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Pastrami Run
- Thread starter Brian H
- Start date
Joel Kiess
TVWBB All-Star
Hey - I did the "mock" pastrami Sunday and we had it last night in ruebens. Fantastic. Had more tonight by itself with alittle mustard. Terrific.
Joel Kiess
TVWBB All-Star
Brian - you may be right.It's about time for lunch - will continue research soon.
Here's my success (that almost wasn't) story!
Got a store bought corned beef and soaked it in water overnight, changing the water a few times. Rubbed it with coriander seed, mustard seed, black peppercorns, and star anise and garlic powder. Smoked the thing on Wednesday in hopes of eating it thurs. Meant to take it to 160 but took it to 180 (in places) instead. Unfortunately, the thing was tough. T-U-F-F, tough! Thought it might mellow overnight by some miracle, but on Thurs it was just as tough if not tougher. Sooooooo I was reading up on pastrami sandwiches at famous NY delis and they all talked about how the things are smoked and then steamed, so I'm wondering can this beast be saved? And we chuck it into a lowly crock pot with just a bit of water in the bottom and lo and behold, the next morning it is GLORIOUS! Moist and oh so tender.
Got the rye and the thousand island dressing and the ba-tempte half sour pickles and some guinness and kraut and swiss, broke out the brand spanking new oxo mandoline, and went to town on that, making BRILLIANTLY thin slices with total ease! We assembled the sammies, throwing on some golden mustared for good measure, buttered up the wolfgang puck panini maker, and in they went. Four minutes later we have the most FABULOUS sandwiches.
Heading over to mom's in a bit for round two! Bringing cream soda if I remember to.
Got a store bought corned beef and soaked it in water overnight, changing the water a few times. Rubbed it with coriander seed, mustard seed, black peppercorns, and star anise and garlic powder. Smoked the thing on Wednesday in hopes of eating it thurs. Meant to take it to 160 but took it to 180 (in places) instead. Unfortunately, the thing was tough. T-U-F-F, tough! Thought it might mellow overnight by some miracle, but on Thurs it was just as tough if not tougher. Sooooooo I was reading up on pastrami sandwiches at famous NY delis and they all talked about how the things are smoked and then steamed, so I'm wondering can this beast be saved? And we chuck it into a lowly crock pot with just a bit of water in the bottom and lo and behold, the next morning it is GLORIOUS! Moist and oh so tender.
Got the rye and the thousand island dressing and the ba-tempte half sour pickles and some guinness and kraut and swiss, broke out the brand spanking new oxo mandoline, and went to town on that, making BRILLIANTLY thin slices with total ease! We assembled the sammies, throwing on some golden mustared for good measure, buttered up the wolfgang puck panini maker, and in they went. Four minutes later we have the most FABULOUS sandwiches.
Heading over to mom's in a bit for round two! Bringing cream soda if I remember to.
Tom Ferguson
Banned
Susan, I had a similar experience this week. I put a couple of corned beef briskets on one night after work. (soaked a couple of days to remove the salt).
They took about 4 hours to reach 165. I let them sit a bit, then sliced a few pieces from one (against the grain, of course). Like yours they were pretty tough.
So I foiled them, tossed in a little "Better than Bouillon" and put them in the oven for a couple more hours. They were excellent when I took them out. I guess they were steamed, similar to yours.
They took about 4 hours to reach 165. I let them sit a bit, then sliced a few pieces from one (against the grain, of course). Like yours they were pretty tough.
So I foiled them, tossed in a little "Better than Bouillon" and put them in the oven for a couple more hours. They were excellent when I took them out. I guess they were steamed, similar to yours.
Mike Willsey
TVWBB Member
I have searched many sources for authentic corned beef/pastrami and gave up! Too many conflicting ingredients and procedures. So I finally got off my butt and opened the good ole stand by - Joy of Cooking, cookbook.
Corned Beef
This salted beef actually has nothing to do with corn but got its name in Anglo-Saxon times when a granular salt the size of a kernel of wheat—“corn” of course to a Briton –was used to process it. To corn, combine:
4 quarts hot water
2 cups coarse salt
1/4 cup sugar
2 tablespoons pickling spice
1-1/2 teaspoons saltpeter or sodium nitrate,
When cool, pour over;
A 5-lb. piece of beef: brisket or tongue
which has been placed in a deep enameled pot or stoneware jar. Add:
3 cloves garlic
Weigh meat to keep it submerged, and cover pot.
Cure in refrigerator 3 weeks, turning meat every 5 days.
To cook for corned beef, wash under running water to remove surface brine; Cover with boiling water and simmer, allowing about 1 hour per pound, or until a fork can penetrate to center. Always slice corned beef thin.
For Pastrami
To convert the corned beef to pastrami, do not boil, the meat must be smoked. After brining wash under running water to remove surface brine, commercial pastrami is cooked entirely by hot smoking. At 320 degrees for 6 top 7 hours, using plenty of oak and or hickory chips.
I bought a jar of McCormick Pickling Spice and the ingredients were as follows, cinnamon, allspice, mustard seed, bay leaves, ginger, chillies, cloves, black pepper, mace, cardamom and sulfiting agents.
