A while back I tried to combine my two favorite smoked items, pastrami and beef ribs into one hand held masterpiece and it was an epic fail. Here's that thread:
http://www.smokingmeatforums.com/t/178333/pastrami-beef-ribs
The main issue with the first attempt was that the overall saltiness and pepperiness (definitely not a word) made them basically inedible. My guess is that since they were individually sliced bones there was just too much of a very assertive rub and I used Pop's Brine with the full salt content (which I love for belly bacon, but in my opinion is too salty for pastrami). It was a relatively inexpensive experiment so I didn't cry too much when I had to throw them in the garbage.
So now, I have found nestled deep in the back of my freezer a rack of short ribs and im going to take another crack at this!
So here are the characters:
1 tablespoon of cure #1
3 tablespoons of pickling spice
1/3 cup of kosher salt
A whole mess of garlic
1 gallon of water
Mixed it all up and it looked like this:
Peeled the membrane off the ribs:
Some more photos of the ribs before they hit the curing brine:
And in it goes:
Now for some questions:
How long do you all think it needs in the brine to fully cure? For corned beef @Pops6927recommends 10-20 days.
Does how long you leave it in the brine really matter? I have to travel Super Bowl weekend for work so there is a chance it might end up in the brine for closer to three weeks? Or am I better off giving it only 5 or 6 days in the brine and smoking it this weekend.
Well thanks for looking and for all of your help.
-Chris
http://www.smokingmeatforums.com/t/178333/pastrami-beef-ribs
The main issue with the first attempt was that the overall saltiness and pepperiness (definitely not a word) made them basically inedible. My guess is that since they were individually sliced bones there was just too much of a very assertive rub and I used Pop's Brine with the full salt content (which I love for belly bacon, but in my opinion is too salty for pastrami). It was a relatively inexpensive experiment so I didn't cry too much when I had to throw them in the garbage.
So now, I have found nestled deep in the back of my freezer a rack of short ribs and im going to take another crack at this!
So here are the characters:
1 tablespoon of cure #1
3 tablespoons of pickling spice
1/3 cup of kosher salt
A whole mess of garlic
1 gallon of water
Mixed it all up and it looked like this:
Peeled the membrane off the ribs:
Some more photos of the ribs before they hit the curing brine:
And in it goes:
Now for some questions:
How long do you all think it needs in the brine to fully cure? For corned beef @Pops6927recommends 10-20 days.
Does how long you leave it in the brine really matter? I have to travel Super Bowl weekend for work so there is a chance it might end up in the brine for closer to three weeks? Or am I better off giving it only 5 or 6 days in the brine and smoking it this weekend.
Well thanks for looking and for all of your help.
-Chris
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