{{activity.title}}
Youtube ID
… or Hero Image
Ingredient

Yield

Yield

Timing

Timing

Equipment and Materials

Optional Equipment and Materials

1

Create Brine

Ingredient Quantity
Water
9
kg
Dark brown sugar
580
g
Salt
300
g
Instacure No. 1
60
g
13
g
Yellow mustard seed, whole
10
g
10
g
Pink peppercorns, whole
8.0
g
Fennel seed, whole
4.5
g
Cinnamon, whole
3.2
g
Chili flakes
1.0
g
Cloves, whole
0.7
g
Bay leaf, fresh
0.5
g
  • Scale ingredients.
  • Dissolve ingredients into water.
  • Chill brine to below 40°F / 4°C.
  • If you aren't sure where to find Instacure No. 1, click here.

Tip: Dissolve the ingredients in half of the water. Heat this water until the salts and sugar are dissolved, then add the other half of water as ice to quickly chill the brine.

Module%207_Pastrami_1.jpg
2

Trim Short Rib Plates

  • Trim the fat from the plate of ribs.
  • Trim away any silver skin covering the meat.
Module%207_Pastrami_2.jpg
3

Slice Along Short Rib Bones

  • From the back side of the rib plate, slice along the length of each bone.

Note: Doing this will make it easier to remove the bones after cooking (see step 11).

Module%207_Pastrami_3.jpg
4

Place Rib Plates in Brine

  • Submerge prepared rib plates in brine for 7 days.
  • Keep the brine and ribs refrigerated.

Note: Turn rib plates over each day to ensure even brining.

Module%207_Pastrami_4.jpg
5

Make Spice Rub

Ingredient Quantity
Salt
75
g
Dark brown sugar
75
g
72
g
42
g
Garlic powder
10
g
Juniper berries, whole
10
g
Chili flakes
6.5
g
  • Scale spices.
  • Coarsely grind black pepper, coriander, juniper berries and chili flakes.
  • Combine all ingredients.
Module%207_Pastrami_5.jpg
6

Remove Ribs from Brine

  • Remove ribs from brine after 7 days.
  • Lightly pat dry.
Module%207_Pastrami_6.jpg
7

Apply Spice Rub to Rib Plates

  • Apply spice rub to all sides of the rib plates.
  • ChefSteps own House Rub 01 works as an excellent substitute for this rub.
  • Press spices into meat for better adhesion.

Note: Spice rub should increase the weight of the meat by about 5%. That is, a 500 g rib plate should be covered by about 25 g of rub.

Module%207_Pastrami_7.jpg
8

Smoke Ribs

  • Smoke ribs at 149°F / 64°C for 5 – 7 hours at a relative humidity around 65%.
Module%207_Pastrami_8.jpg
9

Cook Ribs Sous Vide

  • Vacuum package smoked ribs.
  • Cook brined ribs in a water bath at 149°F / 64°C for 48 hours.
Module%207_Pastrami_9.jpg
10

Remove Ribs from Bath

  • Remove the short ribs from the water bath.
  • Cut open the packaging.
Module%207_Pastrami_9_11.jpg
11

Remove Bones from Ribs

  • Pull the bones away from the rib plate. They should pull away with ease.
Module%207_Pastrami_9_2.jpg
12

Slice Ribs

  • Slice the short rib into strips parallel to the direction of the rib bones.
Module%207_Pastrami_10.jpg
13

Portion and Serve

  • Slice each strip into individual portions for serving.
Module%207_Pastrami_12.jpg
Community

Salmon and albumin

My family really only like salmon cooked sous-vide in oil, we also don't really have much access to good seafood in Denver unless you pay an arm and a leg.

I've done quite a bit at 50C as well as much shorter cook time at 57.5C. Is brining the best way to get rid of the albumin, if so is a typical 6.4% brine what should be used? And for how long?

Johan Edstrom

So-called albumin protein is mostly a function of cooking temperature more than anything else. Worth trying 113 °F / 45 °C to see what you think of that temperature, you will certainly see less albumin percolating to the surface of the flesh.

Adding salt via a brine tends to help retain juices in the flesh—for complex reasons that I hope to explore in a future course—and so at any given temperature you'll see less juice percolate to the surface, which means you'll see less albumin.

Have you checked out the salmon 104 °F recipe on our course page?

Chris Young

I love Salmon, Sushi first!! :) I have always Cedar Planked my salmon and have love the results. Now that I have seen the 104F video, I am going to have to give it a try.

Allen Johnson

@Johan, 43C is my favourite temp too, as 40C is barely warm once it gets served. Have the same problem in UK too with fish, salmon is great, but good seafood here costs a bomb!

Grace

Discussion