Chuck Roll Questions

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Gary in VA

Head Chef
Joined
Mar 15, 2005
Messages
1,411
Location
McGaheysville, Virginia
yesterday at costco I noticed that they had chuck rolls by the case at $2.09 a lb... I figure that is a pretty good price for beef. I asked the guy how many in a case and he said it was normally 3 about 20 lbs apiece.

I passed on them for the weekend because I didnt have the time to devote to it and I didnt figure they would fit on the WSM.

Has anyone cooked the whole chuck rolls, I haven't but want to. Do you cook em like a butt and bring them to 195 and pull em? what is the best way to do these things. It is now on my agenda for the next few months to pick up a case and do some... I just don't know how.

advise please.

Thanks
 
Gary in VA said:
yesterday at costco I noticed that they had chuck rolls by the case at $2.09 a lb... I figure that is a pretty good price for beef. I asked the guy how many in a case and he said it was normally 3 about 20 lbs apiece.

I passed on them for the weekend because I didnt have the time to devote to it and I didnt figure they would fit on the WSM.

Has anyone cooked the whole chuck rolls, I haven't but want to. Do you cook em like a butt and bring them to 195 and pull em? what is the best way to do these things. It is now on my agenda for the next few months to pick up a case and do some... I just don't know how.

advise please.

Thanks

Just pretend that it is a very large butt. It has the same fat makeup as a butt does. A LOT of grease will be rendered during the cooking process, so be ready for that.

I've done WHOLE chuck rolls on the WSM and you will fill up (or over fill) the water pan with grease.

Rev's sauce is great on pulled chuck roll. ;)
 
If I saw a deal like that I would not pass up on it! :shock:
Chucks are fantastic on a WSM. :LOL:
I do em to 160 then foil to 200 then let rest in a cooler for a couple
of hours, pull and chow down :LOL:
I bet Wolf Rub would work really good on a chuck :oops:
 
Gary like the others have said, chuck is fantastic. Several things about chucks you should know, 1. don't finish by temperature alone, use the fork test (try the fork test in the 200* range, if the meat is not fork tender continue to cook until it is), 2. the texture of the meat is a bit stringy, so a minimal amount of chopping could me necessary, 3. Definitely foil in the 160-165 temp range IMO chuck will dry out if you do not foil, 4. to me this is the most important thing, let the chuck roasts rest as long as possible, this will redistribute the juices as well as aid in tenderizing.

I would buy the chuck roll for the price, but I would not cook the whole chuck roll. I would get the 20lb roast and at the least cut it in half, maybe into three. This will give you better bark coverage as well as reduce your cook time. Not to mention having to pull and foil a 20lb hunk of meat.

As Finney stated, Reverend Marvins Gourmet BBQ Sauce is a perfect match for the shredded beef!
 
If you leave the chuck roll whole it won't dry out because there are other muscle groups there that aren't in the chuck roasts that you are buying in the grocery store and they have more inter-muscular fat in those muscle groups. Cutting it into pieces will be fine also because you're not separating the muscle groups. And it will reduce cooking time a lot.
 
Finney said:
If you leave the chuck roll whole it won't dry out because there are other muscle groups there that aren't in the chuck roasts that you are buying in the grocery store and they have more inter-muscular fat in those muscle groups. Cutting it into pieces will be fine also because you're not separating the muscle groups. And it will reduce cooking time a lot.

Not gonna debate the whole chuck roast vs. separated, foil or no foil, just adding my .02 from my experience cooking both. It comes down to preference on how you want to cook them. The chuck roasts that you buy in the grocery store are cut from the chuck roll, so how are the muscle groups any different?
 
is it necessary to cook as low as 225 or can i bump up to 250 without drying it out.

so, finny.. you are saying that if i leave it whole, i shouldnt need to foil, but if i cut it in half I may need to foil it?
 
Larry Wolfe said:
Finney said:
If you leave the chuck roll whole it won't dry out because there are other muscle groups there that aren't in the chuck roasts that you are buying in the grocery store and they have more inter-muscular fat in those muscle groups. Cutting it into pieces will be fine also because you're not separating the muscle groups. And it will reduce cooking time a lot.

