After rummaging around the freezer for something to eat for lunch I came across the turkey pastrami I made last summer when I bought all those whole turkeys on sale. Last time around I had warmed them in a pan and then seared the skin to get it crispy: it had all the flavour I wanted but was a bit chewy.
Since this was for lunch I removed the skin and put the two thighs in my trusty steamer. Fourty five minutes later I removed one and sliced it thinly on toast with Gouda and hot mustard. The taste was there and the meat was mostly tender but there was still too much chew. I topped up the water in the steamer and let it go another hour.
Now the meat was very tender and sliced beautifully; I could tell right away the texture was what I wanted from pastrami. Until now I hadn’t seen results from the steaming step in making pastrami but this really opened my eyes. For brisket or eye of round pastrami I’d need at least four hours steaming to get optimal results.
