I don't add anything but the packet that comes with the corned beef and a bottle of beer and a sliced onion. I also use a crockpot.

Colcannon is the real Irish National Dish, while Corned Beef and Cabbage is an Irish-American thing. Here are a few recipes from my Irish stash. You can leave the cabbage out of any of these recipes. You will note the addition of mustard or mustard powder in these recipes, and the last recipe gives the reason why. -Grainlady

Corned Beef and Cabbage
(source: Malachi McCormick's Irish Country Cooking)

3# corned beef
3 bay leaves
1 t. ground cloves
1 T. freshly ground black pepper
1 T. dried mustard powder
1 head of cabbage, 1-1/2 to 2 pounds

Put the corned beef and all the seasonings in a large ot, and cover with water Bring lowly to a boil, cover, and simmer gently for an hour.

Meanwhile, cut away the fibrous part of the cabbage stalk, discard it, then cut the head into eight sections. When the beef has been simmering for an hour, add the cabbage, and simmer for another half hour, or until the cabbage is very tender. Allow the corned beef and cabbage to cool down in the pan for about half an hour. Then, carve the beef and serve it with cabbage. A good accompaniment is potatoes boiled in the jacket.

Corned Beef with Dilled Cabbage 2\-1/2 to 3\-1/2 pound corned beef brisket 2 c. water 1/4 c. honey 2 T. Dijon\-style mustard 1 medium head cabbage, cut into 8 wedges 3 T. butter, softened 1\-1/2 t. chopped fresh dill or 1/2 t. dried dillweed Heat oven to 350\-degrees F. In a Dutch oven, place brisket and water; cover tightly and simmer in 350\-degree oven for one hour. Turn brisket over and continue cooking, covered 1\-1/2 to 2\-hours, or until meat is tender. Remove brisket from cooking liquid and place, fat side up, on rack in broiler pan so surface of meat is 3\-4 inches from heat. Combine honey and 1 T. of the mustard; brush half of mixture over top of the brisket; broil for 3\-minutes. Brush with remaining mixture and continue broiling 2 minutes or until brisket is glazed. Meanwhile, steam cabbage 15\-20 minutes or until tender. Combine remaining mustard with butter and dill; spread over hot cabbage wedges. Carve brisket diagonally across the grain into thin slices and serve with cabbage. Makes 8\-servings. Note: It is very important to simmer corned beef since boiling will cause meat to become tough. ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ Corned Beef and Cabbage (source: A Taste of Ireland In Food and In Pictures \- by Theodora Fitzgibbon) 4 pound corned beef 1 lg. carrot 2 lg. onions, stuck with 4 cloves 1 lg. (or 2 small) cabbages 1 t. dry mustard powder sprig of thyme sprig of parsley pepper cold water Put the meat into a large saucepan with all the ingredients except the cabbage. Cover with cold water and bring to the boil; then skim off any scum. over and simmer very slowly for 3/4\-hour, then put the cabbage, trimmed and cut into quarters. Cook the meat for 30\-minutes to the pound and serve on a dish surrounded with the cabbage. The stock makes excellent dried split\-pea soup, either the yellow or green variety. When cold, remove any fat from the top and add 1\-lb. split peas per 2\-quarts stock. Cook fairly fast about 1\-1/2 to 2 hours, or until the peas become a puree. If soaked overnight they cook much faster. The pea puree can be cooked with pickled pork and used as a sauce. \*Author Note \- I am indebted to Mrs. Sara Kenny for telling me of the dry mustard powder. It has a magical effect \- the beef is always tender and moist after using it.

I'll be doing our corned beef the same way I did it last year. Slow roasted, with lots of additional black pepper.
More like an unsmoked pastrami.

I don't think I will ever boil a corned beef again.

And I am thinking of doing Colcannon Bundles as found on Monique's Blog.

sushipup: Thanks for your encouraging input.

grainlady: Thank you for the many recipes. You're always
faithful.

ann_t: Do you cover the corned beef when cooking? What liquid do you put in with it? Please share why you feel so strongly about not using a crockpot in this case.

