Store bought corned beef normally has a lot of salt added and the package will say how much solution is added to your beef. Generally cooking corned beef is done by boiling it in water. Doing so will remove some of the excess salt that has been added. Since we are smoking it, we will need to remove some in advance.
This particular package has 35% added which is on the high side of what I generally see. For one this high, I will soak it in water for 12-15 hours.
After soaking, dry it off, rub it down with some mustard and apply your rub. For corned beef I like to use something a little on the sweeter side. For this I used:
- brown sugar
- chili powder
- smoked paprika
- garlic
- onion
Let the rub sit for at least 30 minutes to soak in. You can let it go for a few hours or overnight in the fridge as well.
You’ll see it changes color and turn into more of a paste. Once it does, you are ready to smoke!
Set your smoker for for 225ยฐ-240ยฐ and plan on it smoking for around 8 hours. Around the 195ยฐ-205ยฐ internal temperature mark you should be able to put a toothpick in and have it go in like butter. Once it does, it is ready to be removed.
I generally like to take it out and put into a foil pan and loosely cover it for an hour or two before slicing. It needs time to rest. Once rested, slice and serve!
TLDR
- Soak in water 8-15 hours
- Dry and rub with mustard
- Add rub (brown sugar, chili powder, smoked paprika, garlic, onion)
- Sit for 30 min – overnight
- Smoke for around 8 hours
- Rest for 1-3 hours
- Slice & Eat