Sous Vide and Smoked East Coast Pastrami

This sous vide pastrami is prepared with a combination of different cooking techniques such as brining, sous vide, and smoking. It's a crowd pleaser!

• Preparation Time: 30 mins
• Cooking Time: 23 hr 10 mins
• Total Time: 23 hr 40 mins
• Calories: 204 Calories

Ingredients

• 2 cups white sugar
• 1 teaspoon ground ginger
• 2 bay leaves
• 10 cloves garlic, crushed
• 1 tablespoon whole black peppercorns
• 1 gallon water
• 1 tablespoon whole cloves
• 1 tablespoon red pepper flakes
• 1 tablespoon coriander seeds
• 1 tablespoon mustard seeds
• 1 gallon ice cubes
• 12 pounds beef brisket
• 4 teaspoons pink curing salt
• 1.5 cups kosher salt

Recipe Instructions

Step 1

Bring water to a boil in a large pot on the stovetop. Remove from heat; as it starts to cool down, add white sugar, kosher salt, garlic, and pink curing salt.

Step 2

Heat a pan over low heat. Toast coriander seeds, peppercorns, and mustard seeds in the hot pan, about 2 minutes. Remove and transfer to a food processor; add red pepper flakes, cloves, ginger, and bay leaves. Grind well.

Step 3

Smoke brisket until browned, tender, and no longer pink in the center, about 5 hours. Pull brisket from the smoker and let rest for 15 minutes before slicing.

Step 4

Trim off fat cap of brisket; poke some holes in meat with a paring knife.

Step 5

Find a food-grade, nonreactive container with a lid; pour in brine and ice, then add brisket. Keep brisket in brine for 5 to 7 days in the refrigerator. Flip brisket every 24 hours.

Step 6

After brining, pull brisket out of the container and rinse under cold water.

Step 7

Use 1/2 of the spice mixture to coat brisket; seal in a food saver bag. Reserve remaining spice mixture. Place brisket in a sous vide at 137 degrees F (58 degrees C) for 18 hours.

Step 8

Remove from sous vide, cut open the bag, and brisket set out to dry and rest on a wire rack from a smoker for 30 minutes. Use remaining pickling spices to re-coat brisket.

Step 9

Place a wire rack in the smoker. Add wood chips according to manufacturer's directions and heat to 225 degrees F (107 degrees C).