Pastrami substitute

Best substitute

Corned beef

Use the same amount as the pastrami you are replacing

Best for Reuben and Rachel sandwiches

Close match

On a Reuben or a rye sandwich, deli pastrami is doing four jobs at once: it brings the salt, the fat that carries mustard and dressing, the smoke, and the peppery-coriander crust that makes the sandwich taste seasoned. That is why plain roast beef fails so badly as a swap, since it supplies none of them. Corned beef is the right answer for most people at 1:1, because it is the same brine cure without the crust or the smoke, and pressing cracked black pepper and crushed coriander seed onto the slices and warming them in a dry pan closes most of the gap in two minutes. Montreal smoked meat swaps 1:1 and is arguably better, being more coriander-forward and often fattier. Smoked or peppered deli turkey works 1:1 if you need something leaner, but the sandwich will be drier and will not taste beefy, so add an extra spoonful of dressing.

Other pastrami substitutes

Ranked, with the exact amount to use

2Montreal smoked meat
Close match
Use the same amount
Essentially the same idea executed differently: brisket brine-cured with more coriander and less sugar, then smoked and steamed.
What changes
It is often fattier and more peppery than New York pastrami and many people prefer it. In a sandwich it tastes slightly less sweet and more aromatic.
Best for
Reuben and Rachel sandwiches, rye with mustard, anywhere pastrami is called for
Ask for the medium or fatty cut rather than lean, which is the same advice as for pastrami. Steam or microwave the slices briefly, since like pastrami it is meant to be served hot.
3Smoked beef brisket (barbecue style)
Different taste
Use the same amount
Right smoke and right fat, wrong cure.
What changes
Barbecue brisket is dry-rubbed rather than brined, so it tastes sweeter, more of paprika and smoke and less of the tangy salt-cure that gives pastrami its bite. Sliced very thin against the grain it makes an excellent sandwich, just one that reads as barbecue rather than deli.
Best for
hot sandwiches, Reuben-style sandwiches, hash and eggs, when a good barbecue place is closer than a deli
Skip any added salt in the sandwich, because barbecue rubs are already heavily salted. Slice as thin as you can manage while it is cold, then warm the slices, which is much easier than trying to slice it hot.
4Turkey pastrami or peppered smoked turkey
Taste and texture differ
Use the same amount
Turkey pastrami gets the cure and the pepper crust and only misses the beefiness, which makes it the best of the poultry options.
What changes
Plain peppered smoked turkey is a step further away. Both are much leaner, so the sandwich is noticeably drier and less satisfying, and mustard and dressing taste sharper without fat to soften them.
Best for
lighter sandwiches, leaner eating, kosher-style and pork-free menus, when a deli only has turkey
Add an extra tablespoon of Russian dressing, mayonnaise or butter to the sandwich to make up for the missing fat, and use slightly more meat than you would pastrami, since it eats thinner.
5Salt beef or boiled beef
Close match
Use the same amount
The British and Jewish East End version of the same cure, sold in Jewish delis and often labelled salt beef.
What changes
It is very close to corned beef, mild, salty and tender, with no pepper crust and no smoke. On rye with hot mustard it is excellent, and simply less aromatic than pastrami.
Best for
rye sandwiches with English mustard and pickles, Reubens, sandwich platters, salt beef bagels
Warm the slices in a little of their own liquor or steam them, since salt beef dries out fast at room temperature. Press pepper and coriander onto the slices if you want it closer to pastrami.
6Bresaola or peppered salami
Taste and texture differ
About half the weight of pastrami
The honest weakest option and worth understanding before you try.
What changes
Bresaola is air-dried beef, so it is intensely lean, dense and concentrated with no smoke at all, and peppered salami is fatty, fermented and tangy. Both are much stronger than pastrami by weight and neither can be piled high, so a sandwich made with them is a completely different sandwich.
Best for
antipasti and boards, small sandwiches, salads, when a deli case has no cured beef at all
Use half as much as the recipe says or the sandwich will be overpowering, and skip any added salt. Bresaola is best served at room temperature and does not benefit from warming, unlike pastrami.

What is Pastrami?

Pastrami is Pastrami is beef navel or brisket that has been brine-cured, coated thickly in cracked black pepper and crushed coriander seed, smoked and then steamed until it is tender enough to slice thin.

Cooking tips

Pastrami is meant to be eaten hot, and the single biggest improvement you can make to any pastrami substitute is to warm it. Steam the slices in a colander over simmering water for 2 to 3 minutes, or wrap them in a damp paper towel and microwave 20 to 30 seconds. Cold slices from the fridge eat rubbery and tight.
The two spices that define pastrami are black pepper and coriander seed, in roughly equal measure and both coarsely cracked rather than ground. If you are rebuilding pastrami flavour on corned beef or brisket, those are the only two you need, and coriander seed is the one people forget.
Ask the deli counter for the fatty end rather than the lean end. Pastrami with almost no fat cap is dry and stringy no matter how carefully you handle it, and the fat is what carries the pepper and coriander.
Always slice across the grain and as thin as you can. A thick-cut slice of pastrami is chewy and stringy, while paper-thin slices piled loosely eat tender even from a mediocre piece of meat.
For the sandwich itself: a Reuben is pastrami or corned beef with Swiss cheese, sauerkraut and Russian dressing on grilled rye, and a Rachel swaps the sauerkraut for coleslaw. If you swap the meat, keep everything else the same and the sandwich still works.

Frequently asked questions

Is pastrami the same as corned beef?

They share the same brine cure and often the same cut, but pastrami is then coated in cracked pepper and coriander seed, smoked and steamed, while corned beef is simply boiled or steamed. That is why pastrami tastes smoky and peppery and corned beef tastes cleaner and saltier. They swap 1:1 in any sandwich.

Can I use roast beef instead of pastrami?

It is the most common swap and the least successful. Roast beef is uncured, unsmoked and unseasoned beyond salt and pepper, so a Reuben made with it tastes bland and watery next to the sauerkraut and dressing. If it is all you have, season the slices generously with salt, cracked pepper and crushed coriander and warm them in a pan with a little butter.

Can I just leave the pastrami out?

Not in a Reuben, where it is the entire sandwich. In a hash, a soup garnish or a salad you can, and the dish will simply be milder and less salty, so season it up. For a vegetarian version of the sandwich, thick slices of roasted portobello or smoked marinated tofu with plenty of pepper and coriander give you the shape of it, though not the flavour.

What is the difference between pastrami and Montreal smoked meat?

Both are brine-cured, spiced, smoked and steamed brisket. Montreal smoked meat generally uses more coriander and less sugar in the cure, is smoked a little longer, and is traditionally sold fattier. The two are close enough to swap 1:1 without adjusting anything else in the sandwich.

Can I eat pastrami cold?

You can, and packaged deli slices are safe to eat straight from the pack, but it is not how the meat is meant to be enjoyed. Cold pastrami is firm and the fat is waxy. Two minutes of steaming transforms it, and any substitute you use will benefit from the same treatment.

Related substitutes

More meat & protein substitutes

Pastrami substitute

Other pastrami substitutes

2Montreal smoked meat

3Smoked beef brisket (barbecue style)

4Turkey pastrami or peppered smoked turkey

5Salt beef or boiled beef

6Bresaola or peppered salami