Meat options for pastrami?

[reannalynne]

I've never made pastrami and really would like to since hubby and I have been eating a lot of it lately from the deli. I want to start small, and am hoping to not have to go and purchase beef. (My dad is a butcher, we have a family farm) I have chuck roast, sirloin tip roast, and rump roast readily available. Would any of these work for pastrami? Or should I just bite the bullet and go buy a brisket? If it turns out, I already have a request in to my dad to not turn it all into ground beef next time, that I want some different cuts for smoking purposes.

 

[30" Jim]

I just made a great pastrami out of an eye of round.

 

[tropics]

The search feature gives a few cuts you can use
Richie

 

[pops6927]

Actually, you can use almost any kind of meat for pastrami. First, you cure it, then you smoke it. Simple as that! Beef, turkey, chicken, pork, etc. Use my Pop's Curing Brine and add some Pickling Spices for flavor!

http://www.smokingmeatforums.com/a/pops6927s-curing-brines-regular-and-lo-salt
http://www.smokingmeatforums.com/t/259066/beef-corned-beef-and-pastrami

If the cut is over 2" thick, then just inject it ($5.00 injector at any department store/food store with kitchen doo-dads, or a professional one - Morton's Brine Pump).

http://www.butcher-packer.com/index.php?main_page=product_info&cPath=2_45_231&products_id=25

so it will cure from the outside-in and the inside-out.

People here have made duck breast pastrami, chicken pastrami, beef pastrami, etc. And, any cut will do - brisket, chuck, round, rump, etc. If it's cured, then it's 'corned' (i.e. 'Corned Beef'). Then, taking it a step further, you smoke it and cook it (min. 145° internal) and then it's Pastrami!

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pastrami

 

[pops6927]

At my dad's store we would empty the meat case on Saturday nights (closed Sundays) and put any roasts left into a smaller 25-gallon bucket and fill with curing brine to make corned beef. We'd sell it (of course, tag them with tags for the date of putting them in) usually two or more weeks of curing. We'd empty the meat cases, putting everything into the meat or brine coolers, any extra chickens into a separate small curing brine bucket for smoked chickens, pork roasts for cured and smoked loins/chops and rib ends and loin ends (we'd bone them out once cured and smoked and made up ham loaves, shaped like a meatloaf and sold out of the freezer). Sundays we cleaned out the meat cases (turned the compressors off Saturday night) - it was all fresh meat cases, full service. We'd have to hose them out, pushing any fallen meat into the drains, wash and dry all the doors (triple pane sliding glass doors) and then Windex them and lay out to dry completely. Then, Monday morning, the cutters came in an hour early to put the cases back together and refill to start business.

 

[reannalynne]

Thanks, pops! I'm excited to try this out.

 

[tallbm]

If you ever want to make Pastrami Loaves for slicing into sandwich meat let me know I do a ground Venison Pastrami that is awesome! Using all beef and beef fat should be no issue. I do venison meat and beef fat for mine in 80/20 meat to fat ratio.

 

[motocrash]

If you ever want to make Pastrami Loaves for slicing into sandwich meat let me know I do a ground Venison Pastrami that is awesome! Using all beef and beef fat should be no issue. I do venison meat and beef fat for mine in 80/20 meat to fat ratio.

tallbum,I would like this recipe please.

 

[weev]

If you ever want to make Pastrami Loaves for slicing into sandwich meat let me know I do a ground Venison Pastrami that is awesome! Using all beef and beef fat should be no issue. I do venison meat and beef fat for mine in 80/20 meat to fat ratio.

how do you cure it ?
I would also be interested in the recipe if its ok sounds great

 

[SmokinAl]

Of course brisket pastrami is the one everybody uses, but I really like eye of round pastrami.
I'm guessing you could make pastrami out of any cut of meat, but I'm sure there are some cuts that really don't give you that pastrami mouth feel & taste.
Al

 

[tallbm]

tallbum,I would like this recipe please.

This link will jump you right to my version of the recipe.
https://www.smokingmeatforums.com/threads/pastrami-loaf-with-qview.263815/page-2#post-1716471

how do you cure it ?
I would also be interested in the recipe if its ok sounds great

This link will jump you right to my version of the recipe.
https://www.smokingmeatforums.com/threads/pastrami-loaf-with-qview.263815/page-2#post-1716471

You just add the cure #1 into the meat with all the other seasoning and mix it up. This is exactly how sausage and other ground meat products are cured :)


Enjoy guys!

 

[motocrash]

Enjoy guys!

Thank you Sir;)

 

[weev]

Well here is another item for the list of things to try it really does look good

 

[tallbm]

Thank you Sir;)

Anytime! :)

Well here is another item for the list of things to try it really does look good

It is awesome! It's very good for making wonderful pastrami cold cuts with great pastrami flavor! It just takes ground meat with an 80/20 meat to fat ratio :)

 

[myownidaho]

I’ve used sirloin tip and rump roast for pastrami and they both turn out great. You can do wet or dry cure which will give you somewhat different textures. If you can, try them both and see what you think.

 

[JckDanls 07]

Some other members used sirloin tip roast... https://www.smokingmeatforums.com/t...mi-wow-finish-photos-now-with-details.121549/

I was able to sample some of it... let me say it was some kind of awesome...