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Smoking some corned beef brisket (AKA pastrami): D**n fine, even if it was commercially corned. . .

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    Smoking some corned beef brisket (AKA pastrami): D**n fine, even if it was commercially corned. . .

    As I type (well, in-between typing stuff) I am scarfing down a sandwich of good marble rye, home smoked corned beef (dat's pastrami, right?) cheese, julienned good sour dill pickles, just a leetle mustard that I grilled in a pan ala grilled cheese sandwiches. Did I mention that I briefly warmed the slices in some smoking "jus" before making the sandwich? Well I did and I am glad I did.

    Sure I coulda bought a brisket, corned it in my fridge myself THEN smoked it, but well, (whining) I had this on in the freezer. Maybe I'll ask for a prime brisket flat or some-such for Christmas. BUT I defrosted a corned beef flat from Smart-and-Final that had resided in my deep freeze since some time last year. . . yes, last year, and smoked that puppy. It is delicious; maybe not as delicious as a home corned brisket corned, but it is FINE. Much better than the stuff at local grocers/delis around here.

    Smoked it in my Green Mountain Grill at 200º, used Pit Boss "generic" pellets (40 lbs/$14.99 as of this writing). I lined a very shallow biscuit pan with double heavy-duty aluminum foil, poured in1/2 inch of so of boiling water then placed a rack on top of the pan. The rinsed flat was positioned over the water so all drippings would go into the pan and smoke could circulate freely. Ended up smoking it for 7 hours, checking the pan to keep water in it. I let it cook and put it in the fridge for 3 days--we had regular corned beef with cabbage and the works for St. Pat's day. Saved that smoking "jus"!!!

    The stuff, sliced across the grain diagonally, has just a bit of chew, Next time I will go, oh, maybe 2 hrs longer. If I could slice it more thinly, the chew would not be noticeable, but I don't have an electric slicer, just sharp knife. I am plenty happy with what I have, chew or no.

    And about that smoking "jus" from the drip pan. It is the essence of good, smokey corned beef. I will be freezing any that is left for future use--perhaps in a Guinness and beef stew?

    Any way, I am happy with my results. I fully encourage any new to pellet grilling to try this (I am a new to it too!). Very good, very easy.

    Have fun and stay healthy, eat lots of home smoked stuff!

    #2
    It's only pastrami if you put a black pepper and coriander rub on it first. BTW, mine is still on the smoker at 188° IT. Shouldn't be too long now.

    Comment


    • Foehn Watts
      Foehn Watts commented
      Editing a comment
      You know, I thought of patting lots of cracked black pepper on. But I didn't--smoked corned beef is great!.

    • HouseHomey
      HouseHomey commented
      Editing a comment
      I just posted mine in SUWYC

    #3
    Foehn Watts , you needed to take the IT of the meat above 200°F (~203°) so a smoker temp of 200° will never get you there. Also, you should gauge doneness by temperature, not time, so get a leave in probe thermometer to monitor the IT. Just friendly suggestions. Enjoy!

    Comment


    • Foehn Watts
      Foehn Watts commented
      Editing a comment
      Oh, believe me, what I have is just wonderful. BUT I will save your advice for the next time, Thank you!! :-)

      And I never EVEN thought of putting a probe thermo in--I have a couple, but that blew by me, whoosh.

      I really think I need an electric slicer. . . my stuff woulda sliced wonderfully thin. :-)

    • shify
      shify commented
      Editing a comment
      Generally agreed on temp but I would also stress sometimes temp isn’t the be all end all. My last pastrami, cooked from a store bought corned brisket point, I intended to take it to 200-205 but it was probing butter tender in the 180s, so I took it off and it was perfectly cooked.

    #4
    A leave in probe or quality Instaread is a must have and will drastically up your game.

    I promise.

    Comment


      #5
      I enjoy store-bought corned beeffor pastrami too, yum yum yum. I like mine with havarti cheese dill pickles and mustard in a panini press. Or just meat + fork, either way really.

      Comment


      • Dewesq55
        Dewesq55 commented
        Editing a comment
        That sounds really good, Huskee . Rye bread and spicy mustard are pretty good, too.

      • Polarbear777
        Polarbear777 commented
        Editing a comment
        Wait...a fork? I thought you were just supposed to eat it off the cutting board before anyone notices?

      • Troutman
        Troutman commented
        Editing a comment
        What fork, what knife, what cutting board? I say pick the dang thing up and go all caveman on it !!!

      #6
      Next time follow Meathead's Pastrami That's Close to Katz' recipe. You will think you've died and gone to meat heaven.

      I like using storebought corned beef for pastrami, soaking it, and pastrami-spicing it up before smoking. It's easy peasy, very forgiving, and tastes delicious. I bounce between corning a brisket for pastrami and starting with grocery store corned beef, dressed up for the party with Meathead's recipe. Both disappear equally as fast.

      Kathryn

      Comment


        #7
        There’s tons of corned beef available in stores now. Sure I corn my own brisket often but when this stuff is on sale, take advantage.

        No amount of pastrami is ever enough....

        Comment


          #8
          i use store bought on the regular; going to make some more later in the week. I could eat pastrami every day. I have started using Clint's SVQ recipe https://amazingribs.com/tested-recip...astrami-recipe

          Comment


            #9
            klflowers , I did a side-by-side of Clint Cantwell's SVQ recipe with Meathead's conventional approach and another SVQ method. You can read about the comparison here:

            https://pitmaster.amazingribs.com/fo...son#post318540

            Bottom line: all methods tasted delicious. The Clint Cantwell method came in 3rd because the rub came off too easily when slicing. Adding the rub to a second SV piece and letting it sit in the fridge uncovered overnight worked much better. Bark was comparable to Meathead's conventional approach (without steaming).

            Kathryn

            Comment


            • klflowers
              klflowers commented
              Editing a comment
              Thanks Kathryn. I will try the second method later in the week on my next pastrami cook. I noticed that the rub tends to come off with Clint's method, but it is still so darn good that I stuck with it.

            #10
            Has anybody thought about, or tried, working an Instant Pot (or similar) into this recipe? Like replacing the SV step?

            Comment


            • Dewesq55
              Dewesq55 commented
              Editing a comment
              So, EdF , can I get some details? I wasn't asking purely out of idle curiosity.

            • EdF
              EdF commented
              Editing a comment
              @Dewesq55

              I'll check with the Boss, see what she has to say.

            • Dewesq55
              Dewesq55 commented
              Editing a comment
              EdF - Thanks for whatever you can find out. Stay safe.

            #11
            Dewesq55

            So, the wife used this recipe as an overall structure, but with a corned beef flat instead of a fresh brisket: https://www.seriouseats.com/recipes/...r-brisket.html

            You should either do the usual rinsing thing to the corned beef or boil slowly for a couple of hours then rinse. Otherwise too salty.

            Brown the meat (she cut it into 3 pieces to better fit the pot and ease the browning). Then brown/saute the veggies: onion, garlic, celery, carrot, canned tomatoes. Aside from the flavor, you're trying to remove some water from the veggies.

            Throw it all in the pressure cooker, add a beer or a half cup to a cup of wine (red, she used). You want enough liquid so you don't singe the beef, but you don't want soup.

            Cook on high for 90 minutes, natural release.
            Last edited by EdF; March 22, 2020, 07:13 PM.

            Comment


            • Dewesq55
              Dewesq55 commented
              Editing a comment
              Thanks!

            • fzxdoc
              fzxdoc commented
              Editing a comment
              Sounds delicious. Thanks for the IP info too.

              Kathryn

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