Homemade Montreal Smoked Meat Sandwiches

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Smoky brisket, yellow mustard, and the sort of sandwich that quiets a table for a minute.

Montreal smoked meat is not a delicate sandwich.

It arrives warm, peppery, slightly excessive, and balanced on rye bread that’s doing its absolute best to contain the situation. There’s mustard on your wrist by the second bite. Steam coming off the brisket. Pickles somewhere nearby. Usually cold beer too.

And while people outside Canada sometimes confuse it with pastrami, smoked meat has its own personality entirely. Less sweet. More heavily spiced. Smokier. Slightly rough around the edges in the best possible way.

Around here, this is the sort of food that appears at long cottage weekends, late-night kitchen conversations, and family gatherings where somebody eventually announces they’re “just having half a sandwich” before immediately making another one.

This post was originally published in 16, Nov 2016 and has been updated on May 17, 2026, with answers to questions and updated recipe ideas.

Why You’ll Love This Smoked Meat Recipe

• Feels equally at home at a cottage table or a backyard gathering
• Deep peppery flavour without becoming overly sweet
• Easier to make at home than most people expect
• Works beautifully for feeding a crowd
• Can be made using a full smoker or stovetop smoker
• Excellent for leftovers, late-night sandwiches, and questionable levels of second helpings
• The brisket slices beautifully once steamed properly

The Sandwich That Followed Me Home from Ottawa

Years ago, during a summer break from university, I somehow managed to land what felt like an absurdly grown-up summer job: an internship working in the Canadian parliament.

The politics side of things was interesting enough, but honestly, the better education happened at lunch.

Ottawa is full of people who are not originally from Ottawa, which means the city has an unexpectedly excellent food scene hiding between government buildings and office towers. Every office seemed to have fierce opinions about where to eat. There were debates. Rankings. Strongly worded recommendations.

Most of my coworkers swore by La Bottega.

I was loyal to Nate’s.

Because Nate’s served Montreal smoked meat (sadly, Nates closed in 2025 after the long tiem owner passed away).

At the time, I didn’t fully appreciate just how seriously people in Central and Eastern Canada take smoked meat. It has an almost cult-level following. Mention Schwartz’s to the right person and they’ll speak about it with the intensity normally reserved for hockey rivalries or municipal politics.

Quite rightly, too.

Why Montreal Smoked Meat Is Different from Pastrami

Montreal smoked meat and New York pastrami are close relatives, but they are not the same thing.

Both are cured, smoked, heavily seasoned, and sliced warm for sandwiches. Both rely heavily on black pepper and coriander. Both are deeply tied to Jewish deli traditions.

But Montreal smoked meat tends to lean smokier, less sweet, and more aggressively spiced.

Traditionally, smoked meat uses brisket, while classic pastrami often uses naval cut. Montreal smoked meat also uses less sugar overall, allowing garlic, mustard, pepper, and coriander to stay firmly in charge.

The texture differs too.

Pastrami often feels slightly softer and sweeter. Montreal smoked meat has more bark, more smoke, and just a little more attitude about it.

Which, frankly, is part of the appeal.

The Bread Matters More Than You Think

Good smoked meat needs proper rye bread.

Not delicate sandwich bread pretending to be rye because somebody sprinkled on a few seeds. Actual rye bread with enough structure to survive warm brisket, mustard, and the inevitable overfilling that happens once slicing begins.

Because nobody ever stacks smoked meat conservatively.

Yellow mustard works best here too.

Not truffle aioli.
Not garlic mayo.
Not anything described as “artisan.”

Just mustard.

Making smoked meat at home

The biggest thing you need for homemade smoked meat is some form of smoker.

Traditionally, Montreal delis often use electric smokers. In fact, Schwartz’s famously uses electric smokers because wood smoking is restricted within the city.

At home, though, you have options.

A full outdoor smoker works beautifully if you already own one. My uncle swears by his Bradley smoker and produces brisket with the sort of confidence usually associated with surgeons or airline pilots.

But honestly, a stovetop smoker works surprisingly well too.

It’s compact, affordable, and ideal if you don’t want a giant smoker dominating your patio year-round like some sort of steel garden monument.

All you need are small wood chips or sawdust — maple and hickory both work beautifully — along with a drip tray and rack setup. The heat comes directly from the stove, and if the brisket slightly outgrows the smoker, a bit of foil usually solves the problem.

Slightly inelegantly perhaps, but effectively.

The Beach Sandwich story

A few years ago, while celebrating our wedding, my cousin arrived carrying an entire smoked meat brisket from Montreal.

Which is, objectively speaking, one of the better things a person can arrive with.

That evening ended with my whole family sitting on the beach eating hot smoked meat sandwiches while the sun disappeared and somebody inevitably dropped pickle juice onto a sweatshirt.

It remains one of my favourite food memories.

Because smoked meat is fundamentally gathering food.

Nobody really makes it for one person.

Ingredients

For the Cure

• Beef brisket
• Kosher salt
• Black pepper
• Coriander
• Garlic
• Mustard seed
• Brown sugar
• Prague powder (if using)

For Smoking

• Maple or hickory wood chips
• Water tray for moisture

For Serving

• Rye bread
• Yellow mustard
• Dill pickles

Method

1. Cure the Brisket

Combine the cure ingredients and rub thoroughly over the brisket. Refrigerate for several days, turning occasionally so everything cures evenly.

