It practically took an act of Ahnald, but I finally found a butcher here in NorCal to cut a flat. I pick it up tomorrow. $3.00#

My questions relate to the curing method.

1. Prefer wet or dry? The last (and first) time I did it I used a 1 lb. heavily trimmed flat from the supermarket. It come out fine but quite firm and dense and could have more flavor. I used Chris A's dry cure. I smoked at 225, pulled at 165.

2. Assuming dry, does it make sense to puncture small holes in the brisket so that the dry cure may penetrate better, or does it matter?

3. Curing times. I went 4 days last time and it was fine, but some say 1-2 weeks. What is the downside (and benefits) of a longer cure time?

Thanks!

Flavor is dependent on time and exact cure.

Firm, well, use a better quality brisket and slice it thin.

Most Pastrami is dry, but you don't need to puncture holes, just cure it longer. The idea is that you have to cure it long enough for the cure to penetrate far enough.

We used to use a very good butcher in Victor, just east of Lodi. Been so many years ago that I can't remember the name.. but they were great.

I'm about to try my first pastrami this coming week. Did my first ham a few weeks ago and was relatively happy with the results. I want to see if I can get that thick, juicy pastrami like you get on those $20 sandwiches at the Carnegie Deli. One thing I thought of while reading this post is that they say to never use frozen meat for a ham, as the freezing process modifies the cell structure and keeps the meat from fully/properly drawing in the brine.

Not sure if this is an issue for beef as well but I would think it preferable to use brisket that hasn't been frozen before brining for pastrami.