What is the best way to cook pastrami for a sandwich??

Question

I usually grill pastrami (&corned beef) for our hot pastrami sandwiches and reubens on a flat top at work, I feel it's tastiest. However, the other cook steams it. What is the difference between grilling it or steaming it? What do you prefer?

Answer

Depends on your pastrami. Steaming renders out fat and salt and achieves the lusciously soft texture of the NY deli sandwiches of old that were 3" thick with meat but could be bitten through easily. 
https://www.google.com/search?q=carnegie+pastrami&client=firefox-a&hs=IC8&rls=org.mozilla:en-US:official&source=lnms&tbm=isch&sa=X&ei=sXbaUdXYM-KDjALh6IHABg&ved=0CAkQ_AUoAQ&biw=1366&bih=522
Steaming the entire cut of meat ala Langer's will reduce volume by a third. That concentrates the flavors and bastes the meat in its own fat. Katz's recommends steaming to reheat its sliced pastrami and boiling for the whole cut.
http://katzsdelicatessen.com/cooking_and_prep

Commodity quality "pastrami" that's lean and water injected can be better with griddling to get rid of some of the water and introduce another layer of flavor when the meat's own cure is lacking in complexity. Having suffered too many dried out and tough pastrami sandwiches heated on the flat top, I ask first and decline to order them if that's how they're cooked. It tells me something about the starting quality of the ingredients as well. Invariably, they seem to be pre-sliced, liquid smoke, water injected crap.

Answer

Growing up in the 1950's my grandmother would take a trolley to Williamsburg Bklyn then shop and when she got home would STEAM the pastrami. It was always juicey served either on rye or a club roll with a pickle. I griddled ,baked fried and it never was as good.

Answer

First, for hot pastrami, you need a fatty brisket (or, even more classic, navel/plate) cut; lean pastrami from the round is for cold pastrami, not hot.

I find the best way to warm pastrami is the poor man's sous vide: put it in a heavy gauge plastic bag, get rid of as much air as possible and seal, then put in a bowl and run hot tap water over it. It reheats without cooking (unless you have your hot water tap set to a very high temperature).

Answer

I usually like to make a combo of corned beef, pastrami and Swiss cheese. I stack the combo up with a few slices of cheese in the middle and the rest on top and then steam it until the cheese melts and the meat is warm. Served on good rye bread with coleslaw and thousand island or Russian dressing on top and it can't be beat.

In a pinch, I've heated the stack of meat and cheese in the microwave for about 90 seconds with almost as good results.

Answer

Steaming is definitely traditional, and dare I say the best way. However, when I worked at a deli we microwaved, for the sake of time and ease. Not that I am recommending it!

Answer

Has anyone else tried using a pressure cooker to pressure "steam" their pastrami, keeping it above the water with a trivet or vegetable steamer?

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What is the best way to cook pastrami for a sandwich??

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