Whether you're sitting down to your fave St. Patrick's Day meal or you just want some yummy brisket, corned beef and cabbage is a great go-to meal. You can either buy the corned beef pre-cured with "corns" (large grains) of salt, or you can make your own. Fair warning — making your own is truly an investment of time (and fridge space), but it's time well spent and space well used.
How to Make Homemade Corned Beef
If you're feeling adventurous and have some time (and a brisket) on your hands, you can try curing your own corned beef.
Ingredients
- 1 (10 -12 pound) brisket
- 1 gallon of water (more may be needed)
- ½ pound of salt
- 5 tablespoons light corn syrup
- 5 tablespoons pink curing salt
- 4 cloves of garlic
- 1½ teaspoons pickling spice mix
Instructions
- Trim the fat cover on the brisket to ¼ inch thick.
- Combine the water, salt, corn syrup, and pink curing salt.
- Mix well to dissolve completely.
- In a blender, combine ¼ of the brine mixture with the garlic and spices and process until completely blended.
- Add the blended brine to the rest of the brine.
- Place the brisket in a deep plastic or stainless steel container and add enough brine to cover the brisket.
- Place a weight on the brisket. This could be a Pyrex pan or anything that is clean and heavy enough to weigh down the brisket.
- Wrap the whole container in plastic wrap and place in your refrigerator for 4-5 days.
- Once the brisket is completely brined, remove it from the brine and rinse it under cool running water.
- Let the corned beef rest in your refrigerator for at least 24 hours.
Related: Rustic & Rich Irish Lamb Stew Filled With Lamb, Luck, & Love
Corned Beef and Cabbage Recipes
You can use the homemade corned beef recipe above or pop out to the grocery store and grab some of the corned beef that usually hits the shelves in early march to make this yummy recipe. Serves 12.
Ingredients
- 1 6-pound corned beef
- 1 pound carrots, chopped
- 1 pound of onions, chopped
- 1 can of beer
- 1 tablespoon mustard seed
- 1 tablespoon coriander seed
- ½ tablespoon peppercorns
- ½ tablespoons dill seed
- 3 bay leaves
- 3 pounds cabbage
- 2 pounds new red potatoes
Instructions
- Using the largest stockpot you have, place the corned beef into it.
- Place half the carrots and half the onions into the pot with the beef.
- Pour in the beer. Add the mustard seeds, coriander seeds, peppercorns, dill seeds, and bay leaves.
- Add enough water to cover the corned beef.
- Mix everything well.
- Bring this to a boil and then reduce to a simmer.
- Cover and simmer for three hours, checking occasionally to make sure that the water is covering the beef.
- Cut the cabbage into wedges.
- Wash the potatoes and cut them in half. If the potatoes are about one inch in size, you do not need to cut them.
- Once the beef simmers for three hours, add the remaining carrots, onions, cabbage, and potatoes.
- Check the water level, everything should be covered with the water.
- Bring the water to a boil, and then reduce to a simmer.
- Simmer for 20 minutes until the potatoes and cabbage are tender.
- Remove everything from the pot.
- Slice the beef across the grain about ¼ inch thick.
A Great Way to Cook Brisket
We love a smoked brisket, it's true. But in the colder months, who wants to spend all that tromping outside to check on it? Not us. But making corned beef and serving it traditionally with cabbage and potatoes is a hearty, warming, winter or early spring meal that creates tender and tasty meat and veggies that everyone will love.
