This is a bit of an epic post, the blog entry has a few more notes. Mostly it's everything I've learned about Montreal Smoked Meat and Pastrami over the past 6-8 months, with kudos at the end.
Equipment
Ingredients
These are hypothetical quantities based on ratios from the initial cut of meat. I'm using the Modernist Cuisine format due to its ease of reading once you know the recipe; details on these ingredients below.
For the Dry Cure
Weight - Description - Ratio
5 kg [11 lb] - Beef Brisket, with fat cap - 100%
0.2 kg [7.04 oz] - Diamond Crystal Kosher Salt - 4%
Note: Dry cure salt guideline is 1 lb per 25 lb of meat
0.0125 kg [0.44 oz] - Curing (pink) salt - 0.25%
Note: Assuming pink salt is 6.25% nitrate - the guideline is 1 oz per 25 lb of meat
0.1 kg [3.52 oz] - White Sugar - 2%
Note: Adjust sugar to taste -- down to 0.6%, up to 2.7%; MSM usually has less sugar than pastrami
0.03 kg [1.18 oz] - Ground Black Peppercorns - 0.67%
0.03 kg [1.18 oz] - Ground Coriander Seeds - 0.67%
0.025 kg [0.88 oz] - Mustard Seeds - 0.5%
0.01 kg [0.35 oz] - Garlic powder - 0.2%
0.01 kg [0.35 oz] - Ground Cinnamon - 0.2%
0.01 kg [0.35 oz] - Fennel Seed - 0.2%
0.005 kg [0.18 oz] - Ground Cloves - 0.1%
0.0025 kg [0.09 oz] - Chile Pepper Flakes - 0.05%
0.0025 kg [0.09 oz] - Ground Bay Leaves - 0.05%
For the Rub
Weight - Description - Ratio
0.36 kg [12.7 oz] - Ground Black Peppercorns - 7.2%
0.21 kg [7.4 oz] - Ground Coriander Seeds - 4.2%
Note: Pepper to Coriander ratio is usually 2:1, this one adds a bit more Coriander
0.1875 kg [6.6 oz] - White Sugar - 3.75%
Note: Adjust sugar to taste -- down to 0%, up to 7.5%; MSM should have less sugar than pastrami
0.05 kg [1.76 oz] - Garlic powder - 1%
0.0325 kg [1.14 oz] - Chile Pepper Flakes- 0.65%
For Smoking
1. Charcoal - lump or briquettes, depending on your smoker, enough for 4-5 hours of low heat (250F)
2. Smoke wood - about 4 to 6 fist-sized chunks of fruit wood (apple/cherry), pecan or maple. Hickory can be mixed in but sparingly (say 2 pieces out of 6). MSM traditionally used maple but in modern times isn't smoked at all. I like pecan.
For Serving
1. Rye bread
2. Mustard
3. Pickles (optional)
4. A large sharp knife
5. A large fork
Dry Cure Procedure
1. Trim some fat off the brisket, particularly on sides and top. Leave at least 1/4 to 1/2" of the fat cap on the bottom.
2. Rub the garlic powder on the brisket.
3. Combine the kosher salt with the curing salt, being mindful of meat to salt ratios. Rub the brisket with the salt mixture. If there's excess, throw it in the bottom of the ziplock bag.
4. Grind the remaining dry cure ingredients and mix together in a large bowl. Rub the meat with the dry cure spices. There shouldn't be much excess, but it can go in the ziplock.
5. Place the brisket in the bottom of the ziplock back, try to ensure any excess that was in the bag is evenly distributed on the meat.
6. Squeeze the air out of the bag and close the zipper; store the ziplock bag in a cold room or refrigerator, around 38-40F (not super cold).
7. Overhaul (turn over) the brisket every 12 hours or so, for 7 days. Smaller briskets can take less time (roughly, I'd estimate a 6 lb brisket for 5 days, a 15 lb brisket for 9 days).
8. After the cure, take the brisket out of the bag, and rinse off the curing spices.
9. Fill a large sink with water and soak the brisket for 3 hours, changing water every 1/2 hour. Pat the brisket dry with paper towels.
