Corned Duck/ Pastrami

Dave Sikorski

Well-known member
Works great with all duck and goose breasts and any cut of meat that is trimmed or pounded down to 1" thick or less.
Fatty beef works best for pastrami, but you'll be pleased with the results from a nice lean piece of venison or other 4 legged game creatures.


Enjoy.

-D



2 quarts water
1/2 cup canning and pickling salt
1/2 cup tenderizing salt( morton's tenderquick)
3 Tablespoons sugar
2 Tablespoons Pickling spice
2 bay leaves
8 whole peppercorns
1 or 2 cloves garlic minced.
place cleaned and trimmed meat in glass bowl or zip lock bags
in a glass or enamel saucepan ( metal can react funny to the salts, but I used metal anyway) bring ingredients to boil then remove from heat. Let cool.
Pour cooled bring over meat and cover container or zip the bags. Remove air if using bags. Refrigerate 4-5 days turning or mixing up meat/brine at least once per day.
Thick cuts of meat should be cut to no more than 1" thick, and possibly tenderized or pounded to allow the brine to get to the middle of the meat. With ducks I just left them whole . With deer I had some that was too thick and the center didn't get brined as much.
When done brining, remove from the brine and rinse in cold water. Soak in cold water for a hour, then change the water and do it again. When cooking it as corned meat, place in a pot with cold water, bring it to a boil, then do the same again. Once you've changed the water twice and brought it to boil you can throw it in a crock pot with some veggies and broth and let it slow cook, or just eat it the way it is. It should shred well.
To make pastrami, take the meat out of the brine, soak in cold water for an hour, change the water and soak for another hour.
Remove from water, dry thoroughly. Mix 2 parts coarse black pepper, 1 part coriander, 1 part garlic powder , 1/2 part onion powder.
Rub the spice rub into the meat and then smoke it at 200 or below until the meat reaches 165. remove from the smoker, let it cool, then wrap tightly in saran wrap or in a vacuum sealer and refridgerate for a few days before freezing or eating. You can eat it straight off the smoker, but wait a few days and you'll notice the flavor is better.
 
thanks Dave for posting that I was going to contact you and get your recipe.

Fellas this turns out GREAT!!!!!!
 
You're welcome. I just turned on the smoker and am about to rub some duck and goose breasts.

It's gonna be a BIG batch too.

-D
 
I have done the duck pastrami a few times. The first couple time with the skinless breasts. It was OK but I will say that if you leave the skin on it is way better. Slice the breasts thin and enjoy with some cheese. one of my favorite snacks. The recipe is spot on with what I have done and it is awesome.
 
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