Pastrami Sandwich Question

[larry_stewart]

I know this may seem bizarre coming from a vegetarian , but I got my hands on some vegetarian pastrami.
I doubt it tastes anything like pastrami, and its been decades since Ive had pastrami so I probably couldn't tell anyway.

My question is, I want to make a pastrami sandwich, but not sure how to go about it or variations.

Is there standard ingredients that go into a Pastrami sandwich?

Ive done a little searching, but see so many variations from Cheese ( multiple varieties ) to not cheese at all, Pickles, Dressing/ Mayo, Mustard, pickles , coleslaw..., Hot, Cold, Rye bread..

Just need some guidance so I can turn this crappy imitation into something worth eating.

 

[Andy M.]

I know this may seem bizarre coming from a vegetarian , but I got my hands on some vegetarian pastrami.
I doubt it tastes anything like pastrami, and its been decades since Ive had pastrami so I probably couldn't tell anyway.

My question is, I want to make a pastrami sandwich, but not sure how to go about it or variations.

Is there standard ingredients that go into a Pastrami sandwich?

Ive done a little searching, but see so many variations from Cheese ( multiple varieties ) to not cheese at all, Pickles, Dressing/ Mayo, Mustard, pickles , coleslaw..., Hot, Cold, Rye bread..

Just need some guidance so I can turn this crappy imitation into something worth eating.

The basic pastrami sandwich is on rye bread with mustard. Standard accompaniment is half sour pickles. Beyond that, it's up to you. Of course you can add any of the items you listed.

 

[msmofet]

The basic pastrami sandwich is on rye bread with mustard. Standard accompaniment is half sour pickles. Beyond that, it's up to you. Of course you can add any of the items you listed.

Hot pastrami on rye (Swiss cheese optional), mustard, pickle, fries and a Frosty mug egg cream!

 

[larry_stewart]

Thanks, just wanted to confirm I was on the right track. being from NY, I should be ashamed I didnt have the answers myself.

 

[WhateverYouWant]

Hot pastrami on rye with mustard is my one of my favs... but that is with really good pastrami.

How about a Rueben: Rye, swiss, sauerkraut and Russian dressing. If you don't have sauerkraut you can substitute cole slaw.

 

[GB]

As a New Yorker, I am sure you know that the mustard should be a good brown mustard of course

 

[dragnlaw]

As a Montrealer - here it is Smoked Meat on Rye.

Of course, there is a difference between Smoked Meat, Pastrami and Corned Beef.

and.. of course, Montreal's Schwartz's is the most famous.

Any day that I could afford to go out for lunch when I was working downtown that's where we'd go. But had to leave office 10 min early, otherwise the line-up was too long to grab, run and eat.

 

[WhateverYouWant]

Having never been to NYC, growing up in So. Cal. offered what is most likely some of the best pastrami ever… Langer's. We'd always stop there before going to a Dodger game and smuggle the sandwiches into the park (WAY better than a Dodger Dog).

Now-a-days, the best pastrami I can get in my small town is Boar's Head from the Holiday market, and man do I miss the real stuff. For those of you in areas like mine who can't get the real stuff (and are willing to splurge a little for a special occasion), Langer's is available on GoldBelly.

https://www.goldbelly.com/langers-deli/15556-langers-classic-pastrami-sandwich?ref=merchant

 

[Chief Longwind Of The North]

This looks interesting. But as pastrami is smoked corned beef. with a spice rub crust, I would add a bit of liquid smoke to the recipe.

https://www.onegreenplanet.org/vegan-recipe/carving-board-seitan-pastrami/

Seeeeya; Chief Longwind of the North

 

[larry_stewart]

As a New Yorker, I am sure you know that the mustard should be a good brown mustard of course

%100 With you on that.
So this is what I did ( remember , this is a vegan product which doesn't taste bad, but doesn't taste like what its supposed to, so you have to sue your imagination a bit and just make a sandwich that works.

Under normal conditions, I probably would have gone with the basic, Rye bread, and a good solid Schmear of Spicy brown mustard .

Knowing with what Im working with, I had to go big for flavor, so in addition to the above, I added some smoked provolone, sliced tomato, pickle and Cole slaw. I must say, the sandwich itself tasted great. The fake meat added more consistency than flavor, which was fine . And all the other additions really worked well.

 

[Whiskadoodle]

Cole Slaw good addition. I have to try this.

My favorite reuben is pastrami, Jarlsberg swiss, sauerkraut, russian dressing or spicy mustard or both, (one on each bread slice) on grilled caraway rye. Sometimes I use creole mustard if I don't have other mustard. Crunchy dill pickle on the side is a must.

 

[Bitser]

My wife is trying to adopt a plant-based diet (a challenge for me as the household chef). I've made pastrami and several other cured/smoked meats. But I've never seen veggie pastrami– what's the brand name?

Do you slice it and steam it before loading the sandwich?

 

[larry_stewart]

Im not sure of the brand name, but I got it online after seeing piece on the news of a NYC Deli that was serving Vegan Pastrami sandwiches . They mentioned the brand so being curious I searched it and go it. It was edible but wouldn't say it was great. I haven't had real Pastramin in like 40 years, and even then, not so often, so I couldn't do a direct comparison . I finished all up but haven't ordered it since.

This link is NOT the one I had originally ordered, but I have had theirs too with the same critiques. They have a lot of other stuff too, wouldn't say its great, but edible and offered variety in my diet. Again, ordered from them a few times but not often. Ill keep looking for the original site, but here's this for now.

https://www.theherbivorousbutcher.com/collections/a-la-carte

 

[larry_stewart]

Found it :

Here is the direct link
https://unrealdeli.com

And apparently she made a pitch on Shark Tank, here is the link to that too.
https://janeunchained.com/2019/12/05/vegan-pastrami-maker-wows-shark-tank/

 

[CharlieD]

Never cared for pastrami. And I love all kind of cold cuts, so Larry, it might just be that pastrami "is not it", as my daughter would say.