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Original video by @BrianLagerstrom — all credit to the creator.

Brian Lagerstrom

Pastrami on Rye (No Smoker Required)

New York deli-style pastrami built from corned beef brisket, crusted in a toasted pepper-coriander rub, kissed with hickory smoke on a grill, then foil-roasted until fork-tender. Piled high on caraway rye with spicy brown mustard at a serious four-to-one meat-to-bread ratio.

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Ingredients

For the Pastrami

  • 5 lbcorned beef brisket flat · Brian used 2 pieces in the video, but 1 large piece works as well
  • 30 gwhole black peppercorns · 1/4 cup
  • 30 gwhole coriander seeds · 1/4 cup + 2 tsp
  • 30 ggranulated sugar · 2 tbsp + 1 tsp
  • 5 ggarlic powder · 1.5 tsp
  • 2 gchili flake · 1 tsp

To Assemble the Sandwich

  • —Jewish caraway rye bread · store-bought or homemade
  • —spicy brown mustard

Steps

  1. 1

    Rinse the corned beef thoroughly and dry it off completely.

  2. 2

    Toast the whole coriander and peppercorns until they just start to smoke, then coarsely grind them in a blender or spice grinder. Combine the ground spices with the sugar, garlic powder, and chili flakes.

  3. 3

    Heavily encrust the entire brisket on all sides with the rub.

  4. 4

    Place the meat on a wire rack and refrigerate uncovered for 8-12 hours, or overnight.

  5. 5

    Set up a grill as a smoker: place a smoker box with dry wood chips over medium-high heat and put the meat on the opposite side with no heat under it. Smoke for 90 minutes, changing out the chips 2-3 times, until a reddish-brown bark forms.

  6. 6

    Wrap the pastrami tightly in a double layer of foil and roast in a 300°F/150°C oven until it reaches 200°F/95°C internally, then continue cooking another 1.5 to 2 hours to melt the collagen and make it tender.

  7. 7

    Check tenderness with a fork—it should yield to the fork and could shred if you wanted, but still be cohesive and not totally falling apart. Rest for at least 45 minutes before slicing against the grain.

  8. 8

    Spread plenty of spicy brown mustard on both slices of lean Jewish rye, then shingle on the pastrami at a 4-to-1 meat-to-bread ratio.

Creator's notes

Requires an overnight uncured rest (8-12 hours) after rubbing, so plan a day ahead. No dedicated smoker needed—a smoker box with hickory chips on a grill does the job. Slice against the grain after a 45-minute minimum rest.

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