Reuben Pastrami Navel Pastrami Food

PASTRAMI RUEBEN AKA "THE RACHEL"

Steps:

• For the dressing: Combine the mayonnaise, chili sauce, sour cream, horseradish, lemon juice, sugar, Worcestershire sauce, hot sauce, smoked paprika, dill pickles and shallots in a food processor until thoroughly mixed. Do not over blend, you still want to see some texture. Season with salt and pepper. Set aside or refrigerate in a covered jar until serving time.
• For the sandwich build: Combine half of the dressing with the sauerkraut and toss. Place 1 slice of cheese on a piece of bread. Pile the meat high on the cheese, top with an additional slice of cheese, some of the sauerkraut mixture and the second piece of bread. Butter the outsides of the sandwich. Heat a heavy-bottomed nonstick skillet or griddle pan over medium-low heat. Add the sandwiches, cover with a heatproof bowl and griddle until golden and gooey in the middle, 3 to 4 minutes. Flip, cover and let cook until golden all around, another 3 minutes. Serve the extra dressing on the side.
• Cook's Note: I love getting a whole piece of pastrami, uncut, from Fumare's in Chicago. If you have a favorite deli, try getting a whole piece and cutting it yourself; the meat will stay nice and tender and you can mix the bark from the end cut with the meatier middle. You'll fall in love with pastrami all over again.

REUBEN SANDWICH

Steps:

• Spread each slice of bread with thousand island dressing. Top 4 of the bread slices with sauerkraut, cheese and pastrami. Place remaining bread slices on sandwich. Spread margarine on the outsides of each sandwich.
• Heat a large skillet over medium high heat. Grill until browned, then turn and grill until heated through, and cheese is melted.

PASTRAMI SANDWICHES WITH ONION RINGS AND QUICK PICKLES

Steps:

• Combine the salt, granulated sugar, brown sugar, pickling spice, mustard seeds, pink curing salt, garlic and 1 tablespoon coriander in a large pot. Add 3 quarts water. Bring to a simmer and cook to dissolve the sugar and salt. Add 3 quarts cold water. Let cool to room temperature. Add the brisket, then weigh down with a plate and cover the pot. Refrigerate for 3 days. (If your refrigerator is too small to hold the pot, you can cut the brisket in half and refrigerate in 2 smaller containers as well.)
• When you are ready to cook the brisket, preheat the oven to 300 degrees F.
• Arrange a rack in a roasting pan. Bring a kettle of water to a boil. Coarsely crush the peppercorns and the remaining 1/4 cup coriander seeds in a spice grinder. Pour into a small bowl and stir in the smoked paprika. Remove the meat from the brine and rinse briefly. Pat dry. Pat the spice mixture all over and set the meat in the roasting pan, fat side up. Pour the boiling water in the bottom of the pan (don't let it touch the meat). Cover the roasting pan tightly with foil. Roast until the meat is very tender, about 3 hours. Carefully remove the foil and roast 10 more minutes to dry out the crust slightly.
• Slice the warm pastrami. Serve on rye bread with deli mustard and Onion Rings and Pickles on the side. (This pastrami can also be made ahead. To reheat, thinly slice and set over a steamer, or microwave covered with a damp paper towel.)
• Heat 1 inch oil in a pan to 350 degrees F.
• Set the flour in a bowl, eggs in a second bowl, and combine the panko and regular breadcrumbs in a third. Dredge the onions in the flour first, followed by the eggs and finally the breadcrumbs, then pan-fry until golden brown, a few minutes on each side. Remove to a rack to drain and stay crispy and season with salt.
• Combine the vinegar, salt, mustard seeds, granulated sugar, peppercorns, garlic and 1/2 cup water in a small saucepan. Layer the cucumbers, chiles and dill sprigs in a jar or other lidded container. Bring the vinegar mixture to a simmer and stir to dissolve the salt and sugar. Pour over the cucumbers. Let cool to room temperature. Refrigerate until chilled, at least 2 hours. (The pickles will keep a week or more in the refrigerator.)

