Corned Beef 2019

[AACJ]

Saint Patrick's Day is coming up soon and in preparation for my first St Patty's Day home made corned beef I'll start the annual Corned Beef thread.

Here is the original Making Corned Beef thread, and last years Corned Beef thread.
Also, here's a few pics of the non-St Patty's day home made corned beef I made in October of last year.

And finally, a video link to the way I will be preparing it, via Alton Brown. Sorry, B&B won't allow me to embed the video.

 

[oc_in_fw]

And today was payday. I might have to get in on one this year.

 

[oc_in_fw]

Oh, and is it instacure 1 or 2? Can’t watch video now, but I can order it real quick.

 

[AACJ]

I have good old fashioned Saltpeter, not 100% sure what instacure is actually. Time for some research.

 

[oc_in_fw]

I have good old fashioned Saltpeter, not 100% sure what instacure is actually. Time for some research.

I should have went to your B&B link- looks like it is #1. Now, to see if I can get this from Amazon by Sunday (my day off).

 

[oc_in_fw]

Curing salt won't arrive until Monday, but that should be enough time. Hopefully Kroger or Sprouts has everything else.

 

[stamasd]

Thumbs up for the Alton brown method. That is what I use.

 

[psfred]

Reminds me I need to stop by Walmart and get a brisket this week. I've done bacon and ham, so corned beef shouldn't be a big deal, eh?

 

[AACJ]

So what is everyone's suggestions on how to pick the perfect beef brisket?

Last time I bought one, there were only two or three, so I opted for the heaviest.

 

[stamasd]

The thicker it is, the longer it will need to stay in the brine.
If you're not buying a full brisket but only a part, they are usually separated in "flat" which is the square part and "point" which is the triangular part. I generally prefer the point as it has more flavor.

 

[Jim]

I look for the most flexable brisket Art.
Most likely I'm pretty funny looking standing at the refer case shaking the briskets.
Sometimes I think its worthwhile others nor so much. I guess it can't hurt right?
Looking forward to everyones efforts.

 

[psfred]

Depends on a couple things, I think:

How much fat you want (which may depend on what you are doing with it)

How many people you are feeding (15 lb brisket for four may be a bit much, eh?)

Point, flat, whole -- again, depends on use. Corned beef works well with the flat, as it's a fairly tough and the curing and slow cooking mediates that. Point is more tender as a rule, and often has more fat marbled in it. This is not a really desirable thing for corned beef I dont' think.

As far a quality goes, you want to select just like any other beer -- proper color, desired marbling, texture. I tend to avoid bright red meat, it has been treated with nitrites as a rule, meat is normally dark red from lack of oxygen after it's a day old or so, it shouldn't be too stiff (hence the comment on flexibility above), and it should be as fresh as possible.

 

[oc_in_fw]

How many people you are feeding (15 lb brisket for four may be a bit much, eh?)

It's a good start

 

[psfred]

Well, some people eat 32 oz steaks, too, but not me!

 

[oc_in_fw]

Well, some people eat 32 oz steaks, too, but not me!

With corned beef, though, you can have leftovers (left over steak is not that great). It is funny how when you get older and heavier you can’t eat as much. I usually get a 12 oz rib eye at my local steak joint (with a salad and brocolli- I don’t get potato very often). One day I decided to treat myself to a 16 oz. I barely made, and the last few bites seemed like work. When I was 21 and weighed 180 (almost no fat) I would have tore up a 32 oz along with a loaded baked potato, then would have asked what was on the dessert menu.

 

[psfred]

Lol, it's been a few decades since I was 21, eh? These days I have a problem with food going bad in the fridge, we just never seem to eat it up any more. When I was 21 the fridge was empty every day.....

 

[oc_in_fw]

I’m off to the grocery store. My instacure shows that it is out for delivery.

 

[oc_in_fw]

Got a 10 lb brisket- going to freeze half of it. Still waiting on instacure, but have everything else. Juniper berries are hard to find, and I have enough for about 40 corned beefs. Can they be frozen?

 

[TexLaw]

So what is everyone's suggestions on how to pick the perfect beef brisket?

That question will get you an average of 3.74 answers per person asked.

 

[oc_in_fw]

It’s in the brine. I am afraid mine won’t have that nice pink color. My search for Instacure #1 led to Prague Powder #1. Unlike other pics I have seen, this salt was all white, not pinkish.