montreal smoke meat

[disco]

I do consider myself lucky, but with a new family and a new(ish) house I don't get out as much as I used to.  I used to hit Schwartz's once every couple of weeks.

I've never had the fries cooked in duck fat though, sounds delish.   Montreal is where it's at for good food, at least in the north east.

The wife and I do enjoy hitting Atwater market as often as we can though.  They have the best sausage and veggies and the fromagerie there is nice.  We have a top notch butcher near there who keeps me well supplied in meat.

Since I don't go out as much, I've become more obsessed with making great food at home.  BBQing (real bbq I mean, not grilling) is the main thing I'm enjoying.  This summer is going to be a big season for experimenting.  I did some really great ribs and pork butt last year and will do them again, but I'm planning to try chicken wings, beef ribs, brisket and turkey this year (the smoker upgrade this year is big enough, it should be awesome).

The only disadvantage is that Smoking isn't real popular around here so getting equipment and supplies is expensive, if you can get it at all. 

Still...I'm spreading the gospel o' smoke so it can only get better :)

I don't know if it is any cheaper than your local area equipment and supplies but I have mail ordered casings, ingredients and a stuffer from www.stuffers.com in BC. They mail order across Canada and have given me good service.

 

[tcaptain]

I don't know if it is any cheaper than your local area equipment and supplies but I have mail ordered casings, ingredients and a stuffer from www.stuffers.com in BC. They mail order across Canada and have given me good service.

Ho!  Hell yeah.  I'm browsing the site and I just might check out the shipping costs because they seem to have things I haven't found locally.   Plus, I've been itching to make some smoke sausages (I mean go balls out, casings, spices everything...not just fatties).

Thanks for the heads up!

Originally Posted by wwdragon

Laval area here, just finally bought a smoker today after years of using a smokebox in the BBQ. If you got any tips or would even like to have a experment smoke day where we can try different things let me know, who knows, a nice get together could be fun, I got a pool we can use while sipping on cold refreshments (beer) as we keep an eye on the smokers. Then again, with my luck the women would be in the pool ordering us around lol

Sounds great!  I always like to chat with local smokers.  I sent you a PM a couple of days ago.  

 

[michelcoco]

well disco you don't have to take a trip to montreal for smoke meat I just did the receipe from the mile end cook book

and it is fabuless it is fantastic here is the picture.

 

[michelcoco]

seen did you tried the smoke meat recipe  yet ?

                                                                                  michel

 

[bermster]

Recipe looks AMAZING!!!  I was only able to get a 5 pound brisket.  Any advice on smoking/cooking/steaming times?  Any help would be great.

Brisket finished curing.  Now sitting in bath of water getting cleaned.  I plan to smoke tomorrow morning.

Cheers,

Mike

 

[michelcoco]

don't forget to change water every 1/2 hrs. keep in water for a minimum 3hrs.

michel

 

[zarqy]

I have a 16lb brisket curing with this recipe in the fridge as we speak.  How come nobody posted their results?

 

[michelcoco]

I have done it quit a few times. I is ridiculously good very close to shwartz smoke meat in montreal

it is very important to rinse in water a minimum of 3hrs.and change your water every 1/2 hrs if not

it will be very salty. excuse my spelling English is my second language.

                                                                                                                          Michel         good luck let me how it turn out

 

[zarqy]

Do you remember what wood(s) you used?

 

[zarqy]

So this is the only smoked meat recipe that I've found that cures for 11 days before smoking.  All others are 4 days.  Does anyone see any reason why I can't smoke after 9 days and get the same results?  (9 days is much more convenient for me than 11)

 

[michelcoco]

maple is very good.

 

[zarqy]

If you didn't have maple what would your second choice be?

 

[bagbeard]

 
Here is a recipe for Montereal Smoked Meat that was posted on the Big Green Egg site, don't know how close it is to Schwartz's, but looks to be tasty non the less...

[h1]ultimate montreal smoked meat recipe[/h1]

biggreenmatt  Posts: 45

July 2011  in EggHead Forum

This recipe is lengthy but not difficult. It takes two weeks to make. Stick through it and you'll get a final at-home product that's on par with Schwartz's, Smoke Meat Pete or any other of the holy smoke meat temples you'll find on the island of Montreal. Really- it's that good.

Didn't make up the recipe: I'm just spreading the gospel.

MONTREAL SMOKED MEAT

Cure a 12 lb double-brisket (fat-cap on) by adding the following spice mixture generously to both sides:

1/2 c Readycure (1% nitrate) + 1/4 c kosher salt OR  4 tb instacure (6% nitrate "pink salt") + 1.5 c kosher salt
1/2 lb cracked black pepper
1/4 lb sugar
1/4 lb cracked coriander
3 tb bay leaf powder
3 tb cloves

Place brisket in an XXL ziploc bag and let cure for 10 days in the fridge, flipping the brisket twice daily.

