With This Recipe, Homemade Corned Beef Is Worth It (2024)

12 Ways to Get Your Corned Beef OnFEATURED IN:

Vibrant pink, salty, and spicy, corned beef is always a welcome meal in our home, whether in a boiled dinner, with cabbage, or in a sandwich with Swiss cheese and sauerkraut. Who knew it was so easy to make?

Corned beef is essentially beef cured in a salt brine, with some pickling spices for added flavor. It gets its name "corn" from an old English word for grain, or small pieces of hard things the size of grain, such as salt.

With This Recipe, Homemade Corned Beef Is Worth It (1)

How Is Corned Beef Made?

Over the years, many of my friends have encouraged me to cure my own corned beef, insisting that it wasn't hard to do, and well worth the effort. After finally getting around to it, I'm happy to report that my friends were right! It really is easy; it just takes about 5 days to cure.

Here's what to do:

Make a salty curing brine with pickling spices like mustard seed, allspice berries, coriander seeds, and peppercorns.
Marinate a beef brisket in the brine, for 5 to 7 days.
Simmer the brined and drained brisket in water with more pickling spices for several hours until tender.

With This Recipe, Homemade Corned Beef Is Worth It (2)

How to Season Your Corned Beef

Because you get to choose what pickling spices to use, you can make your own distinctively flavored corned beef. You know how BBQ masters have their own favorite homemade dry rubs? It's sort of like that.

Pretty much every packaged corned beef brisket I've bought tastes about the same. The one I home cured? Wonderful and different.

While I researched several online sources for curing your own corned beef, as well as interrogating my colleague Hank, the source I referred to the most was Michael Ruhlman's brilliant Charcuterie: The Craft of Salting, Smoking, and Curing (high recommend). You can also see his instructions on Leite's Culinaria.

I played around a bit with the spice mix, and kept the garlic out of the brine, but other than that, pretty much followed Michael's method.

With This Recipe, Homemade Corned Beef Is Worth It (3)

What Makes Corned Beef Pink?

Corned beef gets its vibrant pink color from the use of sodium nitrite, a chemical compound that also adds flavor and helps inhibit bacterial growth. Sodium nitrite is sold for the purposes of curing meat in a form called "pink salt." Since sodium nitrite is toxic in concentrated amounts, it is dyed pink so that we don't mistake it for table salt. Note that curing pink salt is NOT Himalayan pink salt.

You can use pink salt for this recipe or not. I've corned beef with and without pink salt. Both work. The curing salt adds a little more flavor and will help preserve the beef better if you don't cook it right away after curing.

There is some controversy over the use of sodium nitrite in curing meats, as the frequent consumption of cured meats (bacon, ham, pancetta, corned beef) is linked to an increased risk of certain types of cancer. I eat cured meat maybe once a month, so I'm not worried for myself, but it helps to know about the risks and the current research.

To achieve a pink color without the use of curing salt, some people add a beet or two to the boiling water when it comes time to cook the roast. I haven't tried that yet, but if you do, please let us know how it works out for you!

Use Your Corned Beef in These Recipes

Corned Beef and Cabbage
Corned Beef Hash
New England Boiled Dinner
Red Flannel Hash
Reuben Sandwich

Homemade Corned Beef

Cook Time3 hrs

Total Time3 hrs

Ingredients

For the pickling spices

1 tablespoon whole allspice berries
1 tablespoon whole mustard seeds (brown or yellow)
1 tablespoon coriander seeds
1 tablespoon red pepper flakes
1 tablespoon whole black peppercorns
2 teaspoons whole cloves
9 wholecardamom pods
6 large bay leaves, crumbled
2 teaspoons ground ginger
1/2 stick cinnamon

For the brine

1 gallon (3.8 liters) water
See Also
Creamy Macaroni and Cheese Recipe
300g kosher salt