Monday, April 2, 2012

Home-Brined Corned Beef


In March, when corned beef is on the brain, I was looking to make my own. I love the taste of corned beef, but I often end up with a headache after I eat it—that and ham. Now it could be that the vast quantity of salt that I’m ingesting is making me dehydrated is giving me a headache. And yet, I don’t get a headache when I eat a half (er, whole?) jar of pickles! That leads me to believe that it’s the sodium nitrite that’s the culprit. Sodium nitrite is used to prevent botulism in preserved meats and gives them a pink color. I wondered if I made corned beef that wasn’t pink if it would still satisfy the craving of my few Irish genes. I found this recipe and gave it a try. I used a rump roast instead of a brisket, I didn’t have any juniper berries, and I only let it brine for 7 days. I boiled it for 3 hours and added carrots, potatoes and cabbage for the last 30 minutes.
The brine smelled delicious.
Ready to go in the fridge for a week.
The meat was good and tender.

The verdict? SALTY! Though the aromatics could be tasted faintly at first, you are then walloped in the kisser with salty beef. Only the distinct flavor of the boiled cabbage helped make it an almost-corned-beef dinner. Not as satisfying as I hoped, but a fun experiment nevertheless. Maybe I will try again next year.   

Oh yes, my mom invited us over for a real corned beef dinner. Did I get a headache? That was several weeks ago and I don’t remember!

I dyed Easter eggs today using things around the house like onion skins, frozen fruit, and spices. I can’t wait to see the results tomorrow..hopefully I'm more punctual writing about it!

4 comments:

  1. I can smell this delicious meal from here. Fresh and healthy meal is what i can see here. Thanks for sharing with us. You post good contents here, why not join us in the summer shopping giveaway and give your blog more exposure. You can always use the contact form in my blog to reach me.
    Have a wonderful day..

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  2. It sure does look good, but if it is too salty, I wish you luck in finding the perfect recipe! I used to HATE corned beef until I found this easy recipe. Maybe you would like to give it a try sometime?

    Ingredients
    4 1/2 pounds corned beef, rinsed
    1 cup water
    1 cup apricot preserves
    1/4 cup brown sugar
    2 tablespoons soy sauce

    Directions
    Boil meat per package directions.
    Preheat oven to 350 F
    In a small bowl combine apricot preserves, brown sugar, and soy sauce. Spread the apricot mixture evenly over the corned beef.
    Bake uncovered at 350 degrees F (175 degrees C) 25 to 30 minutes, or until the meat is tender; basting occasionally with pan drippings.
    Slice corned beef across grain and serve


    Thanks for stopping by Theresa's Mixed Nuts. I'm following you in GFC now :)
    Theresa

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. That sounds amazing! Thanks so much for sharing :-)

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  3. I'd love to hear how your eggs came out. Please post pictures :) And thanks for stopping by my blog...following you back!

    ReplyDelete