Regards, Mike Willsey
Corned Beef
This salted beef actually has nothing to do with corn but got its name in Anglo-Saxon times when a granular salt the size of a kernel of wheat—“corn” of course to a Briton –was used to process it. To corn, combine:
4 quarts hot water
2 cups coarse salt
1/4 cup sugar
2 tablespoons pickling spice
1-1/2 teaspoons saltpeter or sodium nitrate,
When cool, pour over;
A 5-lb. piece of beef: brisket or tongue
which has been placed in a deep enameled pot or stoneware jar. Add:
3 cloves garlic
Weigh meat to keep it submerged, and cover pot.
Cure in refrigerator 3 weeks, turning meat every 5 days.
To cook for corned beef, wash under running water to remove surface brine; Cover with boiling water and simmer, allowing about 1 hour per pound, or until a fork can penetrate to center. Always slice corned beef thin.
For Pastrami
To convert the corned beef to pastrami, do not boil, the meat must be smoked. After brining wash under running water to remove surface brine, commercial pastrami is cooked entirely by hot smoking. At 320 degrees for 6 top 7 hours, using plenty of oak and or hickory chips.
I bought a jar of McCormick Pickling Spice and the ingredients were as follows, cinnamon, allspice, mustard seed, bay leaves, ginger, chillies, cloves, black pepper, mace, cardamom and sulfiting agents.
Regards, Mike Willsey
Henry Joe Peterson
TVWBB Super Fan
I tried Pastrammi this weekend, too! Got a corned beef flat from the gorcery store, and did what you guys did...soaked it, rubbed it, and smoked it.
I took mine up to 160 and pulled it. Then I came upstairs to read this thread and saw that some of you took them higher or crock potted them. So I got kinda paranoid about toughness.
Well, it was sitting foiled on my counter cooling off, and it just so happened that I was roasting some beets in the oven. I opened the foil on the corned beef, poured some apple juice in with it, and let it sit in the oven with the beets. The oven was at 350, and I left the corned beef in there for the remainder of the beet cook, about 20 minutes. I took the beets out of the oven but left the corned beef in, and turned off the heat. The corned beef sat in the slowly cooling oven for a couple hours while I took a nap!
When I woke up I sliced it.... whoo boy that was good!
My wife, being the strictly traditional Chinese woman she is, just LOVES a good pastrami sandwich. She was amazed.
Frankly, I was amazed too. For some reason, I was kinda skeptical about how this corned beef-pastrami would taste. Me of little faith. But whoo-boy...
I'm going to safeway to get another couple corned beef flats for the freezer. Really great stuff!!!
I took mine up to 160 and pulled it. Then I came upstairs to read this thread and saw that some of you took them higher or crock potted them. So I got kinda paranoid about toughness.
Well, it was sitting foiled on my counter cooling off, and it just so happened that I was roasting some beets in the oven. I opened the foil on the corned beef, poured some apple juice in with it, and let it sit in the oven with the beets. The oven was at 350, and I left the corned beef in there for the remainder of the beet cook, about 20 minutes. I took the beets out of the oven but left the corned beef in, and turned off the heat. The corned beef sat in the slowly cooling oven for a couple hours while I took a nap!
When I woke up I sliced it.... whoo boy that was good!
My wife, being the strictly traditional Chinese woman she is, just LOVES a good pastrami sandwich. She was amazed.
Frankly, I was amazed too. For some reason, I was kinda skeptical about how this corned beef-pastrami would taste. Me of little faith. But whoo-boy...
I'm going to safeway to get another couple corned beef flats for the freezer. Really great stuff!!!
adam clyde
TVWBB Pro
ok... so I've got mine in the smoker right now...
So what is the best temp to pull them? Most people - it seems - have been pulling at 160. But now I'm reading a few taking them off at 180 or higher to good results - almost normal brisket temp.
My question: why would you pull at 160 for corned beef/pastrami, but not a brisket? Is that because curing the meat makes it tender already - thus unnecessary to take up to 180+?
Brian - you mentioned 180 and they were tender.
Susan - you mentioned 180 and they were tough as leather... what would be the diff?
I'm confused; mine is currently at 135 right now and I'm just trying to decide at what temp I should pull. Ideas?
So what is the best temp to pull them? Most people - it seems - have been pulling at 160. But now I'm reading a few taking them off at 180 or higher to good results - almost normal brisket temp.
My question: why would you pull at 160 for corned beef/pastrami, but not a brisket? Is that because curing the meat makes it tender already - thus unnecessary to take up to 180+?
Brian - you mentioned 180 and they were tender.
Susan - you mentioned 180 and they were tough as leather... what would be the diff?
I'm confused; mine is currently at 135 right now and I'm just trying to decide at what temp I should pull. Ideas?
I took my first one (last year) to 160 and I was not extremely satisfied with the result. Since I had the points on, I wanted to render more fat out and experiment at high temps.
I will run these to 180 every time now. They were unreal.
Just make sure you let is rest a while and then cut it against the grain like brisket. Thiner than brisket though if you have a slicer and can do that.
I will run these to 180 every time now. They were unreal.
Just make sure you let is rest a while and then cut it against the grain like brisket. Thiner than brisket though if you have a slicer and can do that.
Russell Y
TVWBB All-Star
Found this thread a little too late. I did 3 flats of corned beef. They came out a little tough. The reason I'm here is that I rinsed 2 of them in water twice and did nothing to the third one. Big mistake, it was very, very salty. Rinsing is a must and I will cook them lower and slower next time.
John Mason
TVWBB All-Star
The first one I did, everyone said take it to about 160 internal, but at that temp it responded to the poking and prodding with some resistance, so I let it go to the 180-190 range and it turned out great. Now I always let it go to the higher temps.