SOME PASTRAMI

fishlessman

added some simmered down garlic and pepper to the water changes over two days, then smoked the corned beef point at 250 with maple, used more garlic and pepper for the rub. the garlic in the water soak really gave it more a pastrami taste than just smoked corned beef, used a whole head each water change, two changes.

Legume

That looks really good - tell me how you prepared the garlic and pepper before adding to the water?

tarheelmatt

Man that is on "point"!

fishlessman

Legume said:

That looks really good - tell me how you prepared the garlic and pepper before adding to the water?

i just simmered a peeled/smashed,/coarse cut whole head and 1/4 cup pepper til it softened and you could start to smell it, then added to the cold water. strained it out during the first water change and added it and another head simmered with more pepper for the second water change

Scottborasjr

Did the complete cook on the egg or did you finish in a different manner? Yours looks fantastic where the one I did last week looked like a regular brisket. I finished it after a over night rest in the fridge and then steamed it back up to temp.

fishlessman

Scottborasjr said:

Did the complete cook on the egg or did you finish in a different manner? Yours looks fantastic where the one I did last week looked like a regular brisket. I finished it after a over night rest in the fridge and then steamed it back up to temp.

normally i would cool it down after smoking, then steam and slice for pastrami ruebens. this one was smoked to 180, then chilled and sliced thin, might reheat in broth tonight and make a pastrami au jus sandwich. very happy with the overall flavor, slightly garlicky, not too salty, really nice fat marbling in this piece, will have to remember the freirich label, not that hideous red some corned beef has

Zmokin

fishlessman said:

Legume said:

That looks really good - tell me how you prepared the garlic and pepper before adding to the water?

i just simmered a peeled/smashed,/coarse cut whole head and 1/4 cup pepper til it softened and you could start to smell it, then added to the cold water. strained it out during the first water change and added it and another head simmered with more pepper for the second water change

Interesting, I might try that next time.  I've always just used plain water to bring out the salt, and then used a pepper, coriander, juniper berry rub.

Using the water as a marinade while reducing salt content sounds like a good idea. 

pescadorzih

Thanks for the post. I'll have to add some garlic to my water also this week when I soak mine.

Legume

Last one I did I smoked to 180 IT and then put in fridge.  The next day I put in a pressure cooker for an hour - about 15-20 min longer than I usually do when I don't fridge it first.  After an hour, I opened it up and tested with a bamboo skewer and it just wasn't jiggly enough, so cranked it up for another 15 min in the pressure cooker, so that's ~ 75 min under pressure and it was good after that.  Color and taste was same as always, no washout of the red stuff at all.  I usually soak 18-24 hours changing the water once or twice.

Doc_Eggerton

I've been thinking about doing some myself.  Nice looking cook.

Zmokin

Legume said:

Last one I did I smoked to 180 IT and then put in fridge.  The next day I put in a pressure cooker for an hour - about 15-20 min longer than I usually do when I don't fridge it first.  After an hour, I opened it up and tested with a bamboo skewer and it just wasn't jiggly enough, so cranked it up for another 15 min in the pressure cooker, so that's ~ 75 min under pressure and it was good after that.  Color and taste was same as always, no washout of the red stuff at all.  I usually soak 18-24 hours changing the water once or twice.

I usually smoke mine to about 160 internal (before the stall), and then go straight to the pressure cooker for the finish.  After the pressure cooker, cut off a hunk to snack on right away, and refrigerate the rest for slicing thin the next day.