Making Pastrami (Recipe)
In all the years that I have spent eating corned beef and pastrami at various Jewish delis, I never knew that pastrami is simply corned beef that is coated in a mixture of coriander and black pepper, smoked and steamed. Since I was already brining the brisket for the corned beef project, I had to try my hand at making pastrami.
Ingredients:
- 1 Brisket (brined)
- 2 tablespoons of coriander seeds
- 2 tablespoons of black peppercorns
Application:
After removing the brisket from the brine, rinse and dry thoroughly, and let rest for a hour in the refrigerator. While the brisket is resting, toast the coriander and black peppercorns in a small, dry pan. Pour the spices into a spice grinder and grind finely. Remove the brisket from the refrigerator and cover it with the spice mixture. Place the brisket in the smoker until the internal temperature of the brisket reaches 140 degrees, about two hours.
Note: My smoker runs so cold in that I often smoke my meat for two or three hours and finish it off in the oven at 225-250 degrees until the meat hits 140 degrees.
Coated and Smoked Brisket
Steam the pastrami until the meat is fork tender, about two hours. Don’t skip the steaming part, because it is the steam that breaks down the connective tissue in the pastrami, making it tender.
Pastrami after steaming
Cool the pastrami down in the refrigerator overnight for easy slicing the next day. Just before serving, steam the pastrami(or if you must microwave) for the best flavor.
My favorite way of serving pastrami
I am not going to claim that this pastrami is at the level of the Jewish deli’s in NYC, but I would say that making your own pastrami will produce better results than anything you will find in your local supermarket.
Enjoy!
Making Corned Beef (Recipe)
Homemade Corned Beef, Swiss Cheese, Walla Walla Onion, Mustard on a Kaiser Roll
For one of my Weekend Food Projects, I decided to experiment with making one of my favorite deli meats, corned beef. Since I have been making bacon on my own for a year, I already had a source for the pink salt (sodium nitrite) needed. So for me, the hardest thing about making the corned beef is getting all of the spices needed for the pickling spice. I spent several frustrating hours shopping in the local markets for allspice berries, mace, and coriander seeds, at a decent price. Yes, I could have use pre-made pickling spice, but that is not nearly as fun as making your own customized blend. A word of advice, find a store dedicated to bulk spices in your city and stock up. The best thing about my search was that I “discovered” this really great spice and import store in Seattle, Big John’s PFI. If you are in Seattle area, go!
This recipe was adapted from Michael Ruhlman’s book
Charcuterie: The Craft of Salting, Smoking and Curing and website.
Home-Cured Corned Beef
1-1/2 cups kosher salt
½ cup sugar
4 teaspoons pink salt (sodium nitrite, not to be confused with Himalayan pink salt)*
3 cloves garlic, minced
4 tablespoons pickling spice
1 5-pound beef brisket
In a large pot, combine one gallon of water with kosher salt, sugar, sodium nitrite, garlic and 2 tablespoons pickling spice. Bring to a simmer, stirring until salt and sugar are dissolved. Remove from heat and let cool to room temperature, then refrigerate until chilled.
Place brisket in brine, weighted with a plate to keep it submerged; cover. Refrigerate for 5 days.
Remove brisket from brine and rinse thoroughly. If you have a crockpot large enough to hold your brisket, use it. Cover the brisket with water, add remaining pickling spice and set it on low for 5 hours. If not, place in a pot just large enough to hold the brisket. Cover the brisket with water and add remaining pickling spice. Bring to a boil over high heat, reduce heat to low and cover. Simmer gently until brisket is fork-tender, about 3 hours, adding water if needed to cover brisket. Optional step: Place in a 350 degree oven for an additonal 45-60 minutes to brown to the brisket.
*I know Ruhlman states that the pink salt is optional, I disagree. If you want the pink color that is “normally” found in corned beef, use it.
Pickling Spice
2 tablespoons black peppercorns
2 tablespoons mustard seeds
2 tablespoons coriander seeds
2 tablespoons hot red pepper flakes
2 tablespoons allspice berries
1 tablespoon ground mace (I have also used an equal amount of grated nutmeg, in a pinch)
2 small cinnamon sticks, crushed or broken into pieces
2 to 4 bay leaves, crumbled
2 tablespoons whole cloves
1 tablespoon ground ginger.
Combine peppercorns, mustard seeds and coriander seeds in a small dry pan. Place over medium heat and stir until fragrant, being careful not to burn them; keep lid handy in case seeds pop. Grind peppercorns and seeds in a spice grinder. One or two pulses in the grinder should be enough. You can also use a meat mallet and a Ziploc bag to crack the seeds.
Combine with other spices, mix. Store in tightly sealed plastic or glass container.
