Corned Beef with No Nitrates
Whether you are of Irish descent or not, on March 17th most everyone celebrates St. Patrick’s Day. A traditional meal is corned beef and cabbage and it is one of our favorites, but store bought corned beef contains sodium nitrate and other ingredients that I would rather avoid. It is incredibly easy to “corn” your own beef. It takes about a week though, so a little planning needs to happen. So, if you would like to avoid nitrates and have about a week before you want to serve this meal, then this recipe is for you!
Ingredients
Brining Spice Blend
1/2 tsp Black Peppercorns
1 tsp Mustard Seeds
1 tsp Coriander Seeds
1 tsp Red Pepper Flake
1 tsp Allspice
1 tsp Whole Clove
1 tsp Cinnamon Chips
Brine
6-8 Cups Water ( or enough to cover the beef )
1/2 Cup Kosher Salt ( Or Pickling Salt or Sea Salt)
1/2 Cup Molasses ( Or Brown Sugar)
Brining Spice Blend
1 Bay Leaf
1/2 Tsp Ginger
3-5 lb. Beef Brisket
Corned Beef
Brined Beef Brisket (rinsed)
1 Head Cabbage ( quartered)
4-6 Large Carrots ( Peeled and Chunked)
4-6 Yukon Gold Potatoes ( peeled and chucked)
Step by Step Directions
Choose a nice beef brisket for the brining. I prefer to get one from my local farmer. I feel it is important to support the small farmers of our country.
Mix the spices together for the pickling spice. Put the spice mix into pot with 4 cups of water. Add the salt, Bay leaf, ginger and molasses. Bring to a simmer and cook for a few minutes to melt molasses and salt.
Remove from heat, add two cups of water and ice cubes to cool ( or add four cups of cold water and allow to cool to room temperature) It is important to allow to cool completely as you don’t’ want to cook the meat at all. Once cool, place brisket into plastic freezer bag and dump the liquid brine over it. You can also use a glass bowl or 13” x 9” baking dish covered with plastic wrap. Make sure the meat stays submersed in the liquid. You may add more water if needed. Leave in brine for 5 to 10 days.
Check it daily and flip it over in the brine assuring all sides are submerged. After brining time is up, remove meat from liquid and rinse. Discard brining liquid.
To cook, remove beef from brine and rinse well . Then cover beef with fresh water, peeled and chopped carrots, potatoes and quartered cabbage head. Cook on low for about 3 hours. A heavy bottom pot on stovetop can be used to cook the corned beef dinner. You could also use a crockpot.
Enjoy!
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Corned Beef with No Nitrates
Corned Beef is the cornerstone of a traditional St. Patrick’s Day dinner . Brining your own brisket assures that you get all the flavor without all the nitrates. When combined with boiled cabbage, carrots and potatoes it makes a delicious meal. Left over meat can be used to make Ruebens the next day!
Ingredients
- Brining Spice Blend
- 1/2 tsp Black Peppercorns
- 1 tsp Mustard Seeds
- 1 tsp Coriander Seeds
- 1 tsp Red Pepper Flake
- 1 tsp Allspice
- 1 tsp Whole Clove
- 1 tsp Cinnamon Chips
- Brine
- 6-8 Cups Water ( or enough to cover the beef )
- 1/2 Cup Kosher Salt
- 1/2 Cup Molasses ( Or Brown Sugar)
- Brining Spice Blend
- 1 Bay Leaf
- 1/2 Tsp Ginger
- 3-5 lb. Beef Brisket
- Corned Beef Dinner
- Brined Beef Brisket (rinsed)
- 1 Head Cabbage ( quartered)
- 4-6 Large Carrots ( Peeled and Chunked)
- 4-6 Yukon Gold Potatoes ( peeled and chucked)
- Water to cover
- Simmer on low for several hours until meat is tender and falling apart
Instructions
- Mix the spices together for the pickling spice
- Put half the spice mix into pot with 4 cups of water
- Add the salt, Bay leaf, ginger and molasses
- Bring to a simmer and cook for a few minutes to melt molasses and salt.
- Remove from heat, add two cups of water and ice cubes to cool ( or add four cups of cold water and allow to cool to room temperature)
- Once cool, place brisket into plastic freezer bag and dump the liquid brine over it. You can also use a glass bowl or 13” x 9” baking dish covered with plastic wrap. Make sure the meat stays submersed in the liquid. You may add more water if needed.
- Leave in brine for 5 to 10 days. Check it daily and flip it over in the brine assuring all sides are submerged.
- After brining time is up, remove meat from liquid and rinse. Discard brining liquid.
- To cook, cover beef with fresh water, peeled and chopped carrots, potatoes and quartered cabbage head. Cook on low for about 3 hours.
- A heavy bottom pot on stovetop can be used to cook the corned beef dinner. You could also use a crockpot
