Pastrami Style Pulled Pork: How to make pastrami-style pulled pork for your St. Patrick's day cookout.

If you’re looking to shake up your St. Patrick’s Day celebration, it’s time to move beyond the standard corned beef. This year, we’re taking the "flavorful journey" of pastrami and applying it to a Boston butt.

Using a pork shoulder for pastrami-style pulled pork is a game-changer. The higher fat content of the pork ensures a succulent, forgiving result that pairs perfectly with the bold, peppery spices of a traditional pastrami. Whether you’re a seasoned pitmaster or a home cook, this "New Ir-ish" BBQ staple is the ultimate way to level up your holiday spread.

🍀 Pastrami vs. Corned Pork: What’s the Difference?

While both start with a pork shoulder and a curing process, they finish very differently:

  Corned Pork: Like its beef cousin, this is brined in salt, sugar, and pickling spices (mustard seeds, bay leaves, peppercorns). It is typically simmered or boiled, resulting in a tender, salty, and mild flavor profile.

  Pastrami-Style Pork: We take that cured pork, coat it in a heavy crust of black pepper (corianderoptional), and smoke it low and slow. The result? A bold, aromatic, and smoky masterpiece that pulls apart into tender shreds.

🛠 Tips for Success with Pork

  Prep the Butt: Before brining, trim the meat of anything that you want to remove. Pork butts rarely need to be trimmed much. 

  Rinse Thoroughly: After a week in the brine, rinse the pork completely. You want the flavor of the spices, not a "salt bomb" end product.

  The Snake Method: If you're using a Weber Kettle, the "Snake Method" (as detailed on my website) is vital. Arrange your B&B Charcoal in a semicircle to maintain a consistent low heat for the duration of the cook. Whatever smoker you own or prefer will work just fine.

🍖 The Recipe: St. Paddy’s Pastrami Pulled Pork

Step 1: Brining the Pork

The magic starts with a 7–10 day brine.

  1 gallon water

  1 cup kosher salt

  1 cup brown sugar

  2 tbsp Pink Curing Salt (Prague Powder #1)

  1/2 cup pickling spice (mustard seeds, coriander, peppercorns, bay leaves, garlic)

  1 tbsp allspice berries

Combine ingredients in a pot, bring to a boil to dissolve salts, then cool completely with ice. Submerge the pork entirely and refrigerate, flipping halfway through the week. DO NOT ADD MEAT TO A HOT BRINE!

Step 2: The Rub

Rinse and pat the pork dry. While I prefer simple 16-mesh black pepper to let the brine shine, a traditional pastrami rub adds incredible crust:

  1/4 cup coarsely ground black pepper

  2 tbsp crushed coriander seeds

  1 tbsp smoked paprika

  1 tbsp garlic powder

  1 tbsp onion powder

Step 3: Smoking the Pork

  Preheat your smoker or Weber Kettle to 225°F–250°F.

  Place the pork on the grate (fat side up) away from direct heat.

  The Timeline: For pork, plan on roughly 1 hour per pound, plus 1 hour for prep and 2 hours for resting. For an 8 lb Boston butt, give yourself at least 11 hours. Your Meat may finish within the time frame, but you can always rest the meat a little longer.

  Smoke until the internal temperature reaches 203°F. You are looking for "probe tender" (like sliding a knife into warm butter).

Step 4: The Rest and Shred

Remove the pork and let it rest for at least 1 hour. This allows the juices to redistribute. Instead of slicing, use hands(gloved) to shred the meat into succulent, pink, peppery strands.

Why Make This for St. Patrick's Day?

Making pastrami at home allows you to control the quality of the pork and the salt levels. Serving a pile of pastrami-style pulled pork on a platter with some braised cabbage or on rye sliders will turn your backyard BBQ into the best deli in town.

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