Black Pastrami Weekend
I love pastrami and another factor for me in buying The Big Steel Keg was the ability to do low smoking for just this item. Here is the process.
Some people can brine their own brisket meat into corned beef but I am lazy so I just bought a pre-made one:
The meat is very salty after the corning process so you need to remove a bit of the salt by soaking in water:
I did a 6 hour soak and changed the water 4 times. I will come back to this part.
Next up is the application of a pastrami rub:
I did all this on Saturday and left the brisket in the fridge for overnight with the rub on.
Today I set up the Keg with lump charcoal and some apple wood for smoke. The Keg was solid at 250 degrees for the 4 hours of the cook. Here is the pastrami before I took it off the grill:
I let the pastrami rest for 30 minutes and then sliced it up as thin as I could:
I need better knives, mine are pretty dull and it was hard to cut the pastrami in thin slices.
The pastrami tasted very good and the smoke really adds an extra touch that supermarket pastrami does not have. I had a nice sub roll with lettuce and mustard with 4 slices of pastrami.
I think a longer water soak would have been better; there was still quite a bit of salt in the meat. Maybe 8 hours or more next time. You learn by doing, right?
Back to work tomorrow, is it really Monday already?
Added:
You know me, I just cannot help it!:
Ratt, "Round and Round" is so very good.
Added also:
Man I just can't stop! Maybe I should quit economics and just do music:
Scorpions and Animal Magnetism.
Added again:
On a really down note, Ronnie James Dio has passed away. EconomicDisconnect is really hurt by this. They say "As time goes by all your heroes will fall". It's true. A pioneer and metal god, may I offer:
"Rainbow in the Dark".
Really not happy right now.
Have a good night.
16 comments:
Well, I'm back from Austin. Nice little escape. Met up with my partner in crime, The Emperor. Got some work done on our blog and made plans for how we're going to attack the upcoming season. It was fun.
We stayed at the Driskill Hotel. www.driskillhotel.com Check it out, downtown on 6th Street. Last night we ate at the five diamond Driskill Grill, where the executive chef is a gold medalist in culinary arts. I had the filet mignon. Oh, man, it was butter soft. The only steak I've ever had that was better was a Clint Eastwood's restaurant, The Hog's Breath Inn, Carmel, Califonia. But this one was a very close second.
Anyway, I didn't know that pastrami was made out of brisket. Looks pretty damn good though. I'm glad you're really getting into grilling, GYC. I told you last year, nothing beats charcoal grilling. Pretty soon, you'll be able to give me a run for my money.
However, if you want to try a brisket, the best in the world comes from the New Braunfels Smokehouse. www.nbsmokehouse.com But I doubt you could make pastrami out of it, because it comes already seasoned and smoked. This is barbeque brisket. Do yourself a favor and order on. Be sure to also get a jar of Texas Barbeque Sauce. You make an aluminum boat, put the brisket in it, pour the whole jar of sauce on it, wrap it up, and bake it at 200 degrees for four hours. We call that "venom" in Texas.
Wow, I did not know Mr. Eastwood had a restaurant! Cool info.
Do you do anything for your site in the off season? You should list the site again or email it to me so I can check it out. I guess Welker's knee had only one ligament that needed repair so that is good Pats news.
Pastrami can be brisket or top round. It is all prepared the same way. You were 100% right about charcoal grilling; I will never have naother gas grill. Thanks for the BBQ meat site, I may make a purchase.
Your request for Nugent's "Stranglehold" was a huge winner Friday night, what a great song that I had never heard!
Well, I haven't done any work on my blog this off-season. It's been real quiet in Dallas. The Cowboys released two aging veterans, had a decent draft and made one trade. But other than that, they're going with pretty much the same players and same schemes as last year. Ranked 2nd in offensive production, 14th in scoring, so I'm not expecting much improvement.
I suspect they'll make the playoffs, but I'm not convinced they'll advance to the conference championship, much less the Super Bowl.
The Soothsayer and The Emperor will return to the web soon over at www.realityfootballblog.com. We're going hard and heavy this season. But I'm not sure you'd like it much, GYC. I write a lot of parodies of . . . The Band That Shall Remain Unnamed, making fun of Jerry Jones.
