The first Popstrami is just 4 weekends away! It’s getting serious.
We’ve been busy with the planning. Hannah had to go and buy a new sewing machine in order to make some appropriate themed bunting!
Tom has been exploring recipes for lacto-fermented sauerkraut.
I have been playing with various brine recipes and strengths. In a moment of madness I even ordered some Welsh Wagyu brisket to test out later in the week. This probably won’t be on the menu at Popstrami #1 but if it’s good perhaps at the next one (it’s £16/kg though!).
The biggest issue we are wrestling with is how much meat to order! We initially figured on about 75 people turning up to Popstrami #1 – but the huge response has made us think maybe that’s an underestimate.
Getting quantities right is a critical question to answer because we are about to place our meat order at the East London Steak Company. Right now we’re looking at 40kg of brisket. That’s a lot of brining and smoking! I’m going to need a bigger bucket …
Evan and Leo at Wise Sons Deli – they can now call themselves the “original deli pop-up” – took the time to talk us through their logistics. They sold an amazing 140 sandwiches – that’s 75kg of fresh brisket within 2 hours of opening. Of course that is in San Francisco, which we can perhaps agreee is “not Stirchley”. These guys are an inspiration. Check out how they make their borscht!
We don’t want to let you guys down who make the journey to us, so I am going to err on the side of over-provisioning!
Next weekend will be even more serious when the meat arrives and we get to brining!