Does anyone know exactly what seasonings are in the little envelope that usually comes with the beef?

There is a restaurant in Bangor Maine, Gaeghan's, that serves the best New England corned beef, and it includes beets!

Pink, I don't feel strongly about others using a crock pot or making a boiled corned beef dinner. I know it is the traditional way and that it is liked by many.

It is just one of those traditional dinners that I've never really cared for. Every time I've made this dinner, I ask my self why? No one in the family really cared fo the boiled dinner. Except for the next day corned beef sandwiches, the consensus was that it is a very boring bland dinner.

Last year though, I tried this new method, and we all loved it.

I have another corned beef on order from the same butcher. The only thing I did was to roll it in extra black pepper. Wrapped it tightly in foil, and placed in a roasting pan, covered with more foil. It was slow roasted at 250°F for about six hours.

Melt in the mouth tender and not water logged.

~Ann

Here is a link that might be useful: Link - Corned Beef Dinner

I like to add additional pickling spices, a bay leaf or 2, and garlic. Usually just boil/simmer till tender, but often pull when almost there. Then rub with spices/salt/brown sugar and into oven to make a version of "unsmoked pastrami", an a previous poster mentioned.

CAN'T BELIEVE I never thought to use the liquid it simmers in... like for soup!! Definitely gonna save it this time.

I do mine in the crockpot, exactly for the reason Ann T mentioned, the meal is not a favorite of mine or Elery's. My girls loved it, loved the hash we had the next day and loved the Reubens from any leftover corned beef.

I always served it with colcannon and I still make colcannon regularly, not just for St. Patrick's Day. I like the colcannon better than the corned beef but I still want to make it each year because I just LOVE the corned beef hash I make from the leftovers. I'm not a fan of Irish Soda Bread or Guinness either. (shrug)

As Grainlady mentioned, corned beef and cabbage is an American-Irish thing, the Irish couldn't traditionally afford to eat beef, that was sent to England and as a "pauper nation" they were far more likely to eat the potatoes and cabbage themselves.

I don't usually add extra seasonings, only what is already with the corned beef, but I add lots of vegetables: cabbage, potatoes, onions and carrots, sometimes turnips or rutabaga. What can I say? It must be the Irish genetics, LOL, I love the vegetables.

Annie

I have a brisket brining with some garlic and Michael Ruhlman's spice mixture. Part went in the brine, and part will go in the pot. I corned my own beef for the first time last year and doubt we'll ever go back.

I think I'll try slow-roasting half of it (pastrami-ish....mmmmm), but I dare not deviate from the usual on St. Pat's Day. Raised by a Boston Irish mom, I detested boiled dinners. Then I learned you don't have to boil the cabbage to death and now we look forward to corned beef and cabbage once a year, with the leftovers made into hash.

Ruhlman's spice mix:
Toast:2 tablespoons each black peppercorns, mustard seeds, coriander seeds
Mix with:
2 tablespoons hot red-pepper flakes
2 tablespoons allspice berries
1 tablespoon ground mace
2 small cinnamon sticks, crushed or broken into pieces
2 to 4 bay leaves, crumbled
2 tablespoons whole cloves
1 tablespoon ground ginger

I simmer mine with a quart bottle of ginger ale and the rest of the liquid water. When I serve it I serve it with hollandaise sauce with a large dollop of seeded mustard added to it. We love it.

Katiec: Are you already brining for St.Pat's Day? How long do you brine? The sodium content on the store's corn beef is so high-I think I will try yours. Do you use any liquid in the brine or is it just the spice mix and garlic? Sorry for all the questions!

Liz

I'm guessing the American thing is the pre-brined with the spice packet and a soda pop, then boiled. To death, with pealed potatoes and cabbage wedges. Very salty.

I have many Irish friends and corned beef and cabbage is very traditional. Though not nearly as simplified. More veggies, spinach pies, soda bread, bread puddings...
Many moved to NYC in their mid twenties, still say "one, two, tree", and hosted the event for years. Many different apps and sides as varied as our Thanksgivings.

