Vertical Smoker
intro
Tender, bark-crusted pulled pork cooked low and slow in a vertical smoker, with deep wood-fired flavor ideal for casual summer backyard gatherings.
Ingredients
Steps
Dry and Season the Pork
Pat the 1800g bone-in pork shoulder completely dry with paper towels. In a small bowl, mix 2 tbsp kosher salt, 2 tbsp smoked paprika, 2 tbsp dark brown sugar, 1 tbsp garlic powder, 1 tbsp onion powder, 1 tbsp black pepper, and 1 tsp cayenne pepper to form a uniform dry rub. Coat every surface of the pork evenly with the rub, pressing gently to help seasoning adhere, then let it rest at room temperature for 45 minutes while you preheat the smoker.
Preheat the Smoker
Fill the vertical smoker’s lower charcoal chamber with 2.2kg (5 lbs) of lump charcoal, light it, and let it burn until coals are coated in thin gray ash (approximately 20 minutes). Adjust the top exhaust and bottom intake air vents to stabilize the smoker’s internal temperature at 110°C (225°F), then add 200g of hickory hardwood chunks directly to the hot coals to generate clean smoke.
Place Pork in the Smoker
Place the seasoned pork shoulder on the smoker’s middle cooking rack, fat side up, with a disposable aluminum drip pan set on the rack directly below to catch rendered fat. Close the smoker door fully, maintain a consistent 110°C (225°F) temperature, and cook for the first 3 hours, adding 100g of fresh hardwood chunks every 60 minutes during this period to sustain steady, thin blue smoke.
Spritz the Pork with Vinegar
After the first 3 hours of cooking, spritz the entire surface of the pork shoulder with 120ml apple cider vinegar every 90 minutes to keep the exterior moist and build a dark, crispy bark. Keep the smoker door open for no longer than 10 seconds per spritz to avoid major temperature drops, adjusting vents as needed to hold a steady cooking temperature of 107-115°C (225-240°F).
Wrap the Pork in Foil
Once the pork reaches an internal temperature of 71°C (160°F) (typically 6 hours into total cook time), carefully remove it from the smoker and wrap it tightly in two layers of heavy-duty aluminum foil with 56g (4 tbsp) of sliced unsalted butter tucked against the meat. Return the wrapped pork to the middle smoker rack, and continue cooking at 110°C (225°F) without adding additional wood chunks.
Cook Pork to Final Temperature
Cook the wrapped pork until it reaches an internal temperature of 93-95°C (200-203°F) when probed with a meat thermometer in the thickest section away from the bone, which takes an additional 3-4 hours. Remove the pork from the smoker, keep it sealed in foil, and let it rest in an insulated cooler for 1 full hour to allow juices to redistribute before pulling and serving.
Tips
2.Do not skip the 1-hour resting period in the insulated cooler: this hold time keeps the meat at a safe serving temperature while allowing muscle fibers to reabsorb juices, preventing dry, flavorless pulled pork that leaks liquid when shredded.
3.If smoker temperature spikes above 120°C (250°F), partially close the bottom intake vent to reduce oxygen flow to the coals; never add unlit charcoal directly to an active fire mid-cook, as it can create harsh, chemical-tasting smoke that ruins the meat.
OMG, made this for our neighborhood potluck last weekend and people were lined up for seconds! I was nervous about nailing the temp on my vertical smoker since I’m still pretty new to it, but the step-by-step temp guide was totally foolproof. The bark came out perfectly crispy, the pork was so juicy it pulled apart with zero effort, and that vinegar-based mop sauce? Game changer. My 10 year old even asked for it in his school lunch all week. 10/10, will be making this for every summer cookout from now on.
This was SO good, but fair warning for anyone who’s tight on time—block out way more than 11 hours if you’re factoring in prep and resting time! I ended up running 45 minutes behind for my family dinner last Sunday because I forgot to budget time for the rub to set and the pork to rest after pulling it off the smoker. That said? The flavor was unreal, I portioned out 8 servings for weekday lunches and it reheated like a dream, no dry bites at all. Definitely worth the time investment, just plan accordingly!
Full transparency, I’ve only had my vertical smoker for 3 weeks and I was fully convinced I was gonna ruin an entire 8lb pork butt. I followed this recipe down to the letter, even picked up all the exact dry rub ingredients instead of grabbing my usual pre-made store blend, and wow. My roommate said it’s straight up better than the pulled pork we get at our favorite BBQ spot downtown. The only tiny tweak I made was adding an extra tablespoon of brown sugar to the rub because I lean toward sweeter BBQ, and it worked flawlessly. Already sent the link to my dad who’s been smoking meat for 20+ years, he’s gonna test it out for his cookout next weekend.
Made this for my son’s high school graduation party over the weekend and we had literally zero leftovers. I’ve made pulled pork a dozen times on my old offset smoker but switched to a vertical model last month, and this recipe was exactly what I needed to wrap my head around the different airflow setup. The tip about keeping the water pan topped off the entire cook? Total game changer, I used to skip that step and my pork always had dry, tough edges. No dry spots at all this time, even the chewy crispy end pieces were juicy and packed with flavor. Worth every single minute of tending the smoker.
Took this to my office potluck yesterday and I swear half my team begged for the recipe before I even made it out of the break room! I was a little worried the classic southern vinegar tang would be too sharp for my coworkers who mostly grew up on super sweet KC-style BBQ, but the balance of the dry rub and mop sauce was perfect for every single person there. I served it piled high on mini Hawaiian rolls with a side of creamy coleslaw and it was an absolute smash hit. Already planning to make a double batch for our Fourth of July block party next month.