PASTRAMI BURGER

Steps:

• Form the beef into four 4-inch-wide patties (1/2 to 3/4 inch thick); season with salt and pepper.
• Heat the vegetable oil in a large skillet over medium-high heat. Add the burgers and cook until browned, 2 to 3 minutes. Flip and cook 1 minute, then top each burger with a slice of cheese and one-quarter of the pastrami. Cover and cook until the cheese melts and the pastrami is hot, about 2 more minutes for medium.
• Serve the burgers on the buns with lettuce, onions, tomatoes and Thousand Island dressing.

PRIMETIME PASTRAMI

Steps:

• For the brine: In a large stockpot, add half of the water, the brown sugar, kosher salt, curing salt, coriander seeds, mustard seeds, fennel seeds, juniper berries, chile flakes, bay leaves, cloves, cinnamon and star anise and bring to a boil. Then simmer for 30 minutes. Add the remaining water with some ice to chill the brine.
• For the rub: Grind the peppercorns, coriander and juniper until crushed but still a little chunky. Add to a mixing bowl. Add the salt, brown sugar, chile flakes and granulated garlic and stir to combine.
• For the pastrami: First, clean all the fat off the brisket including the "V" between the two muscles, then follow the fat between the two muscles and separate them making a flat and a cap.
• Transfer the brine to a large hotel pan or roasting pan. Add the brisket and refrigerate at least 5 days and no more than 10 days. Make sure the brisket is stirred once a day to get an evenly brined brisket.
• After a minimum of 5 days, prepare a smoker for 225 degrees F.
• Remove the pastrami, rinse it and blot dry with paper towels. Thoroughly rub the brined brisket with the pastrami rub. Place in smoker and cook for 8 hours until the internal temperature reaches 210 degrees F on an instant-read thermometer.

PASTRAMI REUBEN SANDWICH

Steps:

• Heat oil in a skillet.
• Add in onion; saute over medium heat until tender (about 7-8 minutes).
• Add in sauerkraut and caraway seeds; cover and cook over medium heat (stirring occasionally until sauerkraut is tender and lightly browned, about 20 minutes).
• Meanwhile in a bowl combine ketchup, mayo and relish (start with 2 tablespoons relish and add in more until you achieve the flavor you like).
• Split the bread rolls (careful not to cut all the way through).
• Place pastrami down the center, dividing evenly between buns.
• Top with sauerkraut/onion mixture, then the sauce, then top with cheese.
• Wrap in foil (leave top open).
• broil about 8 inches from heat.
• Heat through and until cheese has melted (about 3 minutes).
• Serve.

HOT PASTRAMI SANDWICH

Steps:

• Heat a flattop grill or pan on medium heat. Butter one side of each slice of bread. Set the buttered side of bread on the flattop. Add provolone to one slice and Swiss to the other slice. Grill until bread is toasted and cheese has melted, approximately 5 minutes, then remove from the flattop. Meanwhile, place pastrami on the flattop in a pile and the sauerkraut on the flattop in a separate pile. Grill both until warm, 1 1/2 to 2 minutes, then flip and warm the other side. Add mayonnaise to both pieces of bread, then add mustard to one half. Place half the pastrami on one slice and the other half on the other slice. Add sauerkraut to one half and flip the other slice on top. Cut sandwich in half and enjoy!

PASTRAMI REUBEN MELT

Steps:

• Oil a grill or grill pan and preheat it to 400 degrees F.
• Steam pastrami and sauerkraut together in a double boiler. Place tortillas on hot grill and divide half of the Swiss on top of the tortillas. Cook until cheese is melted. Divide the pastrami and sauerkraut mixture evenly on top of the melted cheese. Squirt Russian dressing evenly over each tortilla. Divide the remaining Swiss among the tortillas. Fold tortillas in half and cook until cheese is melted. Transfer to a cutting board and cut into wedges. Serve immediately.
• Mix all ingredients together in a bowl. Cover and refrigerate until ready to serve. Transfer to a squirt bottle before using on tortillas.