Recipes

Corned Beef and Cabbage

  • Serves

    serves 10

TODD COLEMAN

The recipe for this traditional Irish dish calls for brining beef brisket for 5 days to "corn" it. If you want to omit this step, buy 5 lbs. of corned beef from your butcher and proceed to step two.

Ingredients

  • 1 tbsp. allspice
  • 1 tbsp. cloves
  • 1 tbsp. coriander
  • 1 tbsp. crushed red chile flakes
  • 1 tbsp. mustard seeds
  • 1 tbsp. whole black peppercorns
  • 5 bay leaves
  • 1 14 cups kosher salt, plus more to taste
  • 34 cup sugar
  • 1 tbsp. pink salt
  • 1 (5-lb.) first-cut beef brisket
  • 4 cloves garlic
  • 1 medium onion
  • 3 lb. small new potatoes, peeled
  • 1 head green or Savoy cabbage, cored and shredded
  • 1 tbsp. fresh lemon juice

Instructions

Step 1

Combine spices and 3 bay leaves in a 12″ skillet over medium heat. Cook, swirling pan constantly, until spices are toasted and fragrant, about 3 minutes. Transfer 3⁄4 of the mixture (reserving the rest in a covered jar) to a 5-qt. pot and add 8 cups water, kosher salt, sugar, and pink salt. Bring to a simmer; remove pot from heat and let cool to room temperature. Refrigerate brine until chilled. Add brisket and weigh it down with a plate so brisket is submerged. Refrigerate for 5 days.

Step 2

Drain corned beef and rinse. Transfer beef to a 5-qt. pot along with the reserved pickling spices, garlic, and onion. Cover corned beef with cold water. Bring to a simmer over medium heat and simmer until corned beef is tender, about 1 hour. Remove pot from heat and set aside.

Step 3

Meanwhile, put potatoes into a 4-qt. pot of salted water and bring to a boil. Reduce heat to medium-low and simmer until potatoes are tender; drain. Put cabbage into a 3-qt. pot over medium-low heat, season with salt, add lemon juice and 1⁄2 cup water, cover, and bring to a boil. Reduce heat to low and cook, stirring occasionally, until cabbage is tender, about 30 minutes. To serve, transfer potatoes and cabbage to a large serving platter. Transfer corned beef to a cutting board, thinly slice beef across the grain, and transfer to the platter. Spoon some of the cooking liquid over the beef and serve warm.

Pairing Note: Porterhouse Wrasslers XXXX Stout balances this briny dish with malty sweetness and a bracing hoppy bitterness.

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