of effect on people. And we’re grateful it had that effect on you and everyone who could catch a whiff of that shredded pork! Thank you, thank you, thank you for taking the time to share your experience. Means the world to us. Appreciate you sharing this recipe and these kind words. And your photo has us want to drop everything and go make us a couple 8-pounders ourselves…
Wow, this recipe turned out great! I used the oven method and everyone was impressed with the results. I would like to try the grill method next time just to compare. Served this on buns with corn and coleslaw for a family get together with strawberry pie for dessert. Yum!
That, Leanne, sounds like the ideal summer supper. Thrilled that you love this as much as we do and greatly appreciate you taking the time to let us know! Looking forward to hearing which recipe on the site you try next…
Can I put this in a slow cooker
Diana, in theory you could do that, although part of what we most ADORE about this recipe is its crisp exterior, or “bark” (as it’s known in the smoking world) that contrasts so spectacularly with the juicy and fall-apart-tender interior. You would lose that in the slow cooker because everything would end up the same texture.