weekend project

[curious aardvark]

I'm here on me own this weekend so have decided to play with offset smoking on the outlaw (unless simons uds is done in which case I'll invite myself round there and play lol)
So I've decided to give myself a weekend project.
I'm going to make cornish pastys with smoked, pulled brisket.
This gives me several things I've never done before. #
1) never smoked and pulled anything
2) never smoked on the outlaw
3) never made cornish pastys (though lord knows I've eaten my fair share over the years lol)

So what I'm after is a basic rub for the brisket that will complement the rest of the pasty's ingredients. To whit: turnip, potato and oinion. I'm also going to do a few with stilton as well. As steak and stilton pastys are my absolute favourites :-)
Traditional seasoning for pastys is just salt and pepper.

Weather forecast is looking good and it's light out till gone 22:00 at the moment, so conditions are ideal :-)

I'm thinking get something around a 5lb brisket, coat in mustard and then rub. cook it nice and slow to 160 then foil till 200 and rest.

So basic brisket rub recipe please :-)

[Richtee]

T-H's beef rub...heh... here's something to start with
2 paprika
1 onion powder
1 garlic powder
1.5 brown sugar
1 ground rosemary
1.5 Kosher salt
1 CBP

Oh and a mustard slather

[Richtee]

And here's some advice from Capt Dan, CA

http://www.smoked-meat.com/forum/showthread.php?t=366

[curious aardvark]

th's looks good - nothing in there that would argue with either the stilton or turnip.
Also not looking for any real heat in this. I want to try and get the pasty as authentic as possible but with a real tender smoked beef.

[lcruzen]

Pasties in northern Michigan usually contain rutabaga. Kind of a cross between turnips and carrots. What kind of shell you using? Pie dough?

[curious aardvark]

been doing pasty pastry research lol
As far as I can see every recipe on the net just uses bog standard shortcrust.
But when we went to a pasty factory in cornwall they were using a sort of ruff-puff pastry that gives you a crisp shell and softer more yielding middle, without being stodgy.
So I'm going to experiment.
At the moment I'm looking at an all lard shortcrust pastry but using self raising flour rather than all purpose (gives a semi ruff-puff result).
Probably up the lard content slightly from the usual half fat to flour weight ratio.
But only slightly. Probably pound of flour to 10 oz lard and see where that takes me.
I'll make a few mini ones to test the pastry and filling then make lots of big ones once I've got it right. Cooked and frozen pastys reheat superbly and make a great lunch or quick dinner with some beans and fried potatos :-).

Rutabaga is a sort of turnip, so basicly the same :-)

Just finished reading a nail gaiman book - american gods. And it had pastys in. Apparently a bunch of cornish tin miners emigrated to america (could have been michigan, could have been somewhere else) and took the pasty with them.
Originally one end would be savoury and the other sweet and they'd hold the pastry ridge to eat it so that they didn't eat any of the crap on their hands from the tin mining (some nasty minerals) and then discard the dirty crust ridge.
Actuallly it's where I got the idea for the triple fatty from lol (the double filling not the throwing away part :-)
Really looking forward to getting this project going

[lcruzen]

CA, Thought you might enjoy this link.

http://kenanderson.net/pasties/michigan.html


The pasty has been a part of northern Michigan cuisine for a long time. As you mentioned the tin miners, in Michigan it was the copper and iron miners that brought them over. Highway US 2 that runs east and west in the UP still has many mom and pop pasty shops along the way. Always a treat to stop in chow one down. While some will serve it with a side of gravy most Uppers consider this blasphemy and should only be served with ketchup.

I make them myself on occasion and have had some decent results.

[Slanted88]

Pasties!.... Only one's around here are at the Gold Nugget & Toy Box! Not that I go to those establishment's!

[Gunslinger]

Pasties!.... Only one's around here are at the Gold Nugget & Toy Box! Not that I go to those establishment's!

That's funny.

When I lived in Traverse City MI, they were called Mackinac Island Pasty's. That was back in the mid 70's and again in the mid 80's. It wasn't until a year or so ago that I found out they actually originated in UK. Good stuff.

[curious aardvark]

got me turnips and lard and as luck would have it I'm off to disenfect a clients computer tomorrow who raises aberdeen angus. Here's hoping they've got a brisket in the freezer :-)

[Kyote]

CA sounds like yer havin more fun the the law allows in your area. enjoy my friend life is good.

[curious aardvark]

it's definitely who you know and how they bugger their computers up :-)
Got a smallish rolled brisket about 3 1/2 pounds and one around 5 lbs that's been cured. (and yeah I know that's got a name but I can't remember what it is lol)

This is among the best beef in england no question, and these days much too rich for my wallet.
The small brisket would have cost £10 ($15) and that's not supermarket prices, that's farm gate prices. Pure bred aberdeen angus. They supply the really high end super pricey supermarkets.
No idea what the cured one would have cost, but no way would I have brought it lol
we did a swap. I sorted out their internet access and they gave me beef for pastys.

I also picked up enough oak for a few smokes. they cut a big old oak tree down by the side of drive up to my club. Had my eye on it for a while, and loaded a few pieces into the car this afternoon. should cut up into cracking sized bits for smoking :-)

Pics tomorrow :-)

[Gunslinger]

Got a smallish rolled brisket about 3 1/2 pounds

I'm sure I can figure it out, but what's a rolled brisket look like?

and one around 5 lbs that's been cured. (and yeah I know that's got a name but I can't remember what it is lol

We call that corned beef.

This is among the best beef in england no question, and these days much too rich for my wallet.
The small brisket would have cost £10 ($15)

My goodness? Did you say Kobe or Angus?

Pics tomorrow :-)

Can't wait, me so excited.

I love reading your posts. I'm completely stupid when it comes to British slang. It's fun trying to figure out what everything means.

[curious aardvark]

I love reading your posts. I'm completely stupid when it comes to British slang. It's fun trying to figure out what everything means.

lol I do throw the odd bits in just for effect ;-)
I have the same problem with a lot of the american terms, like they say: two countries seperated by a single language ;-)

got a couple of cracking (thats good) colloquisms (or however the hell you spell that) I'm saving up for the right post lol
Right better get out of bed and start messing with food !
yeehaa - whole day and I don't have to do anything but what i want !

[curious aardvark]

first pics of the day :-)
Over here brisket seems to be weird wedge shaped bits of beef, and as a consequence are usually rolled into a coherent lump :-)



next job, defrost them both and make up some of th's rub :-) (edit: ohhh, that's good - make some more lol)
just fryingup some bratties for a fried mexicana and bratwurst sarnie.
More pics later !

ps. just read your link icruzen. yep very interesting. swedish pastys eh ?
right off to freezer to find some pork, can't smoke without a fatty

well the weather's fabulous and guarenteed to be so all weekend .
Couple of pics of the garden :-)



brisket rubbed and fridged while I mess with fatty and cut up wood:

forgot about mustard. But used a lot of rub :-)