This month’s Charcutepalooza challenge was to brine something…you know, like a chicken or a brisket, and completely transform that ordinary meat into something luscious and completely elevated outside itself. Sounds like a pretty tall order, doesn’t it??

I’d actually corned a beef brisket once before and while it was good, I knew it could’ve been better. For one thing, it was completely gray. It tasted fine, but the color wasn’t what you kind of expect from a corned beef, so I was hoping that part would be different. Since I knew my family would love this challenge, I went “whole hog” and got a 15 lb brisket and decided that a third of it would be pastrami.

Mmmm. Pastrami. The mere thought of it makes my mouth water in a way that corned beef can only dream. [Read more...]