- Aug 27, 2008
- 5,170
- 409
I told my wife a few days ago that if she really loved me, she'd find me a packer next time she's out shopping...she brought one home for me to work my majic with lastnight.
So, after many long passionate kisses, here we are! The price was $0.02/lb less than regular price @ Sam's for a single, if you can believe that, and, at wally world of all places.
I made up my brine/cure, and trimmed/separated the point and flat while the brine was chilling...the flat:
The point:
I trimmed off 4 lbs of fat which I bagged and froze for sausage grinds, and had 11 oz of waste trimmings, so just short of 9 lbs of meat:
The seasoning is not completely traditional as you will see. I wanted to experiment and came up with this instead:
Corned Beef
For 11-15 lb packer brisket, trimmed and separated
¾ cup + 3 Tbls Tender Quick
7 cups water
1 Tbls Coriander Seed, whole (typo)
2 Tbls 5 Peppercorn Blend, whole
2 tsp Chili Powder, coarse grind
2 tsp Cinnamon, ground
1-1/2 Tbls Paprika, mild
1 Ancho Chili, dried and broken
2 tsp Fennel Seed
2 Tbls Red Bell Pepper, chopped and dried
2 Tbls Rosemary Leaves, dried
7 Bay leaf, med/large, whole
Mix all ingredients while heating in a saucepan to ~180*
Rinse packer brisket well with cold fresh water, trim all fat and separate point/flat.
Chill brine/cure solution and add ½ to each separately bagged flat/point. Vac-seal, removing as much air as possible and chill @ 32-35*. Massage and turn over bag at least twice daily. Cure for a minimum of 3.5 days per inch of meat thickness. Rinse and soak in clear cold (33-36*) water to remove salt as needed.
Here's the spices:
Just into the saucepan:
Mixed, heated, and ready for a good chill...look at the developement of all the colors here...it smells as good as it looks, too...mmm:
The flat is ready for a nice long soak:
And the point:
So, my first pastrami is in the cure and will be pulled for prep to smoke in about 11 days. My first CBs and Chicken Sausage along with my latest Salami and Jerky were all a tasty treat last week. I'm sure this will be another huge hit, too!
I'll be back with progress reports.
Thanks for lookin' at the start of my first corned beef pastrami!
Eric
So, after many long passionate kisses, here we are! The price was $0.02/lb less than regular price @ Sam's for a single, if you can believe that, and, at wally world of all places.
I made up my brine/cure, and trimmed/separated the point and flat while the brine was chilling...the flat:
The point:
I trimmed off 4 lbs of fat which I bagged and froze for sausage grinds, and had 11 oz of waste trimmings, so just short of 9 lbs of meat:
The seasoning is not completely traditional as you will see. I wanted to experiment and came up with this instead:
Corned Beef
For 11-15 lb packer brisket, trimmed and separated
¾ cup + 3 Tbls Tender Quick
7 cups water
1 Tbls Coriander Seed, whole (typo)
2 Tbls 5 Peppercorn Blend, whole
2 tsp Chili Powder, coarse grind
2 tsp Cinnamon, ground
1-1/2 Tbls Paprika, mild
1 Ancho Chili, dried and broken
2 tsp Fennel Seed
2 Tbls Red Bell Pepper, chopped and dried
2 Tbls Rosemary Leaves, dried
7 Bay leaf, med/large, whole
Mix all ingredients while heating in a saucepan to ~180*
Rinse packer brisket well with cold fresh water, trim all fat and separate point/flat.
Chill brine/cure solution and add ½ to each separately bagged flat/point. Vac-seal, removing as much air as possible and chill @ 32-35*. Massage and turn over bag at least twice daily. Cure for a minimum of 3.5 days per inch of meat thickness. Rinse and soak in clear cold (33-36*) water to remove salt as needed.
Here's the spices:
Just into the saucepan:
Mixed, heated, and ready for a good chill...look at the developement of all the colors here...it smells as good as it looks, too...mmm:
The flat is ready for a nice long soak:
And the point:
So, my first pastrami is in the cure and will be pulled for prep to smoke in about 11 days. My first CBs and Chicken Sausage along with my latest Salami and Jerky were all a tasty treat last week. I'm sure this will be another huge hit, too!
I'll be back with progress reports.
Thanks for lookin' at the start of my first corned beef pastrami!
Eric