Tried to bone out a pork shoulder for sausage and made a total mess of it

So I'm still pretty new to the trade, been at it about 8 months at a shop in Nashville. Last week a customer wanted 30 lbs of boneless shoulder for grinding. I figured I'd be fine, watched a bunch of videos. First shoulder took me 45 minutes and I left so much meat on the bone the owner walked over and said 'you gonna feed the trash can or the customers?' lol. Ended up having to weigh it all out and add extra trimmings just to hit the weight. How do you guys get those shoulder blades out clean and fast without losing half the meat?

3 comments

3 Comments

the_oliver3d ago

45 minutes on one shoulder is fine for a rookie, it's just pork not surgery.

hannah_west393d ago

idk man, i mean i get that it's not brain surgery but like, 45 minutes on one shoulder for a rookie? that's a long time for any meat, especially something that can dry out easy. maybe it's just me but i've seen plenty of guys stick a shoulder on and walk away thinking they're fine, then come back to a fat cap that's totally burnt on the outside and raw near the bone. i'd rather someone take their time to figure out the fire management than rush through it and wreck the whole thing. plus, if you're using a drum or offset, that first shoulder teaches you how the smoker breathes, not just how to cook pork.

colescott2d ago

Wait, did you really see someone torch a fat cap that bad on their first shoulder?