Pastrami

After smoking, it can be slowly roasted in a low oven to make it very soft, falling apart. It has an intense flavor and aroma due to the use of spices and the smoke can be more intense or less intense, depending on the wood and smoking process. It's great on sandwiches or as a main dish with vegetables, potatoes or our traditional rice and beans.

O pastrami It became popular in the United States, consumed in sandwiches and was introduced to that country by Greek immigrants in the early 1960s. But, as it turns out, it was not the Greeks who created the pastrami, but rather the Turks, originally called Pastırma.

Most recipes include curing salt (sodium nitrite), which reacts with the myoglobin in the meat and sets the pink color. Is it possible to do without curing salt? Yes, it just won't stay the same color and the specific flavor of the cure won't exist either, but it's not a big problem as this recipe is well seasoned. I particularly prefer to use it because it is a highly recommended preservative in products that undergo smoking.

Want to know more about sodium nitrite, read curing salt what it is and how much to use

The recipe has a lot of ingredients, especially condiments, but it is very easy to make.

Ingredients

Pickling spice mix

• 2 pieces of cinnamon stick;
• 14 grams of allspice;
• 20 grams of ground black pepper;
• 12 grams of dry pepperoni;
• 24 bay leaves;
• 20 grams of mustard seed;
• 20 grams of coriander seed;
• 6 grams of ground nutmeg;
• 6 grams of whole cloves;
• 8 grams of powdered ginger.

Mix preparation: mix all the ingredients and quickly pound in a mortar or pulse a few times in the grain grinder/blender/processor. Beforehand, toast the seeds if you want to extract even more flavor.

Brine

• 2 liters of water;
• 100 grams of salt;
• 50 grams of sugar;
• 8 grams of curing salt 1 (6.25% of nitrite and 93.75% of salt);
• 2 crushed garlic cloves;
• 10 grams of pickling spice mix.

Meat

• 1 kg of a beef cut of your choice, we use beef brisket, but it can be skirt steak, flank steak or beef brisket.

Preparation

1) Bring the water with 10 grams of the spice mix, salt, sugar, curing salt and garlic to a boil for 2 minutes, turn off the heat and wait for it to cool. Soak meat and refrigerate for 3 to 5 days;

2) Remove from the refrigerator and wash the meat under running water;

3) Apply a layer of crushed grain mustard (processor, blender or pestle) around the piece, mixing evenly;

Smoking

I applied a very simple smoke method that was easy to do at home, but with very rudimentary temperature control. I left a skewer-type thermometer inserted and controlled the temperature by opening or closing the air inlet. It's a rustic but functional method. The more air that flows, the more heat will be generated.

4) Light a barbecue and let the charcoal burn hot, deposit all the burning coal on one side of the barbecue, on the other side place a container with water;
5) Place the meat on a grill over the container with water;

6) Leave a thermometer close to the meat and cover the grill;
7) Check the temperature, wood and coal from time to time, add if missing and open or close the smoke vents to increase or decrease the burning/temperature;
8) Smoke for 3 to 5 hours at approximately 80ºC. The time may vary depending on the thickness of the meat, ideally it is determined by the internal temperature of the meat;
9) If you wish, you can measure the internal temperature of the meat and end the process when it exceeds 65ºC;
10) Refrigerate, it will last for at least two weeks in the refrigerator.

How to serve pastrami?

There are several options, the most common are:

• Slice thinly and use as a filling for sandwiches;
• It is also very good sliced thinly and fried with onion in a frying pan, this way it can be served with rice, beans, pasta or as a filling for sandwiches;
• Another good option as a main dish is to slowly roast it covered with aluminum foil in the oven at 90ºC until it is very soft.

Sources: wikipedia, Charcuterie – The Craft of Salting, Smoking and Curing