Pastrami - dry vs wet curing step

[20stone]

I have a left over brisket flat that is destined to become pastrami on rye. Almost every recipe I see uses a wet brine for the curing step. Since I cure everything else using salt, curing salt and other stuff by weight in a vac bag, I was curious whether or not that would be a better approach to pastrami as well.

[Huskee]

Because using nitrite (cure) can be dangerous if overdone or underdone, we highly recommend you use Meathead's cure recipe and curing calculator. The wet cure approach in his recipes with a specific amount of cure & time in the cure ensures safety in line with the FDA's recommended levels of nitrite. Please see this article: http://amazingribs.com/tips_and_tech...ing_meats.html

And, welcome to The Pit! We'd love to get an intro from you when you get a minute: https://pitmaster.amazingribs.com/fo...troductions-aa

[EdF]

I've only done corned beef with a wet brine. Here's the one I've used. It works very well. http://blog.ruhlman.com/2015/03/how-...e-corned-beef/

[Thunder77]

I find it interesting that he says the pink salt is optional.

[Danjohnston949]

EdF, Thanks for the Link for Curing Corned Beef it is in My Evernote File Now! I am Not Irish but My Gailic (Scottish)
Ancestors Thank You!
From a Backyard Cremator in Fargo ND, Dan

[EdF]

You know, I've got some prague #1 in the pantry, but I don't think I've ever had occasion to use it. For "fresh" cures, it seems to be generally optional. For dry stuff, that's another story.

[20stone]

Understood. I do follow recipes carefully and use a scale.

However, for bacon, pancetta, and other stuff hanging in the locker the recipes are for a rub on the meat which I then vac bag and fridge for the allotted time (with salt at ~2% of weight (depending on the cut) and #1 at 0.25% of weight).

I was curious how that approach would apply to pastrami vs. putting it in a tub of wet brine (per Meathead's recipe) and taking up a ton of space in the fridge.

I will drop in an intro as well.

Thanks

[ecowper]

20stone I checked real quick .... looks like Michael Ruhlman wet cures his corned beef and pastrami also. I use the big 2 gallon ziplock bags, which lets me lay the brisket flat on a fridge shelf instead of having to occupy the thing with a big pot.

[HorseDoctor]

Your proposed process should work just fine as long as you give is sufficient time and overhaul the bag frequently to keep things mixed up. There are ample recipes posted for dry cured corned beef. The curing process draws water out of the meat early on so even a "dry" cure doesn't stay dry very long. That's the way I do all my pork belly for bacon & pancetta. You could even add a little water at the onset to be sure that the curing salts get distributed evenly and to make everyone feel better about your process. Enjoy!

[DWCowles]

Welcome 20stone

[ecowper]

I do understand that Julia Child had a recipe for corned beef that involved a dry brine. From what I've been able to gather, it still went in the refrigerator and took about 2 weeks.

But I figure if a wet brine is what Michael Ruhlman uses, I'm gonna say wet brining is the way to go.

[Spinaker]

Meathead's method works great for all the bacon curing that I have done. I have a brisket on the wet brine right now that is getting Desalinated tonight, rubbed down and set to rest for a few days, until I hit it with the smoke this weekend.

[CaptainMike]

I've used MH's cure recipe for pastrami and whole ham with great results, but I also have a 2nd fridge for such endeavors.

[Notavegan]

I have a $60 dorm fridge for my second fridge. I have it in a shed / pool cabana in summertime, and it holds tons meat. That's where I do dry brines etc. and very close to the BGE when it comes cook and final prep time. I don't even bring my newly purchased proteins into the house. They go right to the cabana fridge.

60 beans.

[20stone]

I have a $60 dorm fridge for my second fridge. I have it in a shed / pool cabana in summertime, and it holds tons meat. That's where I do dry brines etc. and very close to the BGE when it comes cook and final prep time. I don't even bring my newly purchased proteins into the house. They go right to the cabana fridge.

60 beans.

I hear you. However, in the middle of moving into a new house, I bought a 15 cu ft chest freezer to use as a curing chamber, which is eating some real square footage in the garage. In the end, I will likely end up with some fridge and freezer in the garage (along with a smaller chamber than what I have), but that will have to wait until we empty out the boxes.