Brined the brisket for 10 days. Desalinated for 11 hours. Left the rub on for 2.5 days.
Did an overnight cook while it was 20 degrees outside. Took a lot of work with the damper to keep the temperature up in the PBC because of the cold external temperatures, but held it around 250 for the entire 10-hour cook until the coals finally burned out because of needing to keep the damper open. Finished it for the final hour in the oven. Brought the meat up to 199, pulled it, wrapped in foil, and stored in the fridge.
Then steamed it up to 203, sliced, and served. Sliced so easily, but didn't flake apart. Nice, clean slices that held together but were easy to bite through. Great color. Easily my best batch of pastrami yet.
Had friends over all weekend to enjoy it and got rave reviews. While nearly everything cooked in the PBC is a treat for guests, pastrami always seems to impress more than anything else. We live just outside of New York City (for years, I lived down the block from Katz's and ate there plenty), so our pastrami bar is set pretty high!
I love so much about the PBC, but what I often tell my wife is that I truly appreciate the sense of pride and accomplishment that it provides. Learning to control the temperature using nothing but airflow and learning when to be patient and when to react allows me to feel like I'm learning and growing as a cook. It's a hobby that rewards the hobbyist.
Did an overnight cook while it was 20 degrees outside. Took a lot of work with the damper to keep the temperature up in the PBC because of the cold external temperatures, but held it around 250 for the entire 10-hour cook until the coals finally burned out because of needing to keep the damper open. Finished it for the final hour in the oven. Brought the meat up to 199, pulled it, wrapped in foil, and stored in the fridge.
Then steamed it up to 203, sliced, and served. Sliced so easily, but didn't flake apart. Nice, clean slices that held together but were easy to bite through. Great color. Easily my best batch of pastrami yet.
Had friends over all weekend to enjoy it and got rave reviews. While nearly everything cooked in the PBC is a treat for guests, pastrami always seems to impress more than anything else. We live just outside of New York City (for years, I lived down the block from Katz's and ate there plenty), so our pastrami bar is set pretty high!
I love so much about the PBC, but what I often tell my wife is that I truly appreciate the sense of pride and accomplishment that it provides. Learning to control the temperature using nothing but airflow and learning when to be patient and when to react allows me to feel like I'm learning and growing as a cook. It's a hobby that rewards the hobbyist.
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