Corned Beef *Dinner*

[gearchow]

I didn't want to junk up the "making corned beef" thread so here we are.

What I'm wondering about, is if I go and buy my corned beef - pre-corned - what exactly is the right way to serve it on St. Patrick's day?

I can get corned beef from a local butcher, so the first decision is which cut to buy if money isn't the issue:

• Corned Beef Brisket (5 pounds) $50
• Corned Beef Round (4 Pounds) $30

I like corned beef sandwiches, but love corned beef hash - if that makes any difference for the particular cut.

After deciding which piece of meat to get, rinse the meat? boil for how long at what temp? what exactly makes the complete, traditional dinner?

-jim

 

[ouch]

My daughter is going back to school on Sunday, so we had our St. Paddy's day feast last night. Corned beef, cabbage, potatoes, rye bread, soda bread, coleslaw- yum!

Breakfast this morning was corned beef and potato hash with eggs.

Urp!

 

[ouch]

Don't boil, simmer. Two hours tops for a flat, three for a point or a whole brisket is pretty much ballpark. Cook the potatoes and cabbage in the same pot for the last hour.

And don't forget the beer.

 

[cleanshaved]

I simmer mine for 45 minutes per 500g / 17.6oz. But we use silverside not brisket so this may differ.
Add to the pot some pepper corns, whole cloves, bay leaves, vinegar and sugar.

IMO it needs a mustard sauce and served with mash potato, cabbage and carrots. This is the mustard sauce I make except I just make it on the stove top not the microwave. http://recipes.had.co.nz/148/mustard-sauce

 

[gearchow]

Don't boil, simmer. Two hours tops for a flat, three for a point or a whole brisket is pretty much ballpark. Cook the potatoes and cabbage in the same pot for the last hour.

And don't forget the beer.

Got the beer.

-jim

 

[Acmemfg]

Simmer 2-3 hours. Remove and boil the root vegetables and cabbage in the same pot..add more Guiness now.
Now..here's how we finish things up:

Turn the brisket fat side up. Trim whatever excess fat off (or not, up to you). Spread the top of the brisket with spicy brown/whole grain mustard. Coat that liberally with brown sugar. Then into a 325-350 degree oven for about 30 minutes. Finest kind....

 

[langod]

You know how a lot of foods taste better and have better texture the 2nd day after being cooled and reheated? It works great with corned beef if you can be patient. This recipe/technique comes from my grandmother who was born in 1898 and used to make this for us every year. It is delicious.

1st day -- simmer with lots of pickling spices until cooked through. Let cool in the cooking water and then refrigerate the whole kit and kaboodle overnight.
2nd day -- preheat oven to 350°F. Take corned beef out of fridge. Remove beef, clean off any hardened fat and spices from the cooking water and pat dry. Skim fat off of cooking water and reserve the water for cooking potatoes and cabbage. Discard fat.
Mix a small amount of brown sugar with some fruit juice to make a thick paste. Spread thickly on top side of beef and place it on a shallow pan for the oven. Heat until warmed through -- probably about 45 minutes. Meanwhile cook potatoes and cabbage in reserved cooking water.
Eat!


ps: [MENTION=41024]Acmemfg[/MENTION] -- I like the idea of using brown sugar and mustard on top, might have to try that this year....

 

[DoctorShavegood]

You know how a lot of foods taste better and have better texture the 2nd day after being cooled and reheated? It works great with corned beef if you can be patient. This recipe/technique comes from my grandmother who was born in 1898 and used to make this for us every year. It is delicious.

1st day -- simmer with lots of pickling spices until cooked through. Let cool in the cooking water and then refrigerate the whole kit and kaboodle overnight.
2nd day -- preheat oven to 350°F. Take corned beef out of fridge. Remove beef, clean off any hardened fat and spices from the cooking water and pat dry. Skim fat off of cooking water and reserve the water for cooking potatoes and cabbage. Discard fat.
Mix a small amount of brown sugar with some fruit juice to make a thick paste. Spread thickly on top side of beef and place it on a shallow pan for the oven. Heat until warmed through -- probably about 45 minutes. Meanwhile cook potatoes and cabbage in reserved cooking water.
Eat!


ps: @Acmemfg -- I like the idea of using brown sugar and mustard on top, might have to try that this year....

Question: Is this after you've brined it for 5 days or whatever?

 

[oc_in_fw]

I just found out today that my maternal great grandmother was full blooded Irish- here parents came over from Ireland. No wonder I like corned beef and cabbage.

on edit: An interesting fact about my great grandmother- she was the treasurer for the city of East Canton, OH, for many years. Yes, it is a small town, but not many women held elected positions in those days.

 

[gearchow]

All righty, got the corned beef - 4lbs of flat cut brisket.



I cut a small piece off, fried it and gave it a taste. I thought it a bit salty which means my family will think it's the Red Sea. I had asked the butcher what to do if it's too salty and he said to soak it in warm water for an hour. Sound like solid advice?

-jim

 

[oc_in_fw]

Yes, soaking will help

 

[ouch]

All righty, got the corned beef - 4lbs of flat cut brisket.

View attachment 644311


-jim

That would make one nice sandwich.

 

[speedwell]

You got the right cut (flat). What works surprisingly well, especially if you are doing the dishes, is to put the whole mess in a slow cooker.

I halve my spuds first (skin on, large red) and add to the bottom of the crock pot. Then come the carrots (peeled and sectioned) and onions (quartered). On top of all of this goes the brisket fat side up. If you buy pre-corned, make sure to add all of that chemical goodness from the package to the top of the meat along with a few juniper berries if you have any handy. Next I pour a can of Guinness over everything, cover, and cook on High for 8 hours. After 8 hours add a head of coarsely shredded green cabbage (1" slices) and cook everything for another hour.

 

[Orlando_The_Axe]

All righty, got the corned beef - 4lbs of flat cut brisket.

View attachment 644311

I cut a small piece off, fried it and gave it a taste. I thought it a bit salty which means my family will think it's the Red Sea. I had asked the butcher what to do if it's too salty and he said to soak it in warm water for an hour. Sound like solid advice?

-jim

In my family we usually dumped and refreshed the water after the first hour to mitigate the salt though depending on where you get your meat the salt level will vary.

 

[Orlando_The_Axe]

Interesting story about Irish boiled dinner: corned beef wasn't a part of it until immigrants finding themselves in Jewish neighborhoods in US cities couldn't find ham in kosher meat markets.

 

[speedwell]

Interesting story about Irish boiled dinner: corned beef wasn't a part of it until immigrants finding themselves in Jewish neighborhoods in US cities couldn't find ham in kosher meat markets.

True that. It's not really Irish at all. Most Irish back in the old country didn't have meat at all. Read "Angela's Ashes" to get a good perspective.

 

[langod]

Question: Is this after you've brined it for 5 days or whatever?

Yes. This is simply the cooking process after it's been "corned" -- whether you bought it that way or are doing it yourself.

 

[Acmemfg]

Sweet Mother Mary, sure and begorrah that is one fine looking piece of meat.

 

[jlanger]

Boiled dinner on the farm was usually tongue or some other hunk of meat that you boiled the heck out of the get edible. If things were a bit tough, or gma didn't want to waste one of her precious tongues, you got a soup bone, which the butcher gladly gave my gma lots of when a we had a cow butchered. They were frozen and just might have been slaughtered in the last year, maybe.

 

[shimsham]

I simmer mine for 45 minutes per 500g / 17.6oz. But we use silverside not brisket so this may differ.

I had to google silverside. Why didn't you just say it was rump roast? It's like you're from a different country or something.