Sweet Amber Fire & Sweet Baby Ray's Pork Belly Burnt Ends

Burnt ends are a Kansas City staple, traditionally made from cubed portions of the fatty, point end of a beef brisket. The fat to meat ratio of pork belly, however, makes it a great substitute. This recipe, highlights both my Sweet Amber Fire rub, as well as Sweet Baby Ray's Honey BBQ Sauce to turn these cubes of pork belly into a sweet and succulent bite of heaven.

Ingredients:
Pork belly (packages typically contain 4-5 pounds)

Sweet Amber Fire Rub
Sweet Baby Ray's Honey BBQ Sauce
Brown sugar (a couple of handfuls)
1/2 stick of butter

Directions:

• Cut pork belly into 1 inch cubes.
• Sprinkle Sweet Amber Fire Rub liberally, making sure all pieces are coated.
• While the seasoning is adhering to the pork belly, fire up your smoker and get it to about 200-225 degrees.
• Lay the pork belly pieces onto a wire rack that has been sprayed with cooking spray.  Be sure to give them enough space for the smoke to penetrate all sides.
• Smoke at 200-225 degrees for about 2-2.5 hours.
• Remove from your smoker and place into a foil cooking tray or baking dish.
• Cover with Sweet Baby Ray's BBQ Sauce (I prefer Honey BBQ), brown sugar, and butter.  (Cut the butter into small pieces and place all around the top.)
• Cover with foil, place into the oven pre-heated to around 300 degrees, and cook for about another hour.  Some people will tell you to put them back in the smoker, but at around 2 hours, they'll stop taking on smoke flavor, especially since they are so small.  Why waste the wood or the pellets?  Just save them for another cook.
• After an hour, remove the foil and stir everything up.  Make sure all pieces are coated.
• Place back in the oven for about 15 minutes, or until all the BBQ sauce has started to tack up.
• Remove and enjoy the candied goodness!