Rub and Smoke Procedure
1. Grind the rub ingredients and mix together in a large bowl. Rub the meat with the dry rub.
2. Optionally, wrap the brisket in ziplock again and let it sit in the dry rub in a fridge or cold room for 6-8 hours. (I skip this sometimes)
3. Light the smoker with the smoke wood, to 225-250F
4. Smoke the brisket until it reaches 165F internal temperature - around 4 to 5 hours, depending on the brisket size and temperature of your smoker
5. Remove from smoker, and either proceed with steaming, or wrap in foil, then ziplock or plastic wrap, and refrigerate until ready to eat
Steaming and Serving
1. Carve the fatty (thicker, point end) of the brisket to separate it from the leaner (flat end) meat, and carve again into smaller chunks to fit in your preferred steamer.
2. If using a stovetop steamer, get the water steaming, and keep on low. Oven roasting pans should be filled with water up to the rack and the oven set to 200F. If using sous-vide, set your immersion circulator for 140F.
3. Steam for 3 hours, until the brisket is fork tender.
4. If using sous vide, you have two options. (a) Vaccuum pack your chunk and cook for up to 72 hours. I found this didn't work as well as straight steaming, hence … (b) The modernist cuisine way calls for putting an equal weight of the pastrami brine (water would be fine) in the bag with the pastrami, seal it (this may be difficult with non-chamber sealers), and cooking for 72 hours. I have not personally tried this approach yet.
5. Once tender, grab the chunk with a large fork, carve brisket chunks against the grain with a sharp knife, serve on rye bread with mustard.
Sources of Recipe Inspiration
This is a direct derivation of what I learned from these sources, and all credit goes to them for pioneering home smoked MSM / Pastrami:
1. This Chowhound thread
2. This eGullet thread
3. The Modernist Cuisine bookset, which uses a brine instead of a dry cure, and has more sugar
4. The Three Squabbling Asians
5. The Virtual Weber Bullet pastrami recipe from Chris Allingham
6. The Virtual Weber Bulletin Board threads on Pastrami and MSM
7. And last but not least, Michael Ruhlman
Photos
Equipment
- A kitchen scale.
- Ziplock Big Bags XXL. Available at Wal-Mart.
- A steamer or sous vide immersion circulator. This could be a stovetop steamer, rice steamer, roasting pan with a rack for the oven, or a large bamboo steamer. This is for finishing the meat, usually 3 hours. Note the sous vide approach is based on the method in Modernist Cuisine.
- An outdoor smoker. I use the 18.5" Weber Smokey Mountain Cooker. Smokers lead to better flavour, but using the oven will do in a pinch, since most MSM these days at deli's isn't wood smoked.
- A digital probe thermometer (optional) For inserting into the meat - it's the reliable way to check doneness reliably.
- A moderately cold refrigerator with room or a cold room. 38-40F or 3C-4.4C. Try not to go colder than 37F/2.5C.
Ingredients
These are hypothetical quantities based on ratios from the initial cut of meat. I'm using the Modernist Cuisine format due to its ease of reading once you know the recipe; details on these ingredients below.
For the Dry Cure
Weight - Description - Ratio
5 kg [11 lb] - Beef Brisket, with fat cap - 100%
0.2 kg [7.04 oz] - Diamond Crystal Kosher Salt - 4%
Note: Dry cure salt guideline is 1 lb per 25 lb of meat
0.0125 kg [0.44 oz] - Curing (pink) salt - 0.25%
Note: Assuming pink salt is 6.25% nitrate - the guideline is 1 oz per 25 lb of meat
0.1 kg [3.52 oz] - White Sugar - 2%
Note: Adjust sugar to taste -- down to 0.6%, up to 2.7%; MSM usually has less sugar than pastrami
0.03 kg [1.18 oz] - Ground Black Peppercorns - 0.67%
0.03 kg [1.18 oz] - Ground Coriander Seeds - 0.67%
0.025 kg [0.88 oz] - Mustard Seeds - 0.5%
0.01 kg [0.35 oz] - Garlic powder - 0.2%
0.01 kg [0.35 oz] - Ground Cinnamon - 0.2%
0.01 kg [0.35 oz] - Fennel Seed - 0.2%
0.005 kg [0.18 oz] - Ground Cloves - 0.1%
0.0025 kg [0.09 oz] - Chile Pepper Flakes - 0.05%
0.0025 kg [0.09 oz] - Ground Bay Leaves - 0.05%
For the Rub
Weight - Description - Ratio
0.36 kg [12.7 oz] - Ground Black Peppercorns - 7.2%
0.21 kg [7.4 oz] - Ground Coriander Seeds - 4.2%
Note: Pepper to Coriander ratio is usually 2:1, this one adds a bit more Coriander
0.1875 kg [6.6 oz] - White Sugar - 3.75%
Note: Adjust sugar to taste -- down to 0%, up to 7.5%; MSM should have less sugar than pastrami
0.05 kg [1.76 oz] - Garlic powder - 1%
0.0325 kg [1.14 oz] - Chile Pepper Flakes- 0.65%
For Smoking
1. Charcoal - lump or briquettes, depending on your smoker, enough for 4-5 hours of low heat (250F)
2. Smoke wood - about 4 to 6 fist-sized chunks of fruit wood (apple/cherry), pecan or maple. Hickory can be mixed in but sparingly (say 2 pieces out of 6). MSM traditionally used maple but in modern times isn't smoked at all. I like pecan.
