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Montreal Smoked Meat

Montreal Smoked Meat

I have cooked many briskets and always happy with the results, this time I wanted to do something different, I’ve made corned beef previously but never Montreal Smoked Meat. I always enjoy getting one of these sandwiches whenever I visit Montreal and wanted to see how close I could come to duplicating it. Here is the recipe for my first attempt at Montreal Smoked Meat. I must say that the time and effort you put in will result in a satisfying product you can be proud of and share with family and friends. I was pleasantly surprised on the taste, tenderness and fabulous aroma this meat has. I hope you give it a try.
Prep Time: 1 hour
Cook Time: 12 hours
Brine Time: 8 days
Course: Main Course
Cuisine: Beef
Keyword: Different
Difficulty: Medium
Servings: 12 people
Author: Ron Yoneda

Ingredients

Meat

  • 1 each Whole Beef Brisket. Point and Flat together 15-18 lbs pre trimmed

Dry Curing Mix

  • 8 oz Black Peppercorn
  • 4 oz Ground Coriander
  • ¾ cup Kosher Salt
  • 3 tbsp Whole Cloves
  • 10 each Bay Leaves
  • 3 tsp Prague Powder #1 (curing salt)

Rub

  • ¼ cup Bovine Noir or Montreal Steak Spice

Instructions

Preparation

  • Trim any excess brisket fat from the outside of the packer brisket. Make sure to leave around ¼ inch of fat along the flat and do not trim away too much fat on the point, because you need to support it when cooking. Just trim enough to expose the milky white fat. You also want to trim the brisket to be aerodynamic in the smoker as well as even out the edges to remove any brown bits or where they split the carcass.

Cure It

  • Using all the dry cure mix, blend together and use a mortar and pestle, food or coffee grinder to mix the ingredients. Coat the whole brisket in curing mix, make sure to use all the cure as you will need to make sure all the curing salt is incorporated. Once you have the cure on all sides of the brisket place into a large zip lock bag and place it in the fridge for 8 days. Rotate the brisket daily.

Rinse It

  • After 8 days it is time for the final step before sending it to the smoker. First place the brisket in a large sink and rinse off all the brine and discard (the brine not the beef). Next fill the sink with cold water enough to fully submerge the brisket. Let sit for 1 hour then drain and repeat 3 times. This will remove any excess salt. After the final rinse place the brisket on a sheet pan and back into the fridge overnight uncovered. This will produce what is called a peticle on the exterior of the brisket and will allow it to better absorb the smoke.

Smoke It

  • It is now the morning of the ninth day. Remove the brisket from the fridge liberally add the Rub to all sides and let it come up to room temperature. In the meantime prepare your smoker and set to 225 degrees, for this recipe I am using Hickory wood chips and my LG1000 smoker. Once the brisket has had the chill taken off it and the smoker is up to temperature, place the brisket directly on the grate fat side down. Continue to cook until you reach an internal temperature of 160-165 degrees in the center.

Steam It

  • Once the brisket hits 165 degrees internal temp some recipes will have you place the brisket back in the fridge overnight but today we are going to go straight to steaming. Set up a large steam table either on your stove top or outside on a propane cooker. Make sure you have plenty of water but do not let the brisket touch the water. Bring the water up to a boil, add the brisket, reduce heat to a simmer and let your brisket steam away. Make sure the steamer has a well fitted cover or tent with tin foil. This may take 3-4 hours and you want an internal temperature of 205-210 degrees or until a probe can be inserted with the feeling of going into room temperature butter. The brisket should also jiggle like jelly when done.

Slicing

  • Once it is done, you now have Montreal Smoked Meat. Traditionally the brisket is sliced thin against the grain while hot right out of the steamer. You can slice the flat for a lean cut or the point for a fatty cut or do a combination of both.
  • Pile the sliced smoked meat high on a good Rye bread with yellow mustard and dill pickle on the side. This is a treat that is well worth the wait and will amaze your friends.

Notes

If you do end up with leftovers the smoked meat will keep for up to 3 weeks in a sealed bag in the fridge. It may also be frozen and thawed for future use. To reheat you can steam it or use the microwave. Let us know if you have tried and like this recipe!
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