2. Rinse and Dry

Once cured, rinse the brisket well and pat dry thoroughly.

A dry surface helps develop better bark during smoking.

3. Smoke Low and Slow

Prepare your smoker using maple or hickory chips.

Smoke the brisket slowly until tender and deeply coloured. The smell alone at this stage tends to attract people into the kitchen “just to check.”

4. Steam Before Slicing

This matters.

Proper smoked meat should be steamed before slicing to soften the brisket and create that classic deli texture.

5. Slice and Build Sandwiches

Slice against the grain.

Pile generously onto rye bread with yellow mustard and dill pickles.

Then immediately accept the fact you will probably need extra napkins.

A Few Small Tips Before You Start

• Slice against the grain or the brisket will feel tougher than it should
• Don’t skip the steaming step
• Rye bread genuinely matters here
• Yellow mustard is traditional for a reason
• Let the brisket rest slightly before slicing
• Smoked meat reheats exceptionally well the next day

What Else Works Here

If you want to change things slightly, there’s plenty of room to adapt.

Montreal smoked meat poutine is excellent during colder months when moderation has already largely left the building.

Smoked meat hash with fried eggs works beautifully for brunch.

And if you happen to have leftover brisket — which is optimistic, admittedly — smoked meat pizza is surprisingly good as well.

Different woods will also subtly shift the flavour. Maple keeps things slightly sweeter and more traditional, while hickory leans heavier and smokier.

What to Serve With Smoked Meat Sandwiches

Cold beer helps.

So do sharply sour dill pickles, kettle chips, simple slaw, or potato salad served out of an oversized bowl that sits on the table all evening.

This is not particularly fussy food.

It’s food for standing around kitchens. For feeding extra people who arrived unexpectedly. For late summer evenings when nobody’s in much of a hurry to leave.

Storage and Make-Ahead

Smoked meat stores beautifully in the refrigerator for several days.

Reheat gently with steam or a splash of water to keep the brisket tender.

The cured brisket can also be prepared ahead of time before smoking, which makes this surprisingly manageable for gatherings or weekends away.

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5 from 8 votes

Montreal Smoked Meat Sandwich

Make Montreal Smoked Meat in your own kitchen. Montreal smoked meat sandwiches, smoky and peppery on rye with mustard. The best sandwich in the world. Hands down.

Course lunch, Main Course, Snack

Cuisine Canadian

Keyword briskett, smoked, smoked meat

Servings 8 people

Calories 579kcal

Author Matt

Ingredients

Cure

• 1/2 cup Kosher salt
• 1.5 tablespoons ground black pepper
• 1.5 tablespoons ground coriander
• 1/2 tablespoons pink salt Prague Powder No. 1
• 1/2 tablespoons sugar
• 1/2 teaspoon ground bay leaf
• 1/2 teaspoon ground cloves
• 1/2 whole brisket around 6 pounds, fat trimmed

For the rub

• 1.5 tablespoons coarsely ground black pepper
• 1/2 tablespoons ground coriander
• 1/2 tablespoons hot smoked paprika
• 1/2 tablespoon garlic powder
• 1/2 tablespoon onion powder
• 1/2 teaspoon dill weed
• 1/3 teaspoon ground mustard
• 1/2 teaspoon celery seed
• 1/2 teaspoon crushed red pepper
• 1/2 teaspoon cayenne pepper
• ¼ teaspoon crushed caraway seed
• ⅔ teaspoon cracked yellow mustard seeds

Sandwiches

• 16 slices rye bread
• American mustard

Instructions

Cure

• To make the cure, in a small bowl mix together salt, pink salt, black pepper, coriander, sugar, bay leaf, and cloves. Coat entire brisket with the cure and place in an extra-large resealable plastic bag. Place in the coldest part of the refrigerator and cure for 4 days, flipping brisket twice a day. emove brisket from bag and wash as much cure off as possible under cold running water. Place brisket in a large container and fill with water and let soak for 2 hours, replacing water every 30 minutes. Remove from water and pat dry with paper towels.

Smoking

• To make the rub, mix together the spices. Coat entire brisket with the rub.
• Heat the oven to 225 degrees. If you are using a proper smoker, smoke the brisket for 6-7 hours. If you are using a stove-top smoker, heat the wood chips until they start smoking and place the brisket on the rack and tightly close the lid. After 20min on the stove, place the whole stove top smoker into the over. Continue to cook for 4-5 hours. Try to not check it during this time, let the meat break down. At the end the meat should register at 165 degrees.

Serving

• When ready, carefully pour water into the steaming tray of the stove top smoker. About 500ml. Tightly close again, and return to the oven. Keep cooking until it reaches 180 degrees. If using a full smoker, take the meat off and place on a rack on a roasting pan. Fill the pan with about an inch of water and tightly cover with foil. Place in a pre-heated oven (225) and cook for anther 1-2 hours until it reaches 180 degrees.
• Take out, let cool slightly (watch out for steam!) and then slice hot. Load up some rye bread with meat, top with American mustard and slice-n-serve.

Notes

The Cameron Stovetop smoker used in this recipe

Nutrition

Serving: 390g | Calories: 579kcal | Carbohydrates: 24.15g | Protein: 77g | Fat: 19g

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