My Try at Corning Beef

  • Some of the links on this forum allow SMF, at no cost to you, to earn a small commission when you click through and make a purchase. Let me know if you have any questions about this.
SMF is reader-supported. When you buy through links on our site, we may earn an affiliate commission.
Mulepacker,
That looks soooooooo good !

points.gif
from "An Envious Bearcarver!



BC
 
The Corned Beef part of this experiment came out fantastic. This was the point of the brisket. A little fatty but that is the way I like it. Doesn't look like much because my wife got into it before I could take a picture.
 
Corned beef and boiled dinner. This is where I started out for. Very worthwhile trip. Two briskets worth all got eaten tonight as boiled dinner, along with some soda bread, fruit salad, bread pudding, key lime pie ,black and tans, and Bushmills to "close the stomach". Fine evening had by all.
0ee21f71_vbattach24350.jpg

d0aba0d3_vbattach24351.jpg

d265cb82_vbattach24352.jpg
 
Trying my first brisket tomorrow, but now I'm thinking about doing part of it as pastrami. Can you fill me in on the details? Brine? How long in the brine? How do I smoke each half? These look so good that I just have to try it.
 
I brined mine, I basically picked and chose from various recipes and sources, and used what I had on hand. So this is what I came up with:

Corned Beef/Pastrami Brine

3 Gal Water
3 Cups Tenderquick
2 Cups Brown Sugar
3 Tbsp. Garlic Powder
3 Tbsp. Onion Powder
1 Tbsp. Whole Clove
1 Tbsp. Whole Peppercorn
1 Tbsp. Whole Mustard Seed
1 Tbsp. Whole Coriander
1 Tbsp. Whole Allspice
1 Tbsp. Whole Fennel
1 Tbsp. Whole Rosemary Leaves
1 Tbsp. Red Pepper Flakes
1 Tbsp. Pickling Spice (kinda redundant I suppose)
6 Bay Leaves
6 Cinnamon Sticks

Bring water to a boil, add all ingredients, simmer until salt and sugars dissolve fully. Chill down to at least 40 deg. or cooler. Cover briskets in a nonreactive container (crock, plastic tub, I used a sanitized cooler) with chilled brine and cure for 7 days. I used 2 large brisket flats cut in half, but this volume could have easily done 3 times as much. I removed the briskets on the 7th day, and strain out the spices which are saved for a boil for corned beef. The corned beef are ready to be used or can be frozen for later use at this point. I refrigerated mine for 3 days for St. Pats. The other two halves got the following rub for pastrami:

3 Tbsp. CBP
1 Tbsp. Coarse Ground Coriander
1 Tbsp. Coarse Ground Mustard
1 tsp. Ground Thyme
2 Tbsp. Garlic Powder
3 Tbsp. Brown Sugar
1 Tbsp. Paprika
1/4 Cup Salt

I ground my coriander and mustard seeds in my coffee mill coarsely. This rub covered one 5 lb. brisket about perfectly, I might cut the salt back next time some, there is plenty already in the meat from the brine. I put in smoker at 130 deg. for one hour with the damper wide open. Then add smoke for 2 hours with dampers at 1/4 open. Then bring smoker temp up to
around 200 to 220. Continue to cook until internal temp of pastrami is about 165. Cool for two hours at room temp, then into refer. Then freeze and eat. If one feels the brine is too salty, you could use instacure at the appropriate amount and salt at a lesser level.
 
SmokingMeatForums.com is reader supported and as an Amazon Associate, we may earn commissions from qualifying purchases.

Latest posts

Hot Threads

Clicky