For Serving
1. Rye bread
2. Mustard
3. Pickles (optional)
4. A large sharp knife
5. A large fork
Dry Cure Procedure
1. Trim some fat off the brisket, particularly on sides and top. Leave at least 1/4 to 1/2" of the fat cap on the bottom.
2. Rub the garlic powder on the brisket.
3. Combine the kosher salt with the curing salt, being mindful of meat to salt ratios. Rub the brisket with the salt mixture. If there's excess, throw it in the bottom of the ziplock bag.
4. Grind the remaining dry cure ingredients and mix together in a large bowl. Rub the meat with the dry cure spices. There shouldn't be much excess, but it can go in the ziplock.
5. Place the brisket in the bottom of the ziplock back, try to ensure any excess that was in the bag is evenly distributed on the meat.
6. Squeeze the air out of the bag and close the zipper; store the ziplock bag in a cold room or refrigerator, around 38-40F (not super cold).
7. Overhaul (turn over) the brisket every 12 hours or so, for 7 days. Smaller briskets can take less time (roughly, I'd estimate a 6 lb brisket for 5 days, a 15 lb brisket for 9 days).
8. After the cure, take the brisket out of the bag, and rinse off the curing spices.
9. Fill a large sink with water and soak the brisket for 3 hours, changing water every 1/2 hour. Pat the brisket dry with paper towels.
Rub and Smoke Procedure
1. Grind the rub ingredients and mix together in a large bowl. Rub the meat with the dry rub.
2. Optionally, wrap the brisket in ziplock again and let it sit in the dry rub in a fridge or cold room for 6-8 hours. (I skip this sometimes)
3. Light the smoker with the smoke wood, to 225-250F
4. Smoke the brisket until it reaches 165F internal temperature - around 4 to 5 hours, depending on the brisket size and temperature of your smoker
5. Remove from smoker, and either proceed with steaming, or wrap in foil, then ziplock or plastic wrap, and refrigerate until ready to eat
Steaming and Serving
1. Carve the fatty (thicker, point end) of the brisket to separate it from the leaner (flat end) meat, and carve again into smaller chunks to fit in your preferred steamer.
2. If using a stovetop steamer, get the water steaming, and keep on low. Oven roasting pans should be filled with water up to the rack and the oven set to 200F. If using sous-vide, set your immersion circulator for 140F.
3. Steam for 3 hours, until the brisket is fork tender.
4. If using sous vide, you have two options. (a) Vaccuum pack your chunk and cook for up to 72 hours. I found this didn't work as well as straight steaming, hence … (b) The modernist cuisine way calls for putting an equal weight of the pastrami brine (water would be fine) in the bag with the pastrami, seal it (this may be difficult with non-chamber sealers), and cooking for 72 hours. I have not personally tried this approach yet.
5. Once tender, grab the chunk with a large fork, carve brisket chunks against the grain with a sharp knife, serve on rye bread with mustard.
Sources of Recipe Inspiration
This is a direct derivation of what I learned from these sources, and all credit goes to them for pioneering home smoked MSM / Pastrami:
1. This Chowhound thread
2. This eGullet thread
3. The Modernist Cuisine bookset, which uses a brine instead of a dry cure, and has more sugar
4. The Three Squabbling Asians
5. The Virtual Weber Bullet pastrami recipe from Chris Allingham
6. The Virtual Weber Bulletin Board threads on Pastrami and MSM
7. And last but not least, Michael Ruhlman
Photos
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