How to Make Corned Beef

Prep Time15 mins 

Cook Time1 hr 30 mins 

Total Time1 hr 45 mins 

Servings: 8 

Ingredients 

Brine 

• 4 quarts water (1 gallon) 
• 1 cup kosher salt (See Note 1) 
• 1/2 cup packed brown sugar 
• 1/3 cup pickling spice blend 
• 2 tsp pink curing salt (See Note 2) 
• 4 garlic cloves minced 

Cooking 

• 5 lb beef brisket 
• 4 cups beef broth 
• 1 tbsp pickling spice blend 
• 3 large carrots peeled and cut into 2" pieces 
• 1 lb small red potatoes cut in half 
• 1 head green cabbage core removed and quartered 

Instructions 

To Make Brine 

1. In a Dutch oven or large stock pot add the water, kosher salt, brown sugar, pickling spice blend, pink curing salt, garlic and stir. Bring to a boil, lower to simmer and cook until salt and sugar have dissolved. Turn off heat and cool. 

1. In a large container or large sealable plastic bag place beef brisket. Pour cooled brining liquid over and cover or seal. Store in a refrigerator for 10 days, turning beef on day 5. On day 10 remove from brining liquid (discard liquid) and follow the directions to cook. 

Cooking Methods 

1. Stovetop method: Place the corned beef in a Dutch oven. Sprinkle with one tablespoon of pickling spice blend and pour in 4 cups beef broth. Add potatoes, carrots, and cabbage. Bring to a boil on high heat. Reduce heat, cover and cook for about 3 1/2 hours. Add water if necessary to keep brisket covered. Slice across the grain. 

1. Oven Braised method: Preheat oven to 350°F. Place the corned beef in a Dutch oven. Sprinkle with one tablespoon of pickling spice blend and pour in 4 cups beef broth. Add potatoes, carrots, and cabbage. Bring to a boil on high heat. Cover and cook in oven for about 3 1/2-4 hours. Add water if necessary to keep brisket covered. Slice across the grain. 

How to Cook Corned Beef in the Pressure Cooker? 

1. I think the term pressure cooker brings back bad memories or scary stories of exploding kitchen pots, so with a rebranding of the kitchen cooking utensil, a more user friendly name is todays Instant Pot. 

1. For a 5 pound corned beef brisket. Place corned beef on rack. Sprinkle with one tablespoon of pickling spice blend and pour in 4 cups beef broth. 

1. Lock the lid in place. Select High Pressure and set the timer for 90 minutes. Turn off the heat and allow to rest, sealed for 10 minutes, then uncover. 

1. Remove corned beef and cover with foil to keep warm. 

1. Add potatoes, carrots, and cabbage to liquid in pot. Seal with lid and set to HIGH pressure for 3 minutes. Do a Quick pressure release. Serve with corned beef sliced across the grain. 

How to Cook Corned Beef in a Slow Cooker? 

1. For a 5 pound corned beef brisket, it needs to be cooked on Low, for about 8-10 hours OR on High for roughly 4-5 hours. Sprinkle with one tablespoon of pickling spice blend and pour in 4 cups beef broth. Adding carrot and potatoes at the half time mark and add the cabbage in the last 2 hours. 

1. Just remember that when ready to serve, slice the brisket against the grain in 1/8 to 1/4" slices. Cutting with the grain and you'll have stringy beef jerky. No bueno. Cut ACROSS the grain! 

Notes 

1. Kosher salt is just what I use and what I used to use from when working in the food industry. It's most often used in restaurant kitchens and catering. Kosher salt has much lighter, flakier crystals than table salt, but if you allow the salt to dissolve in the food, there really isn't any difference compared to regular table salt. However, kosher salt is less likely to contain additives like anti-caking agents and iodine. 

1. Being that the salt crystals are larger with kosher salt, I would cut any recipe that mentions kosher salt in half when using regular table salt. 

1. A key ingredient in the "corning" process is using pink curing salt. I'm not talking Himalayan pink salt either! Pink curing salt is made using sodium nitrate that prevents food from going bad and spoiling while it’s being stored for a time. It's also known as Prague powder #1, which is a combination of 6.25% sodium nitrite and 93.75% salt (sodium chloride) and usually some anti caking agents as well as pink dye. Curing salt is dyed that pink color so it’s not mistaken for everyday white table salt. If you can’t find at you market or via butcher, you can order online easily. 

• PLEASE MAKE ANY SUBSITUTIONS THAT RELATE TO YOUR ALLERGIES OR DIETARY NEEDS! 

Sourced by Kevin is Cooking