Brining your own Corned Beef
Yes, of course I did. I always hesitate because it takes 5 days and uses space in the refrigerator, but I had a couple of chunks of brisket in the freezer, one point and one flat, and St. Patrick's Day was coming up.
So, into the brine went salt, brown sugar, bay leaf, pickling spices, water. Into the brine went the beef and it went into the refrigerator. After 5 days it was ready to be rinsed, sprinkled with the remaining spice mixture and cooked. I usually use the slow cooker, but I was in kind of a hurry, as Ashley was coming over with the girls and we wanted the corned beef by lunch. So, I wrapped it in foil and put it on a sheet pan. It was tender and juicy and salty and spicy, just like corned beef should be.
It didn't fall apart, but made nice slices. Madison had never had corned beef before and she loved it and ate several slices, leaving her beloved mac and cheese on the plate.
After lunch she made a leprechaun trap, baited with "gold bars", when the leprechaun takes the bait the lid will slam down and he'll be captured. It's perfect! Ah, too bad it didn't work. (grin)
Being unsuccessful at catching that pesky resident leprechaun who keeps making a mess with green shamrock glitter, she decided to make leprechaun bait out of marshmallows and Lucky Charms cereal, kind of like rice krispie treats, but green. Meanwhile her sister took a nap, leaving the leprechaun hunt to Madison.
Ah well, we never did catch that leprechaun, but there's always next year. Meanwhile, Elery and I had eggs and corned beef hash for breakfast, nearly as good as a leprechaun's treasure!
I think I like the hash even better than I like the original corned beef and cabbage dinner, so I'm a happy girl today!
Annie
Comments (12)
9 years agolast modified: 9 years ago- 9 years ago
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Corned Beef
Comments (6)Thanks everyone - freezing the cooked meat is what I did. I cut the brisket into pieces, so it would fit in gallon sized bags, then covered it with brine, and put it in a big pot in my second fridge. I have a tendency to combine recipes. This is the 3rd brisket I brined, and when I was originally searching for recipes, I printed out 3 - the one I linked to below and 2 others (one from the food network site), and wrote out my own version - to use what I had on hand. I came up with: 1 brisket 2 Qts water 1/2 c brown sugar 3 bay leaves 4 cloves 1/2 cup vinegar 1/2 tsp ground mustard dash of cinnamon, allspice, and thyme 2 garlic cloves 1 TBSP peppercorns 3/4 cup canning or kosher salt Bring brine to a simmer / boil to dissolve salt and sugar, then cool. Cover meat with brine, and refrigerate for 3-10 days - turning occasionally. (I usually do 6-7 days). Then drain, rinse, and cook as you normally would. Some recipes call for coriander, juniper berries, marjoram, mustard seeds, cinnamon stick, saltpeter, etc. This is what I came up with, and we like it, so it's what I use. Play around with it - to come up with your favorite too! Here is a link that might be useful: corned beef recipe...See MoreCanning Pate and Corned Beef
Comments (25)Thanks all the replies. You have made an interesting and informative conversation! Dave, yes. I have spent a lot of time in NZ. At one time, canning, using proper jars (which are marginally heavier than ours and very durable) was very popular. New Zealand was and still is to some degree a very rural country. Like here, canning has been supplanted by freezing. Essentially that mostly explains the lack of supplies now. And I have met a few folk who used to use pressure canners. I think they called them retorts or autoclaves. Carol is right; with BWB canning for such things like jams or chutneys, the grocery food jars work fine. Lack of pressure canning aside, the problem is the shelf life of these products AND the entire loss of canned fruits. Everyone (of a certain age) in NZ remembers their Ma or Grandma or Grandpa canning peaches or plums or other orchard crops. I dont know how they used do Lambs Tongues, for instance, but there must be those who miss those too! Essentially, NZ is an example of somewhere that used to do something that has now been mostly lost. Thanks the freezing tip, Woodsmoke. Some miscreants (like me) actually prefer some things canned. In my case, the canned pate was just a whim; something to do with the livers. I could envision having some small jars of some delicacy, but going through the whole process of making pate frequently from frozen liver isnt so appealing! Additionally, Im not so keen about freezing in general. We can have long power outages as well. Appreciate the tips JimnGinger. I will brine some brisket and freeze it, but again, like the pate, I was envisioning a handy lunch to make from a small jar. I have canned beef chunks, which I like very much, and it occurs to me that I could make these taste like Corned Beef if I wanted. Commercially canned Kippered Herring is very common and popular in Northern California grocery stores. I havent tried to home can any, but home canned smoked fish is very doable. Sardines, Herring, Smelt and Mackerel, Salmon and Tuna... Generally, I have found that home canned fish or meat is far better than what one able to purchase. Canning fish as opposed to freezing it, is, to me, a much much better approach. Thanks again!...See MoreCorned Beef Hash-tell me about yours
Comments (10)We love Yankee Red Flannel Corned Beef Hash but use the leftovers from a boiled dinner & include the cabbage plus add beets. Yankee Red Flannel Hash (approximate ingredients - use whatever leftovers you have) 1-1/2 cups chopped corned beef 1 cup chopped cooked beets 1 cup chopped cold boiled potatoes 1 cup leftover chopped cabbage 1 onion, finely chopped 2 garlic cloves, peeled, crushed or finely chopped 1/4 cup heavy cream (or whole milk) 2 tablespoons butter Heat butter and saute onion and garlic until soft. In a large bowl mix together corned beef, beets, potatoes and greens with the cream or milk. Stir until well-coated. Add mixture to onion/garlic saute in pan. Stir ocasionally until it is heated thoroughly. Continue to cook until a brown crust forms underneath. Serve with fried eggs. /tricia...See MoreHow do you make your corned beef and cabbage?
Comments (9)I use a pressure cooker. I don't have the recipe right in front of me, but basically you put the corned beef and water in the PC on high pressure for about 50-55 minutes, release pressure and then add the cabbage, quartered or 'eighthed', bring back up to pressure for 5 or 10 minutes, release pressure...you get the idea. Google 'corned beef and cabbage pressure cooker' and you'll get a ton of responses. You can have it on the table in a little over an hour, and it tastes like it's been simmering for four or five. Since I got a PC I haven't made corned beef & cabbage any other way....See More- 9 years ago
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