Anyway, yeah, let me tell you about the New Braunfels Smokehouse. That is the best smoked meats available. Seriously. The brisket is out of this world, but they also have all kinds of meat. The little smoked chickens are delicious. And the Comal County bacon, especially the peppered, man, you'll never go back. The pecan pie is decadant, but the divinity, lord above, the divinity will send your wife to heaven.
Glad you liked Stranglehold. Check out this live version.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yQyDMLVSIWs
Ted Nugent, Double Live Gonzo, really is one of the best live albums. Recorded in . . . San Antonio, of course. If you want to hear some serious no holds barred guitar and take no prisoners rock and roll, that is one must have CD.
Thanks for the video, that was really great!
I just read that Ronnie James Dio has passed. He will be missed.
I only got to see him perform live once, on the Heaven and Hell Tour with Black Sabbath. That was one hell of a concert.
In honor of his passing, I'm putting in my recommendation for Friday Night Videos early. Rainbow, "The Man on the Silver Mountain."
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=p9nfVrusSMg&feature=related
Jeezus christ gyc, I pulled up your note just as I got back from Whole Foods with a seriously empty stomach.
What type of ingredients go into the pastrami rub? I would probably not de-salt the pastrami.
How does the keg grill compare to the green egg grill, any idea?
WTF!!!! Ronnie James Dio has died? Looked it up, what fiing downer. Damn. All the heroes slowly fall or so they say. Sorry but now I am really pissed.
Dave,
trust me you gotta desalt the corned beef before the rub goes on. I have to find my sheet on what I used and will post it. Main thing for pastrami is corriander, seeds and ground. A little brown sugar always helps.
Love it, I am so mad I cannot sleep butm I have to head to bed. Anyone else have this issue??
Pastrami looks great! I'm so jealous that it's so much warmer out there, we're still waiting for spring to decide to stay for more than three days at a stretch.
I only have trouble sleeping when I'm on the 'roids. 50 mg of benadryl usually does the trick.
Checked out that RATT video which I havent seen in probably 20 years, and holy crap!!! Did anyone else notice that was Milton Berle in the first part of the video???
That definitely went right over my head as a kid.
@GYSC
Do your demons
Do they ever let you go?
When you've tried do they hide deep inside
Is it someone that you know?
I have a younger brother born in 83 who knows who Dio is. So sick. Song gives me the chills to this day.
He was born in New Hampshire? funnny..
Seriously, that tweaky guitar riff from "rainbow in the dark" just so evil and taunting..... ahhhhhhhhh
Little known fact regarding the RATT video. Warren Demartini has a brother who is currently a options broker at the CME. goes by DMAR. oh the stories..!
When I see lightning
You know it always brings me down!!!
Cause it's free and I see that it's me
Who's lost and never found.....
I am a pastrami addict - then again, once you've been to Katz's deli, any sane person would be...
can't you start with your own plain brisket and season it how you like, to avoid the vacu-sealed over salted commercial brand?
i'm pretty jealous. i'm working on the lawn and garden, but i'd rather have smoked meats...
Soleil,
yeah benadryl will work but that stuff does not mix well with beer!
James,
yes it was Milton Berle, nice catch.
Scharfy,
Dio was a real metal god. That's pretty wild about the RATT connection.
Short post up in a minute I am way out of time tonight.
Kid,
A great friend of mine used to live and work in NY and he said the same thing about Katz's. I doubt my creation is anywhere near that good, but I sent about half of what I made out to him today via his wife who works at my company.
Yes, I could have brined the brisket myself or dry cured it, but that takes about 2-3 weeks and I figured first shot I would just use the premade one. Maybe next time.
if you have never been to Katz's, make yourself a pilgrimage there ASAP. the best sandwich on the planet - with atmosphere to boot. It's the single thing i miss most about NYC.
The pastrami tasted very good and the smoke really adds an extra touch that supermarket pastrami does not have. I had a nice sub roll with lettuce and mustard with 4 slices of pastrami. salwar catalogue , pakistani suits at wholesale price ,
Post a Comment