Slow Cooker Pastrami Sandwiches are easy to make for a crowd or for your lunches and takes just a few ingredients. You’ll never buy deli pastrami again!
Slow Cooker Pastrami Sandwiches are the latest slow cooker sandwiches in my new series of recipes. With crazy busy lives we’ve been trying to come up with ways to make lunchtime an easier meal to prepare for. My husband works in a normal office setting so any style of lunch works for him, but I need something portable. When you’re in a kitchen working you need to be able to eat quickly, so sandwiches have been my go-to meal for a while now.
Some of the skepticism I’ve seen about the slow cooker sandwiches is the fact that most people are used to slow cooker sandwiches being full of overcooked falling apart meat. This really doesn’t have to be the case.
I cook the Slow Cooker Pastrami Sandwiches for 6 hours on low instead of 8 to preserve some of the “stays in one piece” quality of the meat. Because of that I can hold up slices of meat from this recipe like this: 
Most roasts/meats that are slow cooked would break in half if you tried to hold up a slice, but by cooking it shy of the standard 8 hours most people cook on low for you’ll have slices of meat that are easy to cut and not as messy to eat. 
Your Slow Cooker Pastrami Sandwiches aren’t going to win any sort of a beauty competition in the slow cooker, it won’t even look like that gorgeous pink color exists in the slow cooker anymore because of all the black pepper coating the outside. Inside you’ll still have plenty of moisture, but if you want to have that true steamed flavor to the pastrami I would suggest adding some slices to a plate, covering with a wet paper towel and microwaving for 30 second increments until you’re satisfied.
If you’re keeping track here are the other slow cooker sandwiches we’ve got so far:
- Slow Cooker Roast Beef Sandwiches with Horseradish
- Slow Cooker Pastrami Sandwiches
- Slow Cooker Philly Cheese Steak Sandwiches
- Slow Cooker Reuben Sandwiches
- Slow Cooker McRib Sandwiches
- Turkey Moist Maker Sandwich <— turkey made in the slow cooker
There’s more on the way too, I’ve made and photographed another 10 slow cooker sandwiches, so if you’re enjoying this series definitely stick around, more are coming!
Some things to note with these Slow Cooker Pastrami Sandwiches:
- Unlike most roast sized pieces of meat you are not supposed to brown this one.
- If your spices aren’t adhering well to the meat try rubbing some oil on it, I use canola.
- Let the meat cool then gently wrap in foil and cool completely in the fridge, this well make for easier slicing.
- We’re using corned beef here to skip the curing process but corned beef is super salty, so we’re soaking the meat. You can skip the soaking if you don’t mind the extra salt flavor, but it won’t taste quite as much like pastrami.
- I grind my own black peppercorns for this recipe, if you use standard black pepper it will taste AWFUL. Let me say that again, please don’t use normal black pepper, that has been grinded down much too finely for this recipe. It will be inedible.
Tools used in the making of these Slow Cooker Pastrami Sandwiches:
Spice Grinder: Perfect for grinding spices, just don’t switch back and forth between coffee and spices, your coffee will taste awful.
Brining Container: I used this to brine meats because the size prevents having to cram larger cuts into smaller spaces and deform them. Also, the lid snaps on very tightly, I’ve never had a leaking issue.
Spice Rack – I buy spices in bulk from local grocers and from Penzey’s. It’s less expensive and significantly higher quality than buying the jars individually but I ended up being left with tons of little bags of spices. Enter the spice rack.
Slow Cooker: Love this slow cooker and how programmable it is, it has been a workhorse for me… until…
My New Slow Cooker: This recipe was made in this slow cooker. For larger roasts I also brown the meat in the insert and not lose a bunch of the flavor by transferring the meat and leaving the browned bits behind. If you’re thinking of a new slow cooker, consider it if your budget is open.
Ingredients
- 5 pounds raw corned beef in a package in your meat department
- 1/2 cup brown sugar
- 1/4 cup black peppercorns
- 2 tablespoons coriander seeds
- 1/2 cup water
- 8 slices Provolone Cheese
- 8 hoagie rolls
- 2 tablespoons butter
- 4 tablespoons spicy brown mustard
Instructions
- Soak the corned beef in a bowl of water with it's spice packet and brown sugar for 24 hours.
- Using a coffee grinder, add the peppercorns and coriander and grind until coarsely chopped, like a very coarse pepper mill would create. You should see the pieces of black pepper individually.
- Mix the pepper and coriander seeds on a large plate
- Dry off the meat once soaked and roll it in the spice mixture.
- Cook on low in your slow cooker for 6 hours.
- Wait for the meat to cool in the refrigerator, then slice thinly or use a deli slicer for even thinner cuts.
- If desired you can steam before adding to your sandwich for the true deli experience.
- Cut the hoagie rolls open and spread with butter before toasting.
- Layer cheese, then pastrami and finally spicy brown mustard.
