Make Your Own Corned Beef
Prep: 8 days
Cook: 3 hours
Serves: 10
This recipe is from Bruce Aidells’ and Denis Kelly’s The Complete Meat Cookbook. Bruce lives in the Bay Area and loves cooking with Niman Ranch meats.
Ingredients
8 cups water, or more if necessary to cover the meat
1¼ cups kosher salt
1 cup sugar
3 Tbsp pickling spices
1 6-to-8 pound Niman Ranch beef brisket
1 medium onion, spiked with three cloves
3 garlic cloves
1 carrot, coarsely chopped
3 bay leaves
1 teaspoon peppercorns
Directions
- Bring the water to a boil in a saucepan. Add the salt and sugar and stir to dissolve. Stir in the pickling spices. Let cool to room temperature, then refrigerate until cooled to 45°F.
- Pour the brine into a large bowl or crock and submerge the meat in it, making sure it stays under the surface by using a heavy plate as a weight. Refrigerate for 8 to 12 days. Stir the brine each day and turn the beef occasionally.
- To cook the corned beef, remove the meat from the brine and put it in a large pot. Cover with water and add the vegetables, bay leaves and peppercorns. Simmer over low heat until tender, 2½ to 3 hours, or more if necessary.
- Thinly slice across the grain and serve hot or cold.