I love this, Ruth. My father came to Canada as a Jewish immigrant (actually refugee) in 1946 and opened a deli a few years later. The deli turned into a two-storey restaurant called Teddy's and I grew up there, eating our house-made corned beef. I've often wondered about its connection to the Irish corned beef tradition. Now I know!
Fun & timely Ruth. Here is my advice on this Irish holiday. A number of years ago (10+) we followed with great care the recipe from Alton Brown starting with a CostCo brisket (yeah the really big one). Children were never a fan of Corned Beef & Cabbage. We cured our brisket in manageable sizes 3 of them ~ 3.5 pounds each for the 10 or so days in the fridge. We made one for St Pat's and smoked the other two from the admittedly absurd 10# brisket. We final prepped one with a pastrami crust. What resulted were the finest examples of corned beef and pastrami I have ever enjoyed (save for the very best delis) which do the same thing. It is not as difficult as it sounds. I think, in some ways, our fall practice of sauerbraten is largely the same exercise. The biggest challenge is the space required in the fridge for briskets to break down. In the name of science and kitchen fun, please tell if you give it a try. For about $40 we end up with Corned Beef and cabbage, leftover CB becomes corned beef hash and two sizable roasts of corned beef and pastrami. It was much easier to justify in the days of three boys raiding the fridge at all hours. They are strikingly comparable to a very good deli rendition. One thing that has changed the equation is the cost. When north of the Mason-Dixon line FINALLY REALIZED that they had been missing out on BBQ for generations, the demand for briskets has driven prices skyward. Maybe we can genetically engineer cattle to produce more brisket. A good use for AI?
And salted beef was a mainstay of those British tars who sailed over the seven seas. In fact, a large portion of the fresh water on board was solely for use in desalinizing the beef (and mutton) so as to render it edible. Salt was THE preservative back in those days. I often wonder how similar it tasted, once prepared, to corned beef.
Our dad used to make us green eggs and ham 😃 Also, St. Patrick’s Day was the one day we were allowed to go to McDonald’s for a Big Mac and a Shamrock shake. This was long before the “pink slime” days of course. So how was the corned beef??
I plan on heading to the grocery store shortly to pick up a corned beef if there are any left. I don't make it very often, but I will probably just follow the directions on the package. It's the type of meal that my grandmother always referred to as a "boiled dinner". Not an appealing name! Your sauce with the mustard sounds good, Ruth.
I *really* want to know how it came out -- I've ghost written this for a client before, spent a lot of time on it, and whilst I know I got the final dish right because of the ratings it has online... that testing period helped me come to the (personal) conclusion that this dish is a culinary abomination...!
I go with slow and simple. Meat, potatoes, onions and carrots. Low and slow cooking in the oven or cook-top. The whole house smells amazing for hours.
I'll wait until after the holiday, when the brisket is marked down before purchasing.
My only issue is that I can only give my cat 🐈 a tiny amount at a time since onions can harm him. Don't worry, he gets plenty of other treats to make up for it.
Corned beef was once a staple of every Australian household. Here it’s called silverside and was invariably served with white sauce and parsley! I think however, it's fallen very much out of favour, and you rarely hear of people cooking it anymore. I hope after your very long cook yours was enjoyable!
I love this, Ruth. My father came to Canada as a Jewish immigrant (actually refugee) in 1946 and opened a deli a few years later. The deli turned into a two-storey restaurant called Teddy's and I grew up there, eating our house-made corned beef. I've often wondered about its connection to the Irish corned beef tradition. Now I know!
I loved corned beef growing up, the canned stuff!!! Oh dear! Tickled to learn more and perhaps try to make some.
Fun & timely Ruth. Here is my advice on this Irish holiday. A number of years ago (10+) we followed with great care the recipe from Alton Brown starting with a CostCo brisket (yeah the really big one). Children were never a fan of Corned Beef & Cabbage. We cured our brisket in manageable sizes 3 of them ~ 3.5 pounds each for the 10 or so days in the fridge. We made one for St Pat's and smoked the other two from the admittedly absurd 10# brisket. We final prepped one with a pastrami crust. What resulted were the finest examples of corned beef and pastrami I have ever enjoyed (save for the very best delis) which do the same thing. It is not as difficult as it sounds. I think, in some ways, our fall practice of sauerbraten is largely the same exercise. The biggest challenge is the space required in the fridge for briskets to break down. In the name of science and kitchen fun, please tell if you give it a try. For about $40 we end up with Corned Beef and cabbage, leftover CB becomes corned beef hash and two sizable roasts of corned beef and pastrami. It was much easier to justify in the days of three boys raiding the fridge at all hours. They are strikingly comparable to a very good deli rendition. One thing that has changed the equation is the cost. When north of the Mason-Dixon line FINALLY REALIZED that they had been missing out on BBQ for generations, the demand for briskets has driven prices skyward. Maybe we can genetically engineer cattle to produce more brisket. A good use for AI?
An epic tale, with a dash humor.
And salted beef was a mainstay of those British tars who sailed over the seven seas. In fact, a large portion of the fresh water on board was solely for use in desalinizing the beef (and mutton) so as to render it edible. Salt was THE preservative back in those days. I often wonder how similar it tasted, once prepared, to corned beef.
Happy St Pat’s, Ruth! 😋 yummy!
Our dad used to make us green eggs and ham 😃 Also, St. Patrick’s Day was the one day we were allowed to go to McDonald’s for a Big Mac and a Shamrock shake. This was long before the “pink slime” days of course. So how was the corned beef??
I plan on heading to the grocery store shortly to pick up a corned beef if there are any left. I don't make it very often, but I will probably just follow the directions on the package. It's the type of meal that my grandmother always referred to as a "boiled dinner". Not an appealing name! Your sauce with the mustard sounds good, Ruth.
I *really* want to know how it came out -- I've ghost written this for a client before, spent a lot of time on it, and whilst I know I got the final dish right because of the ratings it has online... that testing period helped me come to the (personal) conclusion that this dish is a culinary abomination...!
We used to be regulars at Canters Deli on Fairfax to feed Sabrina’s pastrami addiction. Happy memories, Ruth!
I go with slow and simple. Meat, potatoes, onions and carrots. Low and slow cooking in the oven or cook-top. The whole house smells amazing for hours.
I'll wait until after the holiday, when the brisket is marked down before purchasing.
My only issue is that I can only give my cat 🐈 a tiny amount at a time since onions can harm him. Don't worry, he gets plenty of other treats to make up for it.
My mouth is watering, Ruth! And I love the line about happiness having an impact on longevity, too! Happy St. Pats! ☘️
Corned beef was once a staple of every Australian household. Here it’s called silverside and was invariably served with white sauce and parsley! I think however, it's fallen very much out of favour, and you rarely hear of people cooking it anymore. I hope after your very long cook yours was enjoyable!
Wow, Ruth, that's a lot of hours you put into making the dish. I hope it tasted good.