Nutrition
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Your recipe calls for cooking a corned beef, then calls it pastrami in the sandwich making part. Corned beef and pastrami are 2 different curing processes for beef brisket, not interchangeable.
“What is the Difference between Corned Beef and Pastrami?
Both corned beef and pastrami are made of brisket, the difference lies in the cut of beef and the way the meat is processed. Pastrami is from the highly fatty navel end of the brisket. And while both corned beef and pastrami are cured in a salt brine, corned beef is only boiled afterwards whereas pastrami is also smoked.
What is the Difference between Corned Beef and Pastrami?
Both corned beef and pastrami are made of brisket, the difference lies in the cut of beef and the way the meat is processed. Pastrami is from the highly fatty navel end of the brisket. And while both corned beef and pastrami are cured in a salt brine, corned beef is only boiled afterwards whereas pastrami is also smoked.
I looked at your recipe for slow cooker pastrami sandwiches and I’m confused. You say to cook the corned beef, cool it and “Layer cheese, then pastrami and finally spicy brown mustard”. Pastrami and corned beef are two different cured meats.
Hi Sabrina, we did the soak in a “bowl of water” with the seasoning packet and brown sugar. We wondered about the amount of water, but decided to go with just enough to cover the entire roast. This morning, we dried it off, rubbed it with the ground pepper and coriander. I noticed the 1/2 cup of water in the ingredients list but saw no reference to it in the instructions. We assumed it was to go in the slow cooker. Our slow cook is underway
and I just noticed that others inquired about the half cup of water and made their own assumptions as we did. One could also guess the half cup of water is for use in the steaming process. Would you mind clarifying where and how the half cup of water should be used, please?
Greetings you don’t have mentioned the size of ingredients in the slow cooker and what proportions for peppercorn and
I’m not sure I understand the question. I have quantities and measurements of ingredients in the recipe card above. If you would like to clarify or troubleshoot, shoot me an email at contact @ dinnerthendessert .com
How long does it need to to steam? I already have everything to do this up with except the provolone. I haven’t had one of these sandwiches in ages and I’m well over due.Thank you. ~D
Steam for about 15 to 20 minutes. I hope you enjoy it!
Confused, If it is “corned Beef” it is already Brined, What is the purpose of REBRINING?
You’re soaking it to get the salt out of it. That’s why we’re only using a spice packet and brown sugar. Pastrami has a much lower salt content than corned beef. Hope this clear it up for you. 🙂
How much. Water for the brine.half a cup Doesnt seem to cover meat when you add the. Sugar
If you put it all in a ziplock bag, it’ll cover and work perfectly! I hope you enjoy it!
This is fantastic! I used a flat cut because that’s what I had. So, so good. This is def going into my sandwich collection of recipes. Thank you!
Awesome! It’s such a great one to have on hand.
Do you add any liquid to the slow cooker?
Nope, no need to add any liquid to the slow cooker.
Whoops, I added 1/2 cup of water. Didn’t seem to matter, as it was delicious!
So glad it turned out!! Thanks for coming back and letting me know how much you enjoyed it.
Living where there is no Pastrami I am in the process of making this… Gingers crossed!
Just wondering if you found a use for all that peppery juice at the bottom of the slow cooker? Seems a shame to waste it.
Might freeze it in cubes and use as a base for soups and stews (used sparingly as is very spicy). May have overground the pepper!
I’d think you might be able to use it for pickling onions. I hope you enjoyed the recipe.
Two questions: 1) Do you buy the Flat or Tip Corned Beef to use in this recipe? 2) Would it be possible to have the meat cutter slice the meat, and ‘tie’ it? …before the seasoning & cooking and crock pot, to get that final “yummy” result. I love hot Pastrami sandwiches! (but I don’t like thick slices and doubt I could slice them as thin as I like – I don’t have a “deli slicer”.)
I used a point cut with this recipe. I see what you’d like to accomplish with having the butcher slice and tie but I’m not sure it would work with this slow cooker version. The meat really does fall apart while cooking so I would suggest cooking it about 2 hours less than recommended and then you’d be able to slice it yourself. If you wait for it to cool completely and then slice, you’ll be able to better handle it.
I love what you can do with a Slow Cooker! This sounds amazing for dinner this week!
Oh yes, my slow cooker and I are BFFs!!
That looks amazing! I’m a huge sandwich fan and pastrami is one of my favorites! And I checked out that slow cooker you recommended…that might have to be my next purchase…I’d love to have one that browns the meat first!
Do it!! It really does make it so much easier!
That black pepper crust looks amazing!! I’m not usually a pastrami girl but I am craving this sandwich right now.
One bite and you’ll be hooked!
This looks absolutely amazing! And totally reminds me of my dad – he would have loved this!
What an amazing looking sandwich! My family would love it!
Thanks Cathy!
Those look soooo good! Now I know what I want for dinner! 🙂
I wish I had this for lunch right now! It looks so good!
Come on over 😉