Morning or night, navel pastrami makes a perfect meal. And here’s my fav ways to enjoy it.
My friends always lovingly, of course, laugh at me that I can eat anything fleishig at 11 a.m., especially when pastrami is involved. Don’t you agree that it’s perfect for brunch? There’s something so comforting about a tender, slow-cooked, hot pastrami. Anytime, any given day.
If you are wondering why I love pastrami so much you are probably cooking yours wrong. So, let me teach you a valuable lesson in pastrami prep. There are many kinds of pastrami:
Pastrami Cold Cuts
The classic type we’re all most familiar with is cold cuts, i.e. sliced pastrami that you buy at the deli counter. It makes for a great sandwich if you treat it right, but that’s a lesson for another time.
Pastrami Roasts
The second kind of pastrami is an item that butchers started selling a few years ago. It’s a brisket that’s covered in a pastrami seasoning. You purchase the meat raw and you cook it as you would cook corned beef, or bake it in the oven covered in water for 3 hours. You can also cook it in a bag in the Crock-Pot with water for 6 hours on low. Preferably you should buy second-cut if using this last cooking method.
Navel Pastrami
Now for the version that I prefer (and the one featured in the photos): Navel Pastrami. It’s fatty. It’s what pastrami was meant to be. Navel Pastrami (such as the one sold by Meal Mart) comes in a cooking bag and is actually pre-cooked. Some stores cut the 4-pound navel pastrami into 4-5 chunks and sell each chunk individually in a vacuum-sealed bag. Many people place a small chunk of navel pastrami directly into the cholent. I prefer keeping it in the cooking bag (or vacuum-sealed bag) so that the cholent doesn’t get all that fat.
How to Prepare Navel Pastrami
I learned the best trick for preparing navel pastrami from my new sister-in-law’s mother.
Place a small aluminum pan upside down into the slow cooker bowl. Place the navel pastrami right on top. Fill up the sides with cold water, just barely touching the pastrami bag. You don’t want the pastrami to sit in the water. The purpose of the water is to “steam” the pastrami (the navel pastrami is pre-cooked). Cover and place on low heat overnight. When ready to serve, remove from bag, discard any juice that accumulated in the bag, cut into chunks, and serve with coleslaw and mustard.
When using a large pastrami, use a round aluminum or loaf pan on the bottom of a standard-sized slow cooker. When using a smaller chunk, you can steam it in a smaller slow cooker alongside your big one and serve on Shabbos morning.
Use a knife and cut chunks (it won’t cut into pretty thin slices). You don’t need any glaze over it; just plain and simple is the way to go.
Want to serve this for dinner? Buy fresh baguettes and serve with lettuce, tomatoes, coleslaw, mustard, and pickles and let everyone make their own sandwich. Serve it with some onion rings and it’s a perfect special meal.
devorah says
I bake mine in chicken soup, gives it an even better flavor! !
ME says
Gotta try this!!
SM says
I always wondered why sometimes the pastrami was better than others. Now I know. Been buying the wrong piece. Great article!! Thank you!! Think my next stop is walmart for an additional croc pot 🙂
Dorit says
Can you put this up before shabbos and have it cook until Shabbos morning
Leah Schapira says
Yes of course. Put it up on Friday afternoon and it will be perfect Shabbos morning.
faygie says
Will it slice nicely if you refrigerate until it’s cold and then slice then? Also, is it good rewarmed?
Leah Schapira says
It will slice nicely when cold but doesn’t taste as good when it’s rewarmed.
Chava says
When should I put it up if I want it for Friday night?
Renee Muller says
I put mine up on Friday morning (or any morning, on a day that I know I will be out until late but want to return home to a delicious ready to eat dinner). Just make sure you have at least 12 hours in the crockpot
Soshie Gopin says
I bought a different cut of pastrami and it’s raw, not cooked. Can I use this method to cook it? If so, for how long? Will it cook the same and come out buttery soft?
Rivka Litchfield says
How can I cook it for longer if I already opened the bag and removed the pastrami from the bag?
Leah Schapira says
Just place it into a cooking bag and tie it closed.
Chaya Sora Wolfson says
Can I cook this on the stove if I don’t have an extra crockpot? If yes, how?
Rivka Litchfield says
Thanks!!
L says
Why does it need to be cooked in the bag? If I don’t want to do it in the bag, how do I do it?
L says
Which stores in brooklyn sell the smaller cubes?
Sara Mars says
Can I put Navel Pastrami into a lettuce salad once its cooked?
Liane says
If I want to eat for 2nd night Rosh Hashanna, when would I put it in? And if I have to eat part of of it on day 1 for halachic reasons, do I put it back in the post after? Can I put in the fridge and reheat?
Ellen Felder says
If the crockpot is being used for Cholent can this be done in an over or a warming drawer in a similar fashion?
Ellen Felder says
What’s the best way to cook a large raw deckle pastrami?
Keith says
Thank you .
R says
Can I put it on my hotplate Friday in a 9×13 filled with water?
Esther Stein says
Oh wow!! I was cooking it almost all wrong… I used to put the bag with ONLY naval pastrami (I’ve tried other ones when the naval pastrami wasn’t available but no comparison) in the crocpot and filled it with water till covered then put on high for 5+ hrs then low.
I can’t wait to try your way!
Thank you for an amazing site