The corned beef is really salty to begin with and the salt in the rub makes it a little to salty. I know this from experience. Some people soak the corned beef in water for up to 8 hours to de-brine it a bit. I simply gave it a good rinsing and I thought it was just right with the no salt rub.
I applied the rub 24 hours before smoking and vacuum sealed it with the Food Saver. When smoking, I used a blend of Apple and Hickory for the wood. I set the smoker temperature to 225 F and applied smoke for about 7 hours until the internal temperature was 170. It plateaued during this period and went up to 177 and back down to 165. I wrapped in heavy aluminum foil and continued cooking until the internal temp was 195 . I left it in the foil and refrigerated it overnight before slicing. Below is the run recipe I used. If you try it, I hope you enjoy!
One final note: The purist way to make pastrami is to smoke it until it reaches 160F then refrigerate. Before serving, it is steamed for 2 hours. With the foiling and taking the temperature to 195, you essentially performing the steaming step. It turns out very tender this way.
Brisket Rub
2 tablespoons onion powder
2 tablespoons paprika
2 tablespoons chili powder
2 tablespoons brown sugar
2 tablespoons salt (Omit for corned Beef Brisket)
1 tablespoon black pepper
1 tablespoon garlic powder
2 teaspoons ground cumin
2 teaspoons oregano
1 teaspoon ground red pepper (optional)
