Corned beef and cabbage

St. Patrick’s Day is almost here! 

Below is our recipe for Corned Beef that we make annually, not because we have particularly strong Irish heritage, but because mid March always seems like a good time to celebrate as we really dive into the spring farm season. Seeds are getting planted in the greenhouse, our first lettuce and early hardy crops are transplanted in our covered tunnels, and this spring we have plenty of local grass fed and finished Casa Cano beef back from the butcher, perfect for making corned beef. This St. Patrick’s Day we also have sweet carrots, red and purple cabbage from a friend’s organic farm in Sandpoint, as well as organic red potatoes available in the farm store — everything you need for a local, organic St. Patrick’s Day feast.

Corned Beef and Cabbage

Serves 4-6

Corned Beef brines for 5-7 days and then cooks for 2-4 hours. Vegetables cook for about 30 minutes after Corned Beef has finished cooking.

INGREDIENTS

• 1 Grass Fed Beef Brisket or Roast, 3-6 Lbs.
• 4 Tablespoons Pickling Spice, divided (make your own with any mixture of allspice, mustard seeds, peppercorns, cardamom pods, cinnamon, ginger, coriander, cumin, celery seed, and whatever other herbs and spices you have on hand that sound good. Just a pinch of this, a pinch of that, anything goes!)
• 1 cup course Kosher Salt (subbing other salts is just fine. Use just under 1 cup if using a finer grained salt.)
• 24 oz. water for brine
• 1-2 Lbs. Carrots, chopped into 2 inch pieces
• 1-2 Lbs Potatoes, chopped into 2 inch pieces (if using small potatoes, just quarter them)
• 1 onion, rough sliced
• 1 medium head of red or green cabbage, cored and cut into wedges
• 1-2 teaspoons Dijon Mustard

INSTRUCTIONS

1. Make your brine by adding 3 Tablespoons of pickling spice and 1 cup salt to 24 oz of water in a large pot. Bring brine to a boil, and then let sit and cool to at least room temperature.
2. Let sit for at least 10 minutes to let flavors incorporate before using, or let sit covered in the fridge for up to a few days.
3. Place your Roast in your big pot of brine and place in the fridge. If your pot doesn’t fit in your fridge, you can use a large freezer bag to brine your roast; place your roast in the bag and carefully pour brine until almost full, but you’re able to seal bag.

NOTES:
This version of corned beef will not be pink because curing salts were not used. If you would like a pink version, I’ve read that adding red beets to your roast as it simmers adds some pink color.

You can reserve your simmering liquid and use it for cooking rice, making corned beef and cabbage, or anything else a spiced, beefy liquid is good for.

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