How long is the longest I can slow cook pork shoulder?

How long is the longest I can slow cook pork shoulder? - Bowl of Fried Food and Fried Egg

Everyone seems to say "low and slow" for pork shoulder. 225f or 250f for 8 or more hours.

What is the longest / lowest you can do? (without big risk of illnesses) eg, what would happen if you did 225 for 24 hours? etc.

EDIT: presume a 10LB pork shoulder (about 4.5kg) TIA



Best Answer

According to Modernist Cooking Made Easy (emphasis added):

For medium rare cooked pork shoulder, the meat should be held at 135°F or 57.2°C, while medium cooked meat is done at 145°F or 62.8°C. If a traditional well done shoulder is desired, it should be cooked at 155°F or 68.3°C. No matter what temperature range is used, the pork shoulder should be cooked for 1 to 2 days. For a crisp or well done outer part, sous vide pork shoulder may be finished by searing, grilling or torching.

Note that to safely maintain and control temperatures this low for the sustained period of time, you must have a proper sous-vide setup, with a means of maintaining the temperature of the water bath.

Even at 135 F, over several hours, the method is safe because the killing of pathogens is a function of both time and temperature.

Similarly, the conversion of gelatin to collagen which gives slow cooked pork its unctuous texture is also a function of both time and temperature. While in more traditional cooking methods (oven or barbecue), reaching internal temperatures of about 180 F is necessary to get collagen conversion in a reasonable period of time, it can be done in the truly extended time periods sous-vide cooking makes possible.


For more traditional cooking methods, about 225 F is about as low as you want to go

See also:




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Can you slow cook pork shoulder too long?

Can you overcook the pork? It's hard to overcook the well-marbled and fatty shoulder cut. However, it can become mushy due to the acids in the sauce if the cooking continues too long beyond the recommended cook times. Make sure to keep an eye on the pork and take a bite for the best gauge of doneness.

How long is too long for pork in slow cooker?

Don't leave it on 'warm' all day The general rule of thumb is that two to four hours is the maximum length of time you can leave food in a slow cooker on warm. After this, it needs to be transferred into the refrigerator.

Can you slow cook pork for 20 hours?

Pierce pork all over with a carving fork; rub in salt then liquid smoke. Transfer pork into a slow cooker. Cover, and cook on Low for 16 to 20 hours, turning once during cooking time.

How long can you cook pork in a slow cooker?

Season the pork all over with salt, pepper, and any other seasonings you'd like, then place it in the slow cooker. Cover with a lid and cook on low for about 8 hours, until it reaches an internal temperature of 190F.



Christmas slow cooked PORK \u0026 CRACKLING | How to cook roast recipe




More answers regarding how long is the longest I can slow cook pork shoulder?

Answer 2

The lowest simmer is about 180-185F. That's about as low as you'd want to go. Theoretically, you could go lower (and you certainly could go lower for sous-vide), but significantly lower in the oven or on the stove leaves little margin of error for safety. You'd want to cook your shoulder to at least 160F because that's the temperature at which collagen begins to break down. Depending upon the size of your roast, that could easily be as long as 24 hours.

EDIT: in response to OP's edit: 10 Lbs? You could go 24 hours. Since the temperature if your simmering liquid or oven is only 180-185, the roast isn't going to get higher than that, so if you want to go as long as 24 hours, you'd be fine. Again, with the strict temperature control of sous-vide, you could go longer, but with less precise control of temperature 24 hours is plenty, personally I wouldn't go longer than that.

Sources: Stack Exchange - This article follows the attribution requirements of Stack Exchange and is licensed under CC BY-SA 3.0.

Images: Jer Chung, Dids, Karolina Grabowska, Kampus Production