On day 11, thoroughly rinse off the cure and then soak in cold for at least 3 hours, changing the water every half-hour to get out most of the salt. Dry. Cover top of brisket with 2:1 mixture of cracked pepper to cracked coriander seed. Cover and refrigerate overnight.

On day 12, smoke over maple chunks for 4 hours at 250. After 4 hours, completely foil the brisket and return to smoker (or oven) to cook for another 5 hours. At this point the smoke meat will be fantastic, but not 100% tender. Resist eating it now. Let come to room temperature and refrigerate overnight.

On day 13, gently steam the brisket for 3 hours just prior to service. Odds are that you won't have a steamer big enough- I improvised by putting water in a foil turkey roasting pan, throwing a baking rack on top and then covering it with a second pan.

To carve, cut against the grain and on the bias very thinly, using a VERY SHARP slicing knife (the knife actually makes a difference). Serve stacked on fresh seeded rye bread with mustard.

RIDICULOUSLY GOOD.

I have a 6lb brisket flat i got at the meat auction at my favorite butcher.  got it for half price cause nobody was bidding.  just wondering if i can divide the recipe in half for the brine?

Tried pastrami once but like the taste of montreal smoked meat better.  cant wait to try. 

Happy Smoke!

 

[zarqy]

There is no reason why you can't scale the recipe to your size of meat. The only thing I would caution as others have stated - the quantity of Insta-cure is incorrect. The manufacturer states to use no more than 1 tsp per 5 lbs of meat. In your case with a 6 lb brisket you should use no more than 1 1/4 tsp

 

[michelcoco]

att: as to be instacure #1. the measurement you have are correct.also instacure is call prague powder#1 for dry cure only.

for wet cure use #2                 michel

 

[mneeley490]

 
att: as to be instacure #1. the measurement you have are correct.also instacure is call prague powder#1 for dry cure only.

for wet cure use #2                 michel

I don't believe that is correct. Cure #2 is used mainly for sausage making. Cure #1 can and should be used for dry and wet curing.

 

[zarqy]

Prague Powder #1 aka Insta Cure #1, pink curing salt, or Sel Rose is composed of 6.75% Sodium Nitrite and 93.25% Sodium Chloride. It used in the curing process to prevent botulism poisoning and to provide the characteristic flavor and red color associated with curing. Prague Powder #1 is recommended for meats that require short cures and will be cooked and eaten relatively quickly, like sausages. It is not appropriate for long cured products like hard salami.

Recommended usage for curing is 1.1g per 500g of meat.

Prague Powder #2 aka Insta Cure #2, pink curing salt, or Sel Rose is composed of 6.75% Sodium Nitrite, 4.00% Sodium Nitrate and 89.25% Sodium Chloride. It used in the curing process to prevent botulism poisoning and to provide the characteristic flavor and red color associated with curing. Prague Powder #2 is recommended for meats that require long (weeks to months) cures, like hard salami and country ham.

Recommended usage for curing is 1.1g per 500g of meat.

 

[diggingdogfarm]

att: as to be instacure #1. the measurement you have are correct.also instacure is call prague powder#1 for dry cure only.
for wet cure use #2                 michel

That's not correct.
Cure #2 is used in long term dry curing only.

Prague Powder #1 aka Insta Cure #1, pink curing salt, or Sel Rose is composed of 6.75% Sodium Nitrite and 93.25% Sodium Chloride. It used in the curing process to prevent botulism poisoning and to provide the characteristic flavor and red color associated with curing. Prague Powder #1 is recommended for meats that require short cures and will be cooked and eaten relatively quickly, like sausages. It is not appropriate for long cured products like hard salami.
Recommended usage for curing is 1.1g per 500g of meat.

Cure #1 is 6.25% nitrite.
Be very careful with Sel Rose because the nitrite can vary.
The amount you use depends on what you are curing and the method of curing.

Prague Powder #2 aka Insta Cure #2, pink curing salt, or Sel Rose is composed of 6.75% Sodium Nitrite, 4.00% Sodium Nitrate and 89.25% Sodium Chloride. It used in the curing process to prevent botulism poisoning and to provide the characteristic flavor and red color associated with curing. Prague Powder #2 is recommended for meats that require long (weeks to months) cures, like hard salami and country ham.
Recommended usage for curing is 1.1g per 500g of meat.

There are at least three commonly available Cure #2 formulations, all with different amounts of nitrite and nitrate.



~Martin

 

[zarqy]

So I think we can all agree that when it comes to using cures with Sodium Nitrite it's best to follow the directions set out by the manufacturer.  For example mine came from Modernist Pantry which is where I copied and pasted the ingredient list from.  Using too much Sodium Nitrite can seriously harm you.

 

[diggingdogfarm]

Most manufacturer's don't give detailed instructions for all forms of curing, some even provide erroneous information.
It's important that everyone educate themselves on appropriate and safe cure amounts for various curing situations.



~Martin