Happy St. Patrick’s Day everyone! And I mean everyone, because in America, everyone seems to be Irish on March 17th!! And of course I must
Corned Beef with Cabbage and Potatoes
support this and throw my (mostly German) hat into the ring as well. I love St. Patrick’s Day. Any day that comes with many parades, amazing Irish dancers, everyone wearing Green for no other reason other than the date – what’s not to love?!!? Fun and often yummy foods and sweets. I even think some people celebrate by drinking Guinness, Harp, Bailey’s and Jameson… that’s what I’ve been told at least 😉
For the past several years on March 15th or so I get a great idea “Let’s make our own corned beef!”. Oh, wait…it takes 10 days to corn a beef? Ok, fine, I’ll just head over to Whole Foods and pick one up that’s been done for me. At least we can still have the traditional meal and I’m technically still making Corned Beef and Cabbage. Finally, last year I remembered early and decided to go even further and taste test 2 different recipes for the brine. We invited some friends (of actual Irish decent) over to help us compare and have a Big Irish Feast! This year I’ve perfected my brine recipe and my cooking liquid recipe from last year’s critiques and they are below for your enjoyment.
Oh – and don’t forget, leftovers are perfect on Sunday for Corned Beef Hash!
Have a Happy and Safe St. Patrick’s Day Everyone!!
Corned Beef Brisket
2 quarts water
1 cup kosher salt
½ cup brown sugar
2 tablespoons InstaCure No.1*
1 cinnamon stick, broken into several pieces
1 teaspoon mustard seeds
1 teaspoon black peppercorns
8 whole allspice berries
12 whole juniper berries
2 bay leaves, crumbled
2 tablespoons grated fresh ginger
2 pounds ice
1 (4 to 5 pound) beef brisket, trimmed
Place the water into a large 6 to 8 quart stockpot along with salt, sugar, InstaCure, cinnamon stick, mustard seeds, peppercorns, allspice, juniper berries, bay leaves and ginger. Cook over high heat until the salt and sugar have dissolved.
Remove from the heat and add the ice. Stir until the ice has melted. If necessary, place the brine into the refrigerator until it reaches a temperature of 45 degrees F. Once it has cooled, place the brisket in a 2-gallon zip top bag and add the brine. Seal and lay flat inside a container, cover and place in the refrigerator for 10 days. Check daily to make sure the beef is completely submerged and stir the brine.
After 10 days, remove from the brine and rinse well under cool water.
*InstaCure No.1 is a mixture of sodium nitrate and salt that is Pink! and used to prevent botulism in cured and smoked sausages. You can buy it online.
Corned Beef and Cabbage Dinner
1 12-ounce bottle Guinness or Murphy’s stout
4 bay leaves
4 sprigs of thyme
1 tablespoon coriander seeds
2 medium onions, peeled, halved through root ends
2 whole allspice
12 baby turnips, trimmed
3 pounds baby potatoes
12 baby carrots, peeled
2 pounds of baby green cabbage, quartered through root ends
Place rinsed corned beef in a very large pot. Add stout and enough water to cover by 1 inch. Add the Bay leaves, coriander, allspice, onions and thyme.
Bring the pot to a boil over high heat. Reduce the heat to medium low, cover and simmer until beef is tender 2-3 hours. Remove beef from the pot and add the vegetables. Bring to a boil, then reduce the heat to medium and simmer until all the vegetables are tender, about 20 minutes.
Return the beef to the pot for 5 minutes to reheat. Slice against the grain and serve with vegetables and Stout mustard.
Serves 6 to 8.
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