If pastrami has turned up in a recipe or caught your eye at the store, here's what you need to use it with confidence and how to choose it, cook it, store it, what to substitute, and 6 recipes to try it in.

What is pastrami?

Pastrami is beef that has been brined, then coated in a peppery spice rub before it is smoked and steamed until tender and ready to slice. It is the deep-red, marbled deli meat piled high in a Jewish-style sandwich, with a crust of cracked pepper and coriander on the outside.

Classic pastrami starts from beef navel or brisket, cured in a salt brine with the same pink curing salt used for corned beef. That cure is what fixes the rose-pink color and gives the meat its tangy, savory edge.

The difference from corned beef comes after the cure. Pastrami gets the pepper-coriander rub and a long smoke, then a steam to finish, so it carries a smoky, spiced depth that boiled corned beef does not.

How to Use It

Most cooks buy pastrami already cooked at the deli counter, sliced thin and ready to eat, so the kitchen job is mainly warming and stacking it.

The classic move is to steam it. A few minutes over simmering water loosens the fat and makes thin slices silky, which is exactly how a real Pastrami Sandwich and Emeril's Favorite Pastrami Sandwich come together on rye with mustard.

It is the meat in a hot Reuben too, layered with Swiss and sauerkraut under a slick of dressing, then griddled until the cheese melts. Warm the pastrami first so it heats through before the bread burns.

Beyond sandwiches, chop it into hash with potatoes and eggs, fold it into an omelet, or scatter it over a Turkish-Style Pizza for a smoky, salty bite.

A little goes far because the flavor is concentrated.

Serve pastrami warm whenever you can. Cold from the fridge the fat stays firm and the meat eats waxy, while a quick steam brings back its tenderness.

Pairing and Common Mistakes

Pastrami is built for sharp, acidic partners that cut its richness. Yellow or brown mustard on rye bread is the bedrock, with a tangle of sauerkraut or dill pickles alongside. Swiss cheese joins it on a Reuben, and a crisp lager or cream soda rounds out the plate.

The most common mistake is slicing it too thick. Pastrami is best shaved thin against the grain; thick slabs chew tough and dry no matter how good the meat is.

The other slip is over-salting the dish around it. Pastrami is heavily cured and already salty, so go easy on added salt in any side or spread you serve with it.

Skipping the warm-up is the last pitfall. Eaten straight from the cold deli paper, pastrami tastes greasy and stiff; a brief steam is what makes it melt in the mouth.

Substitutes

Corned beef is the closest swap and the natural fallback in a Reuben. It comes from the same cure but skips the pepper rub and smoke, so it is milder and less peppery, with a softer pink color.

Smoked deli turkey or turkey pastrami gives a leaner, lighter sandwich with a similar spiced edge, a good choice if you want less fat. Montreal smoked meat is even closer than corned beef, cured and smoked much like pastrami with a coarser pepper crust.

For a different direction entirely, thin-sliced smoked beef brisket brings the same smoke and beefy depth, though without the tangy cure. Match the swap to the sandwich: corned beef or Montreal smoked meat when you want that deli character, turkey when you want it lean.

Buying and Storage

Pastrami is sold sliced to order at the deli counter, in sealed pre-packaged slices, or as a whole cooked piece for slicing at home. Counter-sliced is freshest and lets you ask for it shaved thin.

Look for deep-red meat with a visible pepper crust and some marbling.

A little fat is good here, since lean pastrami can eat dry once warmed.

Keep it cold and well wrapped. Deli-sliced pastrami is best within three to five days, while sealed packaged slices last to their printed date and a few days past once opened. Wrap loose slices tightly so they do not dry out.

Pastrami freezes well for a month or two. Wrap it airtight, thaw it in the fridge, and steam it back to tenderness, since freezing firms the fat and the steam restores the texture.

Quick facts

In Chinese

熏牛肉

British (UK) term

Pastrami

en français

pastrami

en español

pastrami

Recipes using pastrami

There are 6 recipes that contain this ingredient.

All 6 recipes