# First curing brisket for pastrami with Pop's Brine



## worktogthr (Jan 8, 2015)

Well, thanks to the advice and wisdom of many on this forum, I am finally  going to do something with the 5.5 lb brisket flat I had in the freezer.  Thawed this thing out.  












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Has a good fat cap on it so it will be perfect for pastrami!  Measured it all around to make sure it didn't exceed 2 inches in thickness. Mixed up a gallon of Pop's Brine as writte  and added a couple of tablespoons of pickling spices.













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Let the brisket take a swim...












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Weighed it down with a couplemof small plates...













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Now the waiting game.  
Couple of questions since this is my first time.

Pops recommends 10-20 days for corned beef.  At this weight (5.5) pounds what do you all recommend?

Also, when using pops brine to make corned beef, do I soak it to desalinate before I rub and smoke it for pastrami?  I've aways done that with store bought corned beef.

Thanks for looking and as always thanks for all your help!


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## themule69 (Jan 8, 2015)

It should be good. As for you question 
	

	
	
		
		



		
			






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Happy smoken.

David


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## dirtsailor2003 (Jan 8, 2015)

With his type of cure the weight doesn't matter go by the times Pop's has listed. 

After the cure is done rinse the meat. Slice off a piece and fry it up and taste it to see if it's too salty. Honestly I've never had a batch of Pop's be overly salty that I needed to soak the meat. Keep in mind that with his recipe you can reduce the salt. We have found for bacon that a 1/3 cup of salt is perfect for our tastes. For pastrami though I've always used the full amount of salt in the recipe.


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## worktogthr (Jan 8, 2015)

dirtsailor2003 said:


> With his type of cure the weight doesn't matter go by the times Pop's has listed.
> 
> After the cure is done rinse the meat. Slice off a piece and fry it up and taste it to see if it's too salty. Honestly I've never had a batch of Pop's be overly salty that I needed to soak the meat. Keep in mind that with his recipe you can reduce the salt. We have found for bacon that a 1/3 cup of salt is perfect for our tastes. For pastrami though I've always used the full amount of salt in the recipe.



Thanks! I'll definitely taste a piece and decide based on that.  So does it really matter if I choose 10 days, 20 days, or somewhere in between.  Honestly I am thinking I would like to go 12-13 days just so I can rinse it, dry it, rub it and let it sit  at least overnight in the fridge.  To get that all accomplished and be able to smoke it on a weekend is ideal.


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## dirtsailor2003 (Jan 8, 2015)

worktogthr said:


> Thanks! I'll definitely taste a piece and decide based on that. So does it really matter if I choose 10 days, 20 days, or somewhere in between. Honestly I am thinking I would like to go 12-13 days just so I can rinse it, dry it, rub it and let it sit at least overnight in the fridge. To get that all accomplished and be able to smoke it on a weekend is ideal.


That is correct. You can even go longer than the 20 days if for some reason your schedule doesn't work out. I've had both pork and beef sit in Pop's brine for up to 30 days before.


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## worktogthr (Jan 8, 2015)

dirtsailor2003 said:


> That is correct. You can even go longer than the 20 days if for some reason your schedule doesn't work out. I've had both pork and beef sit in Pop's brine for up to 30 days before.


Thanks so much!  It's going to be hard to wait that long haha


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## worktogthr (Jan 22, 2015)

Well she is out of the brine after 19 days...













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Has a nice fat cap which will be great for pastrami.

Rinsed, dried, coated with a little olive oil and a healthy helping of the pastrami rub I use. 












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Wrapped up and into the fridge until Saturday or Sunday depending on weather and when I get a chance to smoke it.  Can't wait!













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## pc farmer (Jan 22, 2015)

No this is something I NEED to try.

Looking forward to the cook.


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## worktogthr (Jan 25, 2015)

Got it in the smoker around 8:30 this morning.  Using the MES because the wife won't want me fooling around with wood chunks all day.  Of course the AMNPS is choosing not to behave today! So I have had to relight a few times but I think it's going well now.  Throwing some eye round for sandwiches and baby backs for dinner tonight!  Pictures to follow...


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## bama bbq (Jan 25, 2015)

Looks good so far.  Hope the see the results soon.


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## worktogthr (Jan 25, 2015)

Here it is out of the smoker.  225 with a pellet blend for about 11 hours until it reached an IT of 203.












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Had to sample even though I am steaming it in a couple of days...












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Wow... The sample was great.  Pop's brine comes through for the second day in a row for me haha (turkey for dinner last night).  Something I noticed between this and the store bought... This one seems totally tender and juicy right after the smoke, where as the store bought seems to require the steaming for maximum tenderness.  Anyone else notice this?

Also smoked an eye round for sandwiches which I forgot to take pics of (I'll post those when I slice it in the next couple of days)

Here were the baby backs that were also in the smoker (should have taken the full smoker picture).












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A wee little bit of Bourbon in the background... It's a school night after all. Plenty of good food in the fridge now for the 2 feet of snow Long Island is expecting. I will be back in a couple of days when I steam and eat the pastrami...


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## pc farmer (Jan 25, 2015)

Hey, atleast if you get snowed in you will have lots of good food to eat.

Callin for 4-8 here.


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## gary s (Jan 25, 2015)

Man that looks great, well worth the wait I'll bet

Gary


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## worktogthr (Jan 28, 2015)

Ok, here she goes!  The steam back up to temperature.  Made a makeshift steamer out of a pan, a rack and some tinfoil:













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Be back with sliced and sandwiched pics!  It's been a long journey and I can't wait eat it!


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## gary s (Jan 28, 2015)

Be waiting waiting !!!

Gary


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## worktogthr (Jan 28, 2015)

Oh man!  Pop's brine is the best thing that ever happened to sliced meat haha.  Came out great!  Steamed it back up to 203 IT.  













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While I was waiting some shoveling had to be done












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Getting the sandwich fixins ready (had to improvise with 2 feet of snow yesterday didn't have the chance to get rye bread and Swiss cheese.












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Slicing time!!!












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And now my dinner 3 weeks in the making;












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Better than I can imagine and much more tender than the pastramis I have made from store bought corned beef.  Really a fun process and once I find an affordable brisket source, I will be making these regularly.  Thanks for watching eveyone and as always thanks for all the help and advice along the way.  

-Chris


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## gary s (Jan 28, 2015)

Nice !!!   Beautiful Color     Great Job

Gary


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## pc farmer (Jan 28, 2015)

Yes sir.  Looks great.

I need to do one myself.


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## worktogthr (Jan 29, 2015)

gary s said:


> Nice !!!   Beautiful Color     Great Job
> 
> Gary






c farmer said:


> Yes sir.  Looks great.
> 
> I need to do one myself.



Thank you much! Definitely a fun and delicious project!   Just finagled a restaurant depot card so I will definitely be picking up some packers to make more.  Cheapest brisket prices I've seen around here.


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## bhelton (Feb 19, 2015)

Is that a brisket flat or point?


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## tigerregis (Feb 19, 2015)

See post #1.


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