Instructions

1. Mix an acidic basting sauce in a saucepan over low heat if making Kentucky-style barbecue, if desired. The seasonings in Kentucky-style barbecue sauces vary, but they often have 4 parts water to 1 part acidic ingredients as the base. The acidic ingredients used usually consist of Worcestershire sauce, lemon juice and apple cider vinegar, and the seasonings typically include a mix of salt, pepper, allspice, onion powder, garlic powder and a raw sugar, such as turbinado. Store the sauce in a food storage container in the refrigerator.

2. Dissolve 1/4 cup of iodized salt or 1/4 cup plus 2 tablespoons of kosher salt per quart of water in a saucepan over low heat to make a brine for the mutton. The brine increases the water weight of the mutton by about 10 percent, and helps it stay moist on the barbecue. Cool the brine to refrigerator temperature and submerge the mutton in it.

3. Brine the mutton for about 24 hours in a sealed food storage container on the bottom shelf of the refrigerator. Turn the mutton over in the food storage container after about 12 hours of brining.

4. Drain the brine from the mutton and discard it. Rinse the mutton and pat it dry with paper towels. Trim off any loose hanging fat with a kitchen knife. Place the mutton shoulder in a shallow dish lined with paper towels and let the mutton sit for a few hours at room temperature.

5. Soak a few cups of apple or hickory hardwood chips in water for about one hour. Take the basting sauce out of the refrigerator and let it reach room temperature.

6. Fill a chimney starter 3/4 full with natural, lump charcoal and empty it on one side of the grill when they ash over. Place an aluminum roasting pan about 3/4 full of water opposite the charcoal on the charcoal tray.

7. Place about four or five pieces of hardwood on the charcoal and close the grill and the bottom damper. Close the vent on the lid halfway.

8. Place the mutton fat-side up on the side of the grill above the pan of water and close the lid. If using barbecue sauce, baste the mutton liberally once every hour. Replenish the wood chips about once an hour or as needed. Keep the tray halfway full of water at all times. Check the grill temperature and adjust the lid vent as needed to maintain a temperature between 225 and 250 degrees Fahrenheit.

9. Smoke the mutton for about 1 1/2 to 2 hours per pound, or when the internal temperature, when taken in the middle of the shoulder with a meat thermometer, measure at around 160 F. Loosely cover the mutton with foil and let it rest about 20 minutes before serving.