Home Brined and Smoked Ham (1st try) and Pastrami too!

SmokinAussie · 05-22-2011, 08:59 AM

G'Day Bruces'

I just made my first ham

! And I'm reasonably happy with the results. And due to a post from Little Tiger in Sydney, I also decided to smoke some Corned Beef roughly to ThirdEye's method on his blog. On the whole, it was a big job, but sooooooo satisfying!

First... the Leg of Pork!

The brine injection...

Then the leg of pork in the brine, with Thyme, and off to the fridge for 6.2 days...

After extracting from the brine, it went uncovered into the fridge for a day to try and get a pellicule.

Oh.. one thing. The usual thing in the US is to remove the rind before brining and smoking. Here in Australia, it seems most full leg hams have the rind on, so I left it on. When slicing, you pull the rind back, slice the ham, and when you've sliced enough, you pull the rind back over and wrap in a vinegared muslin cloth, which keeps the whole ham fresh for an extended time... like a few weeks at least. (just in case you're wondering)

Anyway, while that was brining, there was a thread discussing corned beef, which lead me to buy an entire corned Silverside to smoke.

Now, if you brine and smoke a brisket, you can call it Pastrami. If you brine and smoke a Silverside, I'm not sure you can call it that. Although it's great, it just does not have the texture of a nice brisket pastrami which has a much finer grain. Still it was good.. so here it goes..

The Corned silverside was soaked in water for 2 days and then I coated it in the toasted and pounded pepper and coriander mix with some kashmiri chili powder.

You can see I had to cut it in 2 parts... You will see why later.

Into 2 pans...

And onto the smoker with the ham first.. this was some hours before...

And later on... the Pastrami..

I was running at about 250F with Lump and Peach wood. You can see I've got a very small offset...

. I need some bigger kit, for sure!

The pastrami... OK, Smoked Corned Silverside... cooked really fast and I had to take it off in about 4 hours and it was at 200F!

Oh, yeah... I foiled it... Thirdeye's modded wet recipe!

The ham took a LOT longer, and I didn't foil it at all. With the recipe I used, I took it up to 155F, then took it off the heat, foiled and rested in a cooler for a few hours before refrigerating. In retrospect, maybe I should have foiled it to keep in a little more moisture. But still was awesome.

Anyway, the next day, I had to go and see my Parants in a 3 1/2 hour drive North. I put the ham and 1 of the corned beef pastramis in a cooler for the trip.

Here's the ham on arrival.

And being sliced by my Mother

And served with the Pastrami

And my kids with the spread!

And my plate..

Just in case you want to know.

Almost everything on the plate is from home. I smoked the ham and the corned beef. My mum made the bread. My Mum also made the Camembert Cheese (yessir!).... All the salad ingredients came from the garden, including the potatoes and the beetroot.

The only thing not not from the garden was the Avocado!

Well, the entire spread was awesome and this was probably the best lunch I've ever had, given where it all came from.

Sorry for being so long winded though.

I hope you read this far.

Cheers!

Bill

Paulie G. · 05-22-2011, 11:16 AM

Looks like a great time was had by all Bill.

bluetang · 05-22-2011, 11:25 AM

Man, that is is awesome, from the smoke to the table. Killer, absolutely killer!

woodbutcher1 · 05-22-2011, 11:59 AM

Excellent presentation as usual Bill, fine looking family you got there. I like to dig into that grub for sure,everything looks marvelous.

:clap 2:

Hoss · 05-22-2011, 01:21 PM

Great post.Food,family.....it gets no better.

Mark Stanton · 05-22-2011, 01:45 PM

Lookin Great! Looks like a good time

landarc · 05-22-2011, 02:01 PM

That looks terrific Bill, nice work on the ham and corned smoked silverside.

Why does your mum look to be almost the same age as you?

Have you really lived that hard in your times?

Moose · 05-22-2011, 03:11 PM

Bill, absolutely outstanding spread on all fronts!

cowgirl · 05-22-2011, 03:38 PM

Everything looks fantastic Bill!! What a great feast!
One quick question.... Will you adopt me please?

bigabyte · 05-22-2011, 06:50 PM

That is some fantastic looking eats there Bill!

wnkt · 05-22-2011, 07:22 PM

It all looks dang good!!

boogiesnap · 05-22-2011, 07:50 PM

wow, what an excellent, home-made, meal.

martyleach · 05-22-2011, 09:15 PM

Now that is a great presentation of some really good looking eats. I really love the family in the pics as well.

Ltigar · 05-23-2011, 02:10 AM

that looks like a nice light lunch.
tell us more about the bread.....i like to make my own as well.
did your beef taste like pastrami?
mine was silverside as well, but apparently any cut can be used to make pastrami.

R2Egg2Q · 05-23-2011, 02:28 AM

Really nice job Bill! Looks like a great meal and a great time with family!

05-22-2011, 08:59 AM	#1
SmokinAussie Babbling Farker Join Date: 10-19-09 Location: Melbourne, VIC Downloads: 0 Uploads: 0	Home Brined and Smoked Ham (1st try) and Pastrami too! G'Day Bruces' I just made my first ham ! And I'm reasonably happy with the results. And due to a post from Little Tiger in Sydney, I also decided to smoke some Corned Beef roughly to ThirdEye's method on his blog. On the whole, it was a big job, but sooooooo satisfying! First... the Leg of Pork! The brine injection... Then the leg of pork in the brine, with Thyme, and off to the fridge for 6.2 days... After extracting from the brine, it went uncovered into the fridge for a day to try and get a pellicule. Oh.. one thing. The usual thing in the US is to remove the rind before brining and smoking. Here in Australia, it seems most full leg hams have the rind on, so I left it on. When slicing, you pull the rind back, slice the ham, and when you've sliced enough, you pull the rind back over and wrap in a vinegared muslin cloth, which keeps the whole ham fresh for an extended time... like a few weeks at least. (just in case you're wondering) Anyway, while that was brining, there was a thread discussing corned beef, which lead me to buy an entire corned Silverside to smoke. Now, if you brine and smoke a brisket, you can call it Pastrami. If you brine and smoke a Silverside, I'm not sure you can call it that. Although it's great, it just does not have the texture of a nice brisket pastrami which has a much finer grain. Still it was good.. so here it goes.. The Corned silverside was soaked in water for 2 days and then I coated it in the toasted and pounded pepper and coriander mix with some kashmiri chili powder. You can see I had to cut it in 2 parts... You will see why later. Into 2 pans... And onto the smoker with the ham first.. this was some hours before... And later on... the Pastrami.. I was running at about 250F with Lump and Peach wood. You can see I've got a very small offset.... I need some bigger kit, for sure! The pastrami... OK, Smoked Corned Silverside... cooked really fast and I had to take it off in about 4 hours and it was at 200F! Oh, yeah... I foiled it... Thirdeye's modded wet recipe! The ham took a LOT longer, and I didn't foil it at all. With the recipe I used, I took it up to 155F, then took it off the heat, foiled and rested in a cooler for a few hours before refrigerating. In retrospect, maybe I should have foiled it to keep in a little more moisture. But still was awesome. Anyway, the next day, I had to go and see my Parants in a 3 1/2 hour drive North. I put the ham and 1 of the corned beef pastramis in a cooler for the trip. Here's the ham on arrival. And being sliced by my Mother And served with the Pastrami And my kids with the spread! And my plate.. Just in case you want to know. Almost everything on the plate is from home. I smoked the ham and the corned beef. My mum made the bread. My Mum also made the Camembert Cheese (yessir!).... All the salad ingredients came from the garden, including the potatoes and the beetroot. The only thing not not from the garden was the Avocado! Well, the entire spread was awesome and this was probably the best lunch I've ever had, given where it all came from. Sorry for being so long winded though. I hope you read this far. Cheers! Bill __________________ Creator of the Aussie Lamb Farker Awards!!! IMBAS Certified MOINK BALLER (NOSKOS RULE) "Bullet Bill" WSM "Blue Lou" Performer Small Offset Smoker... SOS Baby WGA, Upright Cabinet Gasser Smoker, and a Cheap Arse Satay Stick Grill Zero for MOINKS Farkanaut

05-22-2011, 11:16 AM	#2
Paulie G. is one Smokin' Farker Join Date: 08-07-06 Location: Bluffton, SC Downloads: 0 Uploads: 0	Looks like a great time was had by all Bill. __________________ Paulie G. Pit Boss Coastal Carolina Catering Klose custom 28'x7' Golf Pro Classic mobile pit.

05-22-2011, 11:25 AM	#3
bluetang Quintessential Chatty Farker Join Date: 08-06-10 Location: Stuart, Fl Downloads: 0 Uploads: 0	Man, that is is awesome, from the smoke to the table. Killer, absolutely killer! __________________ Homegrown 120 Gallon Reverse Flow, Homey, the Homegrown Kettle, 3 UDS's, 3 Stack Pro Q Excel 20, 18.5" Elderly(but not retired) WSM, 150lb Capacity Homegrown Electric and a CA gasserrrr Bicycle Fast Polder Thermo, Indisputably Fastest Purple Thermapen, SAI Satay Grill Thanks landarc for the avatar!

05-22-2011, 11:59 AM	#4
woodbutcher1 Full Fledged Farker Join Date: 04-04-10 Location: Shelby Twp. Macomb Co. SE Michigan Downloads: 0 Uploads: 0	Excellent presentation as usual Bill, fine looking family you got there. I like to dig into that grub for sure,everything looks marvelous.:clap 2: __________________ leonard ----------------- 22.5" Weber------OTS 18.5" Weber------OTS 14" Weber---- Smokey Joe 55 Gal. UDS 30 Gal. UDS 16 Gal. Mini. UDS Maverick ET-732 & iQue - 110

05-22-2011, 01:45 PM	#6
Mark Stanton is one Smokin' Farker Join Date: 07-25-09 Location: Southside of Houston, Texas Downloads: 0 Uploads: 0	Lookin Great! Looks like a good time __________________ UDS with flat lid, Smokey Joe,

05-22-2011, 01:21 PM	#5
Hoss is One Chatty Farker Join Date: 12-31-09 Location: Hernando,MS Downloads: 0 Uploads: 0	Great post.Food,family.....it gets no better.

05-22-2011, 02:01 PM	#7
landarc somebody shut me the fark up. Join Date: 06-26-09 Location: San Leandro, CA Downloads: 0 Uploads: 0	That looks terrific Bill, nice work on the ham and corned smoked silverside. Why does your mum look to be almost the same age as you? Have you really lived that hard in your times? __________________ "perhaps...but then again...maybe not..." careful there son, those ribs are boiling hot... \_\|_/ (='.'=) Here there be bunnies... (")_(")ooo Pacific Rim BBQ Bob's Brew and Que

05-22-2011, 03:11 PM	#8
Moose Babbling Farker Join Date: 10-12-08 Location: Los Angeles, CA Downloads: 0 Uploads: 0	Bill, absolutely outstanding spread on all fronts! __________________ Moose The Fun Never Stops at the BBQ Brethren Throwdowns Custom Avatars by N8 & Grillman www.mooseonfire.com FoodBBQDelicious

05-22-2011, 03:38 PM	#9
cowgirl somebody shut me the fark up. Join Date: 07-18-07 Location: Oklahoma Downloads: 0 Uploads: 0	Everything looks fantastic Bill!! What a great feast! One quick question.... Will you adopt me please? __________________ jeanie sittin' by the campfire with my Brethren friends. Lifetime member of the Society for the Preservation of Authentic Royal Magical Rare Kaskaskian Peppers (Thanks Ash :)) http://cowgirlscountry.blogspot.com/

05-22-2011, 06:50 PM	#10
bigabyte somebody shut me the fark up. Join Date: 05-10-06 Location: Overland Fark, KS Downloads: 1 Uploads: 1	That is some fantastic looking eats there Bill! __________________ Chris Baker For great food and and an even better time join the BBQ Brethren Throwdowns *First ever recipient of the Silverfinger Award!* Yes, I own a whole bunch of BBQ crap also. *Certified MOINK Baller & IMBAS Certified MOINK Ball Judge #0003 - Get your MOINK Certification today!* The Secret Squirrel Society doesn't exist - Zero Club member

05-22-2011, 07:22 PM	#11
wnkt is One Chatty Farker Join Date: 06-08-06 Location: Upstate South Carolina Downloads: 0 Uploads: 0	It all looks dang good!! __________________ Chargriller Super Pro with side firebox ------ I'd like to be remembered as one of those "larger than life" people, but as I'm only 5'6" I just work on being wider than life. (Pedro Moura Pinheiro, a funny guy)

05-22-2011, 07:50 PM	#12
boogiesnap Babbling Farker Join Date: 04-22-10 Location: NEW ENGLAND Downloads: 0 Uploads: 0	wow, what an excellent, home-made, meal. __________________ S'mo Q Competition BBQ Team Q so good you gotta have s'mo. Sponsored by Oakridge BBQ twin WSM 22.5's 48" DCS gasser certified MOINK baller farkanaut in training avatar by grillman CLICK HERE to visit the BBQ Brethren Throwdowns

05-22-2011, 09:15 PM	#13
martyleach Babbling Farker Join Date: 12-17-10 Location: Pleasanton, Ca Downloads: 0 Uploads: 0	Now that is a great presentation of some really good looking eats. I really love the family in the pics as well. __________________ Large Big Green Egg, Cold smokehouse, UDS with hinged lid, Santa Maria pit 26.75" Weber OTG, Weber Performer, WGA MAK One Star General Pellet Pooper Hasty Bake Gourmet Custom wooden handles for BBQ's made by Marty Leach (oh, that's me) www.amlwoodart.com

05-23-2011, 02:10 AM	#14
Ltigar Knows what a fatty is. Join Date: 02-13-11 Location: sydney nsw Downloads: 0 Uploads: 0	that looks like a nice light lunch. tell us more about the bread.....i like to make my own as well. did your beef taste like pastrami? mine was silverside as well, but apparently any cut can be used to make pastrami.

05-23-2011, 02:28 AM	#15
R2Egg2Q is One Chatty Farker Join Date: 08-15-10 Location: Pleasanton, CA Downloads: 0 Uploads: 0	Really nice job Bill! Looks like a great meal and a great time with family! __________________ -John XL BGE, Large BGE, Small BGE, Mini BGE, Superior Smokers SS-Two, Hasty Bake Gourmet, Imperial Kamado, UDS (Darth Maul), Thai Charcoal cooker, Webers: 18.5" WSM, WGA, Summit S-620 NG; Stoker, Stealthy Black Thermapen, custom BGE & Weber handles by brethren martyleach IMBAS Certified MOINK Ball Maker CLICK HERE to join us in a BBQ Brethren Throwdown!

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