Homemade Pastrami

Step 1

Fill a large stock pot with 3 quarts (12 cups) cold water. Add the kosher and pink curing salts (it’s essential to weigh the kosher salt for accuracy rather than go by a volume measure, trust us), granulated and brown sugars, honey, pickling spice, coriander and mustard seeds, and garlic. Bring to a boil over high heat, stirring often to fully dissolve the salt and sugar in the water. Immediately remove the pot from the heat once the brine boils.

Step 2

Add the 3 quarts ice-cold water to a 2-gallon (or larger) food-safe container that will fit in your refrigerator. Pour the brine into the container and place the container, uncovered, in the refrigerator until completely cool.

Step 3

Trim the excess fat from the brisket until the fat layer remaining on the brisket is about 1/4 inch thick. Submerge the brisket in the cooled brine. (It may be necessary to cut the brisket into 2 pieces to submerge it.) Refrigerate the brisket for 5 days, stirring the brine and flipping the brisket once a day. Make sure that if any of the brisket sides are touching one another that you regularly turn them away from each other to expose all the brisket to the brine.

Step 4

Mix together the coriander, pepper, and paprika in a small bowl.

Step 5

Remove the brisket from the brine and pat it dry. Rub 1/4 cup spice rub evenly on the nonfatty side of the brisket, then flip the brisket and rub the remaining spice mixture onto the fatty side. Let the brisket come to room temperature, about 2 hours.

Step 6

Preheat the oven to 300°F (149°C). Pour 4 cups cold water into the bottom of a 12-by-15-inch roasting pan. Set a wire rack inside the pan.

Step 7

Place the brisket on the wire rack, fatty side up. Tightly cover the brisket and roasting pan with a double layer aluminum foil. Bake until the brisket reaches an internal temperature of 200°F (93°C). This should take about 1 hour per pound or 3 to 4 hours total. Let the meat rest for at least 30 minutes before slicing.

Step 8

Without trimming the fat, carve the pastrami against the grain into 1/4-inch-thick slices—or, to be less exact, into slices as thin as possible without the meat falling apart. Keep the meat tightly wrapped in aluminum foil or plastic wrap in the fridge for up to 1 week or frozen for up to 6 months.