I really enjoy these holidays. Try something new, some favorites are now tradition. No real right way, or what i just read, "...the right way is your way". Like ann-t, The right way is the way you like it. Or what your family likes, expects.

My dry rub is just like katiec. I just wet brine 24hrs. Then dry rub 24hrs. Then a grainy mustard, yogurt, horseradish smear, wrap tight in parchment, then foil, and low and slow braise in the oven. A bit more Texas style and we were planning on smoking, but another snow storm might prevent that, grrr, (brrr). I do tuck in a quartered potato, onion, and a carrot just for a bit of gravy flavor. And this year a sliced meyer lemon.

I have not shopped yet, but have tried to simplify for a do-ahead menu. Prepped and packed to go on the smoker/grill while we tap the maples with neighbor friends. Not sure that will happen if the snow totals are too much, again.
Smoked salmon, cukes, Irish blue, horseradish cream. Pease pudding (lentils), braised cabbage with apple and beets, figgy duff (bread pudding...i tuck in chunks of dark chocolate).

Good recipes in this link. Even has the 17day prep corned beef (!-too late for that-!). And a similar braised cabbage slaw that i will be doing as it can bake along with the brisket. I add shallots, and meyer lemons this year that i need to use up.

Here is a link that might be useful: Irish Favorites

Liz, it's brined in water and the brine has plenty of salt in it, and pink salt, which I cut back a bit. Last year it was just right... not too salty at all. I started it Monday...earlier than the recipe says, but that's when I could get to it. Here's the recipe:

Here is a link that might be useful: Corned beef

Katiec: Do you use the first cut (flat) as recipe calls for or the second? I know the flat is neater looking, easier to slice and leaner, but the second is usually more moist because of the higher fat content. Just wondering, since you made this last year and were pleased with the outcome, which you chose?

Liz

OK, KatieC, you've convinced me to try it again. I've done corned beef in the past and just didn't think it was worth the time.

I'll drag out my copy of "Charcuterie" and get it started tomorrow, that should give me just enough time to finish for St. Pat's!

I like to use the flat cut of brisket, but a point will do, depending on what I have in the freezer...

Annie

I have no idea what cut. I just bought whatever Costco had. It was eight lbs. and said "Brisket", so I guess it's both flat and point (?). I don't know much about brisket....don't think I've ever seen it at our local grocery store, and it's not an option when we have our beef cut (custom butchering seems less and less custom every time we have a beef cut, sighhh....).

Katie, I can get the brisket, but it's usually cut in half, so I get a point and a flat, but I ask for it to be cut, I could get it whole. Thank goodness my processor is a small Mennonite family, and they'll cut it however I want.

I just don't which half I had in the freezer, it's thawing now, so when I remove it from the shrink wrap and unfold it, I'll know!

I did see brisket at the store yesterday. $10.99 a pound. I can buy Porterhouse for less than I can buy brisket here.

Annie

Here's where brisket comes from on the cow's anatomy.

This one's been trimmed, but you can see the "point" (it points towards the nose) and the "flat cut" which is closer to the ribcage.

I make my own corned venison using cuts of meat from the hindquarter. A deer doesn't have much "brisket". Very easy to make (just have to plan ahead a week or so), and also easy to control the level of saltiness in the finished product.

Yummy stuff. And way cheaper than the grocery store :-)

Malna, you would think that I could buy brisket for less, since I can get corned beef brisket for $2 or $3, depending on whether it's flat or point. Although your picture doesn't show the front of a steer, the brisket is the chest/pectoral muscle of an animal.

Mine comes whole if I ask, but it's a basically thin cut so they fold it over on itself and I can't tell if it's flat or point until I unfold it after thawing.

I threatened to try corning some venison but Elery loves venison and doesn't want to give up a chunk of it for corning!

Annie

This post was edited by annie1992 on Fri, Mar 14, 14 at 23:49