Reverse Seared Steak
December 23, 2020
Campfire Salmon
January 5, 2021Making the best pastrami you have ever had
For this recipe, I have stuck with just smoking the meat, rather than boiling or steaming as I feel like it makes the final product even better.
The recipe includes both a brine and a rub and these two strong flavour profiles, a long with the sweetness from the smoke, make it a seriously incredible recipe.
You can serve pastrami sliced or pulled like I have done here. It makes great sandwiches or even can be eaten by itself.
The Brine
- 4 lbs/2 kg Beef ribs
- ½ cup Kosher salt
- 1 T Mustard seed
- 1 t Celery seed
- 2 Cinnamon sticks
- 3 Bay leaves (Crushed)
- 2 t Coriander seed
- 2 T peppercorns
- 1 T Cloves
- ¼ cup Brown sugar
- 3 Juniper berries (Crushed)
- 1.5 t Prague powder/pink curing salt
- Half gallon/ 2 litres water
Rub
- ½ cup Coriander seeds
- ½ cup peppercorns
- 1 T Mustard seed
- 1 T celery seed
- 1 T Paprika
- 1 T Garlic powder
- 1 T Onion powder
Method
1. Slice beef ribs into individual bones, so that there is more surface area.
2. Mix all brine ingredients together in a bowl, before fully submerging ribs into the liquid. If needed, place a clean plate onto any floating ribs to keep them submerged.
3. Place brining ribs into the fridge for ten days, flipping and moving the ribs every other day, to ensure even and consistent brining.
4. Remove ribs from brine and wash under cold water to remove excess salt, before patting dry with paper towels.
5. Mix together all rub ingredients. You may need to use a spice grinder or a coffee grinder to get the larger spices to the desired consistency.
6. Coat your ribs with a binding agent, such as vegetable oil and thoroughly coat all sides of your ribs.
7. Preheat your smoker to 250F and place in your preferred smoking wood. I like cherry for this recipe, but hickory, oak or pecan would all work well.
8. Smoke for about 3 hours, spritzing every hour-1.5 hours.
9. Remove ribs from the cooker and wrap in foil with a few splashes of your preferred liquid. Keep ribs wrapped until they have met desired tenderness. If you want to slice the pastrami, you will want to unwrap it while it still has some firmness to the meat (approximately 1 hour) if you want to pull the meat, keep it cooking for about 2 hours.
10. Unwrap the ribs and place on the cooker for approximately 1 hour, until the bark has dried and firmed up.
11. Let your meat rest under tented foil for twenty minutes and then serve.
Pastrami goes fantastic as a classic Reuben sandwich with sauerkraut and cheese, or in tacos with some spicy jalapenos.