Not gonna debate the whole chuck roast vs. separated, foil or no foil, just adding my .02 from my experience cooking both. It comes down to preference on how you want to cook them. The chuck roasts that you buy in the grocery store are cut from the chuck roll, so how are the muscle groups any different?

The same way a tender loin is different from a whole loin. Or a butt is different than a picnic when both come from the shoulder. ;)
Pot stirrer.

And there are different cut of chuck roasts. And they are not all created equally.
 
Larry Wolfe said:
Gary like the others have said, chuck is fantastic. Several things about chucks you should know, 1. don't finish by temperature alone, use the fork test (try the fork test in the 200* range, if the meat is not fork tender continue to cook until it is), 2. the texture of the meat is a bit stringy, so a minimal amount of chopping could me necessary, 3. Definitely foil in the 160-165 temp range IMO chuck will dry out if you do not foil, 4. to me this is the most important thing, let the chuck roasts rest as long as possible, this will redistribute the juices as well as aid in tenderizing.

I would buy the chuck roll for the price, but I would not cook the whole chuck roll. I would get the 20lb roast and at the least cut it in half, maybe into three. This will give you better bark coverage as well as reduce your cook time. Not to mention having to pull and foil a 20lb hunk of meat.

As Finney stated, Reverend Marvins Gourmet BBQ Sauce is a perfect match for the shredded beef!

Rev. Marv's sauce is great, but try horseradish sauce on it, it is fantastic!
 
Finney said:
Larry Wolfe said:
Finney said:
If you leave the chuck roll whole it won't dry out because there are other muscle groups there that aren't in the chuck roasts that you are buying in the grocery store and they have more inter-muscular fat in those muscle groups. Cutting it into pieces will be fine also because you're not separating the muscle groups. And it will reduce cooking time a lot.

Not gonna debate the whole chuck roast vs. separated, foil or no foil, just adding my .02 from my experience cooking both. It comes down to preference on how you want to cook them. The chuck roasts that you buy in the grocery store are cut from the chuck roll, so how are the muscle groups any different?

The same way a tender loin is different from a whole loin. Or a butt is different than a picnic when both come from the shoulder. ;)
Pot stirrer.

And there are different cut of chuck roasts. And they are not all created equally.

You bonehead! You make NO sense! No wonder you don't have trophies!! :damnfunny
 
Gary in VA said:
is it necessary to cook as low as 225 or can i bump up to 250 without drying it out.

so, finny.. you are saying that if i leave it whole, i shouldnt need to foil, but if i cut it in half I may need to foil it?

Sorry Gary.... I didn't see this earlier.
If you just cut it in two (maybe 3 pieces), you wouldn't. IMO
If it is cut into smaller roasts than that, I would foil it. The amount of inter-muscular fat varies in the different muscle groups. The bigger you leave it the better the chance that there will be fat will help keep it moist.

If you buy a chuck roast from the grocery store and aren't familier wiht where that cut of chuck actually came from, I would foil it. A "chuck roast" can come from anywhere in any of the primal cuts that have chuck in the name.
 
Chucky Roll????

I smoked a 20.5 lb. Chuck Roll for the Daytona 500 Sunday.
Paid 1.89 at Restaurant Depot
First one I've had and it was GREAT. Smoke it just like you would a Butt.
Leave it whole. I didn't even cover it, just took it to 195 and let it rest.
EVERYONE took some home. Lot's of meat!!!!!
Smoke On!!!!!!
 
Re: Chucky Roll????

kickassbbq said:
I smoked a 20.5 lb. Chuck Roll for the Daytona 500 Sunday.
Paid 1.89 at Restaurant Depot
First one I've had and it was GREAT. Smoke it just like you would a Butt.
Leave it whole. I didn't even cover it, just took it to 195 and let it rest.
EVERYONE took some home. Lot's of meat!!!!!
Smoke On!!!!!!

Kickass, did you cook it in a foil pan?
 
Cave In????

The Finn Meister!!!!
Yes. I cook ALL my meats in pans. GREAT jiuces, no mess, no grease in my smokers.
Wife got home this morning from a trip and asked if she could taste that Chuck Roll? Sorry, we ate it all and everyone took some home.
ALL gone!!!!!
http://www.kickassbbq.com/chuckyroll6.JPG
Smoke On!!!!!
 
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