What's smokin this weekend?

[Johnny]

Hey Guy's! Wondering whats smokin this weekend?? I've got that bacon going in first thing in the morning! Been a long 7 days waiting, said to my wife yesterday about how long this week felt to me when they normally fly by.. probably because I have been waiting on these pork bellys :)

[TedEbear]

No smokin' here, just working 12 hours each day. 

I would like to smoke a practice brisket for something coming up in mid April that I want to make a good impression on the guests.  Yours seemed to have turned out well recently and I might try that method.  Damn things are over $7/lb and I don't want to screw it up.

[Johnny]

Yes TedEbear, I was happy with the results other than being a tad salty but I know how to correct that for the next one. 12 hour shifts!! Wow, that makes for long days.. especially on weekends . 😐

[Edward176]

Not smoking anything this weekend, still too damn cold :(  I do however have a beef Brisket soaking in brine right now and was hoping, as well as praying, that the weather would clear up enough to smoke it. BUT the weather man says cold arctic air mass will be around till Monday/Tuesday before we get back to above freezing and plus temperatures :(. Now that being said I have a brined brisket with no home this weekend. I am planning on braising it in the oven and then FTC and slice it for Sunday dinner with the family. If someone has any other advise or suggestions please feel free to chime in. I am still drooling over the one Johnny made and posted pics of, now I have to duplicate it without smoking it. A minor miracle at best.   

Sorry to hear about your 12 hour shifts TedEbear, I too have nightmares about working 12+ hour shifts, at times 7-10 days in a row, NO FUN.

[Ka Honu]

Edward - I'd be glad to help but need you to clarify what you mean by "brining a brisket."
     - Flat, point, or packer?
     - Fresh or already corned?
     - What's in the brine?
     - How long are you bringing?
     - What do you want it to be when it's done (smoked brisket, corned beef, pastrami, etc.)?

[Edward176]

Thank You Ka Honu, I believe its a Point Beef Brisket (or atleast it looks like a typical Point). I purchased it fresh and am in the process of Brining it now in a Corned Beef Mixture I purchased from my butcher, same powder he uses to make his Corned Beef. The mixture is called CCW Corned Beef Super Unit Blend and it contains Salt, Sugar, Sodium Erythorbate, Sodium Nitrate, Spices and Garlic. The instructions say to use 150 grams per Liter of water and cure 7-10 days. I also added Cure #1 and injected +10% into the meat. Today is day 6 and I was planning on removing it and rinsing it off tomorrow, adding Coriander, Mustard Seed, Pepper and Garlic Rub and let it rest overnight in the fridge. Sunday I plan on cooking it in the oven. It'll end up being Winnipeg North End Beef Corned Pastrami. Whatever it looks like when I take it out of the oven is what I'll call it :)

[Habanero Smoker]

Edward;

Why did you add cure #1 when your cure mixture already had sodium nitrite, and it also has a cure accelerator (Sodium Erythorbate)?

[Edward176]

The Instructions were very explicit to add the cure, which is supplied in a separate package, to the brine ingredients. The cure is already included in the ingredients description, I didn't add additional cure. I see how this description can be confusing. Since the cure, being in a separate package was added, I included it in my description - so I didn't double up on cure. Thanks for pointing it out Hab, had me thinking there for a minute. 

[Ka Honu]

Habs - I guess they do things different in Canada (but it sounds kind of strange to me too).

Edward - We'll assume that in a day or two you'll have a corned beef point. Best advice I can give you on making it into pastrami is to read Meathead's article/recipe "Close to Katz's Pastrami" on amazingribs.com. If you have a sous vide circulator you can cook at 180^oF instead of steaming.

[Habanero Smoker]

Hi Edward

I now better understand. I thought you wanted to add more cure-like flavor and color to the corned beef, by using additional sodium nitrite. Though that could be done, I was a little concerned that the amount of the cure I thought was in the mix was unknown. If that was an unknown, then it would be difficult to determine how much more, if any additional sodium nitrite could be added.

Hi Ka Honu;

You could be right. :) Though I read sometime back that certain spices and other ingredients, while stored together in a dry state; can cause sodium nitrites to deteriorate over time. I've been trying to find a list of what those spices and ingredients are, but haven't found any additional information about it. So I'm now thinking this could be a reason for the separate packet.

[Johnny]

Habs - I guess they do things different in Canada (but it sounds kind of strange to me too).
Ka Honu of course we do things differently in Canada! We are a unique bunch of people!! Lol
Any pre made spice I purchased in the past ( even packages Ive purchased from the U.S ) the cure packet was in a seperate pouch.  Eg: jerky mixes etc..
My thinking is so that you end up with the correct amount of cure per lb of meat.. pre mixed spices settle over time and if not shaken and mixed properly everytime before use you might just poison yourself!
Just remember, 2 kinds of people in this world.. Newfoundlanders and those who wish they were ;)
Edward - We'll assume that in a day or two you'll have a corned beef point. Best advice I can give you on making it into pastrami is to read Meathead's article/recipe "Close to Katz's Pastrami" on amazingribs.com. If you have a sous vide circulator you can cook at 180^oF instead of steaming.

[Hamlet 77]

Sorry just finished my weekend smoke. Yesterday, had a day off, cold smoked a 2kg ham, hot smoked 2 kg of chicken breast and this morning just finished hit smoking two pheasant. Look at the forcast for tomorrow I won't be doing any more this weekend.

[Edward176]

My mistake Hab, I was speaking Canadian and forgot eh! Yeah, my friendly butcher uses this mixture and told me to follow the directions on the package. I understand that IF you choose to use a stronger, or weaker, mixture for your brine then you can do so safely to your taste as the cure is separate.  Gives you a safe margin to play with.
Thanks for everyone input :) 

[Edward176]

Well, I made my Corned Brisket yesterday in the oven (too cold and windy to smoke it) and it turned out fantastic. I followed the recipe on the brine package and added cure (since I originally planned to smoke it). Rinsed and soaked it for 8 hours the day before as was suggested and I'm glad I did, either wise it would have been too salty. Then overnight I rubbed it with crushed up coriander, pepper, mustard seed, garlic, onion and paprika, wrapped in plastic rap and rested overnight in the fridge. The following morning I placed in oven at 225'f and baked for 7 hours to IT of 160'F and FTC for 2 hours. Talk about tender and moist, leftovers are rapped and in the fridge and will be shaving it for Pastrami and sandwiches tomorrow. So thank you to everyone for their advise and suggestions.