Beyond the Boil: Smoking Store-Bought Corned Beef into Deli Style Pastrami

St. Patrick’s Day often leaves us with a surplus of corned beef briskets in the freezer. While most people associate these cured cuts with a traditional boil, the backyard pitmaster knows that a corned beef is actually a world-class pastrami just waiting for the smoke.

At American Barbecue Systems, we believe in maximizing every cut of meat. If you’ve secured a few extra briskets, your ABS smoker is the tool that transforms a grocery store find into a deli-quality masterpiece.

The Science: Why Smoke a Cured Brisket?

Corned beef and pastrami are essentially the same cut—the brisket—but they are handled differently.

• Corned Beef is salt-cured in a brine with pickling spices and usually simmered.
• Pastrami takes that same cured base and adds a heavy, aromatic rub and low-and-slow wood smoke. The dense, 1/4″ American steel of an ABS unit provides the thermal mass needed to render the fat in these cured briskets without drying out the meat, giving you that signature “melt-in-your-mouth” texture.

The ABS 4-Step Pastrami Method

1. The Salt-Out Soak

Store-bought corned beef is heavily brined for boiling. To avoid an “over-salted” final product on the smoker, you need to balance the salt levels first.

• The Method: Submerge the brisket in a pot of cold water for 8 to 12 hours before your cook.

Changing the water once during this process ensures the meat is perfectly seasoned for the smoker.

2. The Deli-Style Rub

Once soaked, pat the meat dry. To achieve that iconic dark pastrami bark, apply a heavy coat of a 2-to-1 mixture of Coarse Black Pepper and Crushed Coriander Seeds.

• Pro Tip: Avoid adding any extra salt to your rub; the curing process has already provided all the seasoning the meat needs.

3. The Steady Smoke

Set your ABS smoker to 250°F. We recommend using oak or fruitwood to complement the spices in the cure. The heavy-duty construction of our units ensures that once you hit your temperature, it stays there, providing the consistent environment required for a long brisket cook.

4. The Finish & The “Texas Crutch”

Smoke until the internal temperature reaches 160°F–165°F. At this point, the meat often hits “The Stall,” where evaporation slows the cooking process. To power through and keep the meat juicy, we recommend the “Texas Crutch”:

• Wrap the brisket tightly in pink butcher paper (for a better bark) or heavy-duty foil (for maximum tenderness).

Return it to the smoker until it hits 200°F and is “probe-tender,” meaning a thermometer slides in like it’s hitting room-temperature butter.

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Expanding the Menu: Global Brisket Flavors

The versatility of an ABS smoker allows you to experiment far beyond the traditional deli counter. If you have extra fresh brisket on hand, consider these variations:

• Smoked Pho Brisket: Rub the meat with star anise, cinnamon, and ginger. Thinly sliced into a hot bowl of Vietnamese Pho, the smoke adds a depth of flavor that a standard boil cannot match.
  
• Mexican-Style Barbacoa: Rub the brisket with dried guajillo chiles and cumin. Smoke it until the bark is set, then finish it in a braising liquid for pull-apart street tacos.

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Built for the Long Cook

A brisket cook is a marathon, not a sprint. ABS smokers are engineered in Olathe, Kansas, to offer the temperature stability and airflow control that professional cooks demand. When you’re investing 10+ hours into a piece of meat, you need equipment you can trust.

Ready to See the Difference?

Whether you’re cooking for a competition trophy or the perfect family sandwich, the right rig makes all the difference.

Visit our Olathe facility or Find an Authorized ABS Dealer near you to see our full lineup of handcrafted smokers and grills.