Homemade Montreal Smoked Meat

Smoky, meaty, and flavored through and through, homemade Montreal Smoked Meat is a thing of beauty. The Canadian answer to pastrami, Montreal Smoked Meat is too good not to make at home!

This post may contain affiliate link(s). As an Amazon Associate, I earn from qualifying purchases. See Disclosure.

Thinly sliced and smoked to perfection, Montreal Smoked Meat is insanely delicious. Like pastrami, but still different enough to qualify as its own thing, this cured and smoked meat is too good not to try. Not quite as labor intensive as pastrami and not as aggressively spiced, Montreal Smoked Meat is perfect when thinly sliced and piled high on a sandwich.

There’s been some discussion lately whether or not Montreal Smoked Meat is in fact smoked. Regardless if commercial producers actually smoke the meat versus slow-cooking it in an oven after injecting it with liquid smoke or other flavors, taking the time to do it right results in melt-in-your-mouth meat that’s juicy and oh-so-delicious.

Anybody can make Montreal Smoked Meat, you just need some time and a special ingredient – Prague Powder #1. More on that is below.

Ingredients

• Brisket – Point and attached flat make the best Montreal Smoked Meat, or opt for just the point for fatty and delicious beef. This recipe is adjusted for a 5-pound hunk of brisket.
• Salt – This is a wet cure, and kosher salt is a necessary ingredient.
• Ground corriander – The ground seeds from a cilantro (corriander) plant.
• Black pepper – Ground black pepper.
• Sugar – White granulated sugar.
• Cloves – Ground cloves.
• Bay leaves – Crushed up.
• Prague Powder #1

Montreal Smoked Meat Rub

• Whole black peppercorns – Crushed.
• Whole corriander seeds – Crushed.
• Mustard seeds – Crushed.

What Is Prague Powder #1?

Many, many years ago, I tried to make my own corned beef without Prague Powder #1. It was a nasty disaster. Then, I learned from an expert how to cure meats, and I’ve never looked back. The secret ingredient to a successful cure is Prague Powder #1. Also called tinted cure or pink curing salt, it is a combination of 6.25% sodium nitrite and 93.75% sodium chloride.

Prague Powder #1 is the secret behind cured meats keeping their flavor and long shelf life. This curing agent inhibits the growth of bacteria and helps preserve flavor and color.

**Warning – Prague Powder #1 is NOT table salt! DO NOT use it in place of pink Himalayan salt or any other salt. Keep this product out of reach of children and label it appropriately.

How To Make The Best Montreal Smoked Meat

Trim the brisket, leaving about 1/8 to 1/4 inch of fat on the top. Leaving some fat behind helps keep the meat moist during the long smoking and steaming process.

In a small bowl, combine the salt, ground coriander, black pepper, sugar, cloves, bay leaves, and Prague Powder #1. Mix well so the curing ingredients are evenly distributed.

Rub the curing mixture all over the brisket, making sure to coat all sides evenly. Place the brisket into a large zip-top bag and refrigerate it.

Turn the brisket once a day during the curing process, massaging the liquid around the meat to help the cure distribute evenly.

On the morning of the 8th day, remove the brisket from the cure and rinse it thoroughly under cool tap water.

Place the brisket into a container of clean cold water and soak it for 20 minutes. Drain and replace the water with fresh cold water, then soak for another 20 minutes. Repeat this process until the brisket has soaked a total of 4 times to help remove excess salt from the cure.

Pat the brisket completely dry with paper towels before adding the spice crust.

In a small bowl, combine the crushed black peppercorns, crushed coriander seeds, and crushed mustard seeds. Rub this spice mixture evenly all over the brisket.

Preheat your Traeger pellet grill or another smoker to 180°F according to the manufacturer’s instructions.

Place the brisket onto the smoker and smoke at 180°F for about 1 hour to build smoky flavor. Then increase the smoker temperature to 225°F and continue smoking until the brisket reaches an internal temperature of 165°F.

Remove the brisket from the smoker and prepare a stovetop steamer. A large roasting pan fitted with a V-rack works well for this. Add enough water to the bottom of the pan so it barely touches the underside of the rack.

Steam the brisket until the internal temperature reaches 200 to 205°F, adding more water to the pan as needed during steaming.

Remove the brisket from the steamer and let it rest until cool enough to handle comfortably.

Refrigerate the brisket for 4 to 6 hours, or overnight, before slicing. Chilling helps the meat firm up, making it easier to cut into thin slices.

Thinly slice the smoked meat with a meat slicer or a very sharp knife.

Pile it high onto sandwiches and enjoy!

Chef Jenn’s Tips

• Montreal Smoked Meat is not a quick fix. It needs to cure for a week, and then the smoking and steaming process will take you most of a day. Give yourself 8 days to prepare it, ensuring that you have the whole 8th day to smoke and steam. If you chill it overnight before slicing, you’ll be ready to eat your homemade Montreal Smoked Meat on the 9th day.
• You can dry the brisket in the fridge overnight between the last soak to remove salt, and rubbing it with the crushed spices. Air-drying it in this fashion will help the fat and meat dry out, creating a layer of pellicule which some say helps the smoke stick better. I believe that more smoke flavor comes from wet smoking – smoking the meat without air-drying. This is a personal choice.
• I’ve seen some crazy Montreal Smoked Meat rubs. Less is more; again personal choice but I like the complex flavors of smoke, pepper, corriander, and mustard seeds. You don’t need more than that.
• Slicing meat is much easier when it is cold. Don’t try to thinly-slice meat on a meat slicer if it isn’t cold cold.
• Using Prague Powder #1 is an exact science.
• A digital meat thermometer is a must for this recipe. Always cook to temp, not time.

What’s The Best Cut Of Beef For Montreal Smoked Meat?

There’s no best or worst cut; it comes down to personal preference. Whether you enjoy the fattier point or leaner flat, it’s up to you, and they’re both delicious.

Storage