Corned Beef and Corned Beef

I’ve missed getting this out for St. Patrick’s Day, but I don’t think it matters. Corned beef is spectacular any time of the year. Especially if you can buy the corned beef on sale after St. Patty’s and tuck it away in the freezer! So here are two recipes for corned beef. Both work really well and have been greatly enjoyed.

Corned Beef
From “Make It Fast, Cook It Slow” by Stephanie O’Dea

The ingredients:
1 pound potatoes, chopped
1 bunch celery, chopped
2 cups carrots, chopped
3 pounds corned beef, with the seasoning packet
½ cup water

The Directions:
Use a 6-quart slow cooker. Cut the vegetables into 2-inch chunks and put in the bottom of the stoneware. Trim the fat off the meat, and put the meat on top. Add the seasoning packet and water. Cover and cook on LOW for 8-10 hours or on HIGH for 4-6 hours. Corned beef is much more tender when it is cooked slowly.

My notes:
While this recipe worked, and the corned beef was delicious, I think I prefer to boil mine. I think the texture is more tender. That being said, we cooked this overnight. I felt a little guilty waking up and knowing dinner was done before we’d even left the house, but it made my day a whole lot easier. We also skipped the celery and carrots, and probably should have added more water to compensate.


This next recipe is a lot more labor intensive. I will admit I haven’t made it since having R. The last time I did, the kitchen was a wreck and I used more pots than I want to remember. The meal was amazing, however – we still talk about how good it was! I’ve made some changes from the original recipes, omitting steps and ingredients. I serve this with colcannon, which is a combination of cabbage and mashed potatoes.

Corned Beef and Cabbage Dinner
From Cooking Light, March 2003

1 (4-lb) cured corned beef brisket, trimmed
16 cups of water
2 cups chopped onion
1 cup chopped celery
1 cup chopped carrot
1 ½ tsp pickling spice
3 garlic cloves, peeled

1. Place the brisket in a large stockpot; add water and next 5 ingredients (water through garlic). Bring to a boil. Cover, reduce heat, and simmer for 3 hours.
2. Remove brisket from pot, keeping the water. Strain the cooking liquid, discarding the solids.
3. Place brisket a serving platter and cover with foil. Place in a preheated oven to keep warm before serving. Serve with creamy horseradish and colcannon.


Colcannon
From The Food Network, recipe courtesy of Isabel Rossiter

3 pounds potatoes, scrubbed
2 sticks butter (you can use less)
1 ¼ cups hot milk
Freshly ground black pepper
1 head cabbage, cored and finely shredded
1 (1-pound) piece ham, precooked
4 scallions, finely chopped (can omit)
hopped parsley leaves, for garnish

1. Steam the potatoes in their skins for 30 minutes. Peel them using a knife and fork. Chop with a knife before mashing. Mash thoroughly to remove all the lumps. Add 1 stick of butter in pieces. Gradually add hot milk, stirring all the time. Season with a few grind of black pepper.
2. While the potatoes are steaming, boil the cabbage in unsalted water until it turns a darker color, about 20 min. Add 2 tbsp butter to tenderize it. Cover with lid for 2 minutes. Drain thoroughly before returning to the pan. Chop into small pieces.
3. Remove any fat from the ham and chop into small pieces.
4. Add cabbage, scallions, and ham to mashed potatoes, stirring them gently. Serve alongside corned beef.

My notes: I re-use the corned beef cooking liquid for the cabbage. It saved water and gave the cabbage a greater depth of flavor. I also didn’t have to find or purchase any other spices for the corned beef since mine came with a seasoning packet. I don’t peel the potatoes, but instead use red potatoes and mash everything up together. Using precooked ham also cuts down on the total prep time. Colcannon is traditionally served with melted butter swimming on top. I omit the extra butter and serve as an accompaniment to corned beef.