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Q: Dr. BBQ,
I’ve heard a few hardcore bbq’ers talk about “sour glands” in butt roasts that they always remove before cooking. What are they? Where are they? I now hear the same things exist in chicken thighs! Is there truth in this, and does removing these “glands” really make a difference, either in competition or in my backyard ‘que, or is this just the overactive imagination of a few folks?
–Mike
Des Moines, Iowa
A: Hi Mike,
Well I can’t say I know anything about this and chicken thighs, but I too have heard about it in pork butt. I think they’re referring to that mucus type stuff under the flat side of the blade bone. I’ve known cooks to butterfly the butt open to clean that out before cooking but I”ve never done it. I just scrape it out after cooking, just like any pocket of fat, and it doesn’t seem to ruin the meat. It does discolor the meat some but I’ve never been bothered by it. I probably would avoid it for a contest entry, but that’s not a part that I’d turn in anyway. Now, if I were going to bone, trim, roll and tie the butt, I”d cut it out just like any other pocket of fat.
–Dr. BBQ
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