Burnt a whole pork shoulder cause my thermometer died halfway through

I was smoking a bone-in pork shoulder last Saturday, had it going at 225 for about 6 hours, when I noticed the temp was climbing way too fast. Checked my digital probe and it said 180 already, but the meat felt cold when I touched it. Turned out the probe wire had a short in it from where it got pinched in the smoker door last month. By the time I caught it with my backup thermometer, the shoulder was already up to 210 and the bark was like charcoal. The inside was still a little tough too, not that nice pull-apart texture. Cost me $35 for the meat and a whole day watching it for nothing. Has anyone else had a probe fail on them at the worst possible time?

3 comments

3 Comments

emery1010d ago

Did you check that wire before you started or were you just hoping for the best lol

jordan_hill10d ago

Oh man, that reminds me of the time I tried to fix my dad's old lamp without checking anything. I just assumed the bulb was blown so I swapped it out and still nothing. Turns out there was a short in the cord right where it met the base, but I didn't notice it for like three days because I kept trying different bulbs. I mean, I was just hoping for the best and it turned into this whole ordeal with electrical tape and a lot of frustrated muttering. So yeah, I feel like a lot of us are just winging it with wires and hoping we don't get zapped.

wren_mitchell10d ago

Oh man, that's rough. I had a buddy who lost a whole brisket last summer cause his Bluetooth thermometer app crashed on his phone and he didn't notice for hours. He was so mad he threw the whole thing in the trash and ordered pizza. @emery10, you asking about checking wires actually hits close to home because my friend said later he knew his phone had been acting glitchy but he just assumed the temp readings were fine. The worst part was he spent like two days trimming and seasoning that brisket, all for nothing. I always keep a cheap analog thermometer as backup now after hearing his story, just in case the fancy stuff gives out.