Buying and lighting calculator · Pork
How much pork shoulder do I buy and when do I light?
Bone-in pork shoulder is the pulled pork cut. It is sold whole, usually in pieces of 2.5 to 4.5 kg; if you ask for more, we split it into several pieces. It loses around 40 % of its weight to fat, bone and water, so we count 330 g per person to reach about 200 g of pulled meat: a generous plate portion, and in a sandwich it goes much further. It is the cut that forgives haste least: it hits the stall around 70 °C, sits there for hours and only truly softens when the collagen melts, between 91 and 93 °C. In a kamado, indirect at about 120 °C, count about three and a half hours per kilo and leave a margin: you can hold it wrapped and warm before serving.
How to ask for it
For 4 people: Ask for a whole bone-in pork shoulder with its fat cap, in a single piece of 1.5 kg. If it is split in two, ask for two halves of similar size so they finish together.
A bone-in shoulder loses about 40 % to fat, bone and water: about 330 g raw for every 200 g of meat on the plate. 91-93 °C in the centre; the bone pulls out clean.
How we calculate it
We start from a reasonable cooked portion (about 200 g of meat on the plate, 170 g of cleaned fish) and convert it to raw weight using each cut's bone and trim loss. "Hungry" adds 25 %. We round up to what is actually sold: quarter kilos, whole pieces, units.
To the cook time (per kilo or per piece, at each method's temperature) we add the kamado's lighting and stabilising (20-45 min depending on the method, as on the recipe pages), the rest, and a margin for long cooks, which vary from one piece to the next. Times are approximate: your kamado, the wind and the charcoal decide; on big cuts, trust the probe.
Frequently asked questions
How much pork shoulder per person for pulled pork?
Count about 330 g of bone-in shoulder per person, which leaves about 200 g of pulled meat. For sandwiches you can drop to 250-300 g. A 3 kg shoulder feeds roughly nine people on a plate or twelve or more in sandwiches.
How many hours does a 3 kg pork shoulder take?
Count about ten and a half hours indirect at 120 °C (about three and a half hours per kilo), plus half an hour of rest. That is an average: the stall around 70 °C can add hours. Follow the probe: it is ready at 91-93 °C, when the probe slides in like butter.
Bone-in or boneless?
The calculator counts a bone-in cut with its fat cap (40 % loss). Boneless loses less weight, so you can buy a bit less, but the piece dries out sooner and cooks slightly faster. Bone-in stays juicier, and you know it is ready when the bone pulls out clean.
Other Pork cuts
- Pork ribs (St. Louis and baby back)
- Pork collar (neck)
- Pork loin (roast)
- Fresh pork belly (skinless)
- Pork knuckle (hock, bone-in and skin-on)
- Suckling pig (half, split and cleaned)
- Ibérico pork presa
Approximate figures. Sources and the portion rule are in "How we calculate it".