Pastrami

[bill ace 350]

Picked up a brisket flat. Plan on making Pastrami.

Looked around a little and see many use a Pop's brine variant.

Looking for opinions on any experience using Pop's, or any ideas/opinions on other cure options.

Thanks

 

[BandCollector]

Pop's knew what he was doing and always gave us good and safe advice.

I think you will be fine following any recipe using Pop's brine.

Not to mention honoring his memory.

John

 

[thirdeye]

Pops brine has one constant, and that's a heaping tablespoon of Cure #1 in 1-gallon of water. The variables are salt and sugar, which you can adjust to suit your personal tastes.

 

[bill ace 350]

Sorry. I didn't mention I had never made Pastrami.

Very familiar with Pop's brine, was just wondering about other options.

 

[chopsaw]

Very familiar with Pop's brine, was just wondering about other options.

Bill I don't do a lot of pastrami , but I've done it with Pop's , a dry cure with cure 1 , and Tender quick with pickling spice mixed in .
I love Pops on poultry , but not as much on beef or pork , so I prefered the dry cures the best for this .
TQ keeps it simple for smaller cuts , and I'm a fan of it when used correctly . Mixed in a couple TBL spoons of pickling spice to the TQ and let it go 14 days .
The cure one dry rub was good too . I followed Al's method for that one , which was smoke to 150 IT , them finish in the SV bath for 24 hours .
Just did this from store bought corned beef .
Not as good as curing your own , but hit the spot for sure .
Homemade rye , Mr. mustard Hot mustard .

Toasted up with some kraut and Swiss .

 

[JLeonard]

Saw some nice looking flats at Sams last night....Almost grabbed one.

Jim

 

[bill ace 350]

Bill I don't do a lot of pastrami , but I've done it with Pop's , a dry cure with cure 1 , and Tender quick with pickling spice mixed in .
I love Pops on poultry , but not as much on beef or pork , so I prefered the dry cures the best for this .
TQ keeps it simple for smaller cuts , and I'm a fan of it when used correctly . Mixed in a couple TBL spoons of pickling spice to the TQ and let it go 14 days .
The cure one dry rub was good too . I followed Al's method for that one , which was smoke to 150 IT , them finish in the SV bath for 24 hours .
Just did this from store bought corned beef .
Not as good as curing your own , but hit the spot for sure .
Homemade rye , Mr. mustard Hot mustard .
View attachment 691031
Toasted up with some kraut and Swiss .
View attachment 691032

Thanks! What else did you rub besides TQ?

 

[SmokinEdge]

I mostly do dry rub on flats. Simple cure with pickling spice added. If I brine, which is usually not, I do an equilibrium brine taylored to that piece of meat. Then for pastrami, add the crust of BB and coriander before cooking.

 

[chopsaw]

What else did you rub besides TQ?

I used a pickling spice for corned beef . You can buy the store bought stuff . I had most of the ingredients on hand from doing sausage , but it's cheaper to buy it if you don't have it all .

You can see what you have on hand for this ,
2TBL black peppercorns
3TBL mustard seeds
2 TBL coriander seeds - Skipped / didn't have .
2TBL red pepper flakes - I skipped this
2TBL all spice berries - I used ground adjusted measurement .
1TBL ground mace - I used nutmeg
2 Cinnamon sticks , crushed
4 bay leaves crushed
2 TBL cloves crushed - I skipped this / didn't have
1TBL ground ginger
I used 2 TBL with the TQ and also when I did the cure one .
Store bought is a good way to go .
Bill that's just how I did it . I might be missing something , but it came out great all 3 times .
This was actually the TQ mix I did on petite tenders . This was a test of " Pastrami snacks "
TQ measured in the correct amount by weight of whole muscle ( you know that )
Then looks like 2 tsp of the spice because of a small piece being cured .

 

[bill ace 350]

I used a pickling spice for corned beef . You can buy the store bought stuff . I had most of the ingredients on hand from doing sausage , but it's cheaper to buy it if you don't have it all .

You can see what you have on hand for this ,
2TBL black peppercorns
3TBL mustard seeds
2 TBL coriander seeds - Skipped / didn't have .
2TBL red pepper flakes - I skipped this
2TBL all spice berries - I used ground adjusted measurement .
1TBL ground mace - I used nutmeg
2 Cinnamon sticks , crushed
4 bay leaves crushed
2 TBL cloves crushed - I skipped this / didn't have
1TBL ground ginger
I used 2 TBL with the TQ and also when I did the cure one .
Store bought is a good way to go .
Bill that's just how I did it . I might be missing something , but it came out great all 3 times .
This was actually the TQ mix I did on petite tenders . This was a test of " Pastrami snacks "
TQ measured in the correct amount by weight of whole muscle ( you know that )
Then looks like 2 tsp of the spice because of a small piece being cured .
View attachment 691051
View attachment 691052

that looks awesome!

Thanks!

 

[bill ace 350]

My brisket has cured 15 days. Just TQ and brown sugar.

Into the smoker today, pics to follow.

Not really a pastrami, maybe a cross between pastrami and Montreal Smoked Meat.

Had planned on Pop's brine with pickling spice, but supplies and time forced me to the TQ Brown Sugar cure..

Thin coat of mustard, some onion and garlic powder, coarse black pepper and Montreal Steak Seasonibg for a rub.

Shpuld turn out to be decent, I hope.

 

[chopsaw]

Sounds perfect .

 

[bill ace 350]

Seasoned and sitting at room temp for about an hour....

 

[mr_whipple]

Watching along. Pastrami is on my list, just haven't got to it.

 

[bill ace 350]

Watching along. Pastrami is on my list, just haven't got to it.

First try for me. Learning recipe for me!

 

[mneeley490]

My go-to is from another departed mentor on this board, Chef Jimmy J. Here's his recipe, you might try it next time to compare.
Chef Jimmy J's Pastrami

 

[thirdeye]

My brisket has cured 15 days. Just TQ and brown sugar.

Into the smoker today, pics to follow.

Not really a pastrami, maybe a cross between pastrami and Montreal Smoked Meat.

Did you happen to test fry a slice after rinsing? Some prefer to soak items dry cured with TQ.

 

[chopsaw]

Some prefer to soak items dry cured with TQ.

He's a Tender Quick guru .

 

[chopsaw]

Seasoned and sitting at room temp for about an hour....

Looks perfect .

 

[bill ace 350]

Did you happen to test fry a slice after rinsing? Some prefer to soak items dry cured with TQ.

Yes. Not too salty at all. I added to much Montreal Seasoning which added salt back. Still very good.

Made good rueben!

Nothing picture worthy but will definitely make again.