How to Cook BBQ Meals for Large Groups

Serving up BBQ meals for large groups? Here’s how much meat to cook and how to pull it off in about five hours.

This recipe is going to set you up for success with two versatile smoked proteins and optional fixings you can serve alongside it.

How much food do I need to cook?

That’s probably the number one question people struggle with when they’re trying to figure out how to plan meals for large gatherings.

Let’s start with how much guests will eat. A good rule of thumb when you’re figuring out how much to cook is to plan for four ounces of meat per person. Sure some people will eat a bit more, but some (like the kids) will eat a bit less.

Four ounces may not sound like a lot, but this is a party. Four ounces is enough for a large sandwich or 3-4 street tacos, and you’re likely going to have other sides like smoked mac and cheese or macaroni salad along with baked beans and chips and desserts.

It’d be nice if one pound of meat could feed four people, but meat shrinks as it cooks, losing moisture and fat. By the time it’s done, that pound will weigh about 30–40% less.

A better rule of thumb: you’ll get about 2.3 servings per pound of raw, trimmed, boneless meat. So if you’re feeding 20 people, plan to cook around 8.5 pounds of meat, plus your sides.

# OF PEOPLE	# OF POUNDS (RAW, TRIMMED, BONELESS MEAT)
8	3.5
10	4.5
15	6.5
20	8.5
30	13
40	17.5
50	22

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Save time by serving shredded meat

You probably make a great smoked pork butt and smoked brisket, but when you’re feeding a crowd, I recommend following this shortcut method instead. One, because it’s faster and two because it will yield consistent tender, juicy results every time.

The problem with making smoked brisket for a gathering is that it’s really hard to time it right. If you smoke it the day before, you have to reheat it. And once you slice it, it will start to dry out.

So instead, I recommend cutting your pork shoulder and brisket into 2-inch cubes and smoking them in pans. Then, you’ll braise them and shred them to perfection for sandwiches or tacos.

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Ingredients

• Pork Shoulder: You can buy bone-in or boneless, just remember that once you remove the bone, you will lose some weight. I like buying the 2-pack of boneless pork butts from Costco when cooking for a crowd.
• Brisket: Use a full packer brisket or brisket flat. The full packer will have more marbling and fat in the point muscle, but both options work great.
• Girls Can Grill Pork Rub
• Girls Can Grill Brisket Rub
• Beef Consommé
• Butter
• Brown Sugar
• Maple Syrup

The Fixings

• Buns
• BBQ Sauce
• Coleslaw
• Tortillas
• Onion, pepper cilantro
• Limes

Substitutions: Instead of brisket, you can also follow this recipe with a chuck roast. 

See the full recipe card above for servings and a full list of ingredients.

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Setup your grill with indirect heat

You can cook this recipe on a gas grill, charcoal grill, pellet grill or Ninja Grill. The key is to cook it over indirect heat. Set your grill up with a temperature of 275F degrees with an indirect heat zone.

Gas Grill: If you’re using a gas grill, leave one burner off and turn at least one burner on. Adjust the burner temperature, until the grill temperature gauge registers between 275F degrees. You’ll cook the meat over the grill grate that has the burner turned off.

If you want to add smoke flavor, fill a smoke box or foil pouch with wood chips and add it to the hotter side of the grill.

Charcoal Grill: If you’re using a kettle-style charcoal grill, push the hot coals to one side. Place the grill grate over the coals and cook the meat over the side where there are no coals. If you’re using a drum smoker or ceramic cooker, use the diffuser to block the direct heat.

Pellet Grill: Pellet grills are automatically set up with an indirect heat zone because they have a metal diffuser plate that rests over the fire pot. Simply, turn the grill to 275F degrees and let it heat up. Then, you can place the meat anywhere on the grill.

Ninja Grill: The smoker setting on the Ninja Grill is engineered to provide indirect heat that circulates from the convection fan from the top. Simply add wood pellets and set the temperature and time.

Ninja FlexFlame: Set the function to low & slow and the temperature to 275F. Add pellets and push the woodfire flavor button. You’ll need to add more pellets throughout the cook.

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How to cook BBQ for a crowd

1. STEP ONE: Cut your meat into two-inch cubes. For the brisket, remove excess fat, so the fat layer is no more than 1/4 inch thick. Place 3-4 pounds of meat in each aluminum half pan in a single layer.

PRO TIP: By cutting the meat into cubes, it will cook faster compared to a whole pork shoulder roast or packer brisket. 

2. STEP TWO: Season the meat generously on all sides. Use about 1/4 cup of rub for every 3-4 pounds of meat. Use the Brisket Rub on the brisket and the Pork Rub on the pork.

3. STEP THREE: Place the pans on the smoker over indirect heat and smoke for 1 1/2 to 2 hours.

You want the internal temperature to be about 160-170F degrees and the bark to be formed on the outside.

4. STEP FOUR: For the brisket, add a half can of beef consommé to each pan. Sprinkle on about 2 more tablespoons of Brisket Rub. Cover with foil and return to the smoker.

5. STEP FIVE: For the pork, add 4 tablespoons butter, 1/4 cup brown sugar, 2 tablespoons of maple syrup and 2 tablespoons of Pork Rub to each pan. Cover with aluminum foil and return to the smoker.

PRO TIP: If you prefer more savory pulled pork, consider adding 1/4 cup diced onions, a can of green chiles and some beef or chicken stock instead of the butter, sugar and syrup.

6. STEP SIX: Continue cooking until the meat is fork tender. The pork will take about 2 hours and the brisket will take about 3 hours.

7. STEP SEVEN: Once it’s tender, remove the pans from the grill and let the meat rest for about 30 minutes.

8. STEP EIGHT: Wearing heat gloves or using two forks, shred the meat and transfer it to another pan. If it seems dry, add some of the liquid from the pan. Season with more pork or brisket rub to taste.

PRO TIP: If you're not ready to serve it right away, keep it covered with foil, and keep it warm in the oven on it's lowest setting. You can also transfer the meat to a slow cooker on low. 

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Serving Suggestions

Once the meat is shredded, I like to serve it one of two ways:

1. As BBQ sandwiches on hamburger buns, brioche buns or slider buns
2. Or as tacos with small street taco flour tortillas.

When making BBQ sandwiches, add 1/4 to 1/2 cup barbecue sauce into the meat. Then, serve the shredded meat with the buns and coleslaw.

For the tacos, keep things simple. Combine white onion, jalapeno and cilantro in a bowl and serve the shredded meat alongside that with limes and tortillas. Use street taco size tortillas to get 3-4 tacos per serving.

You could go fancier and offer a taco bar with shredded lettuce, diced tomatoes, cheese, sour cream, salsa and guacamole. But that will add more stress to your day and is less budget-friendly. Plus, too many options slows down the food line.

Save that energy for more filling sides like refried beans, Spanish rice and tortilla chips with a variety of fun salsas.

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How to make the meat last

If you plan on 4 ounces per person you should be fine, but there are two ways to stretch the meat further.

1. Put the meat at the end of the food line. This way, guests will load up their plates with sides, leaving less room for double meat portions.
2. Use smaller plates. No one says you have to buy the mega-plates. With smaller plates, people will go back for seconds if they’re still hungry.

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Storage

When feeding crowds, food safety is important. Make sure that you keep meat at 135F degrees or above if it’s going to sit out for more than two hours. You can do that by using warming trays or slow cookers.

Cold foods like potato salad and pasta salad should be kept at 40F degrees or below if they’re going to sit out for more than two hours.

You can either use chiller bowls, or put out smaller portions, saving some in the fridge. Then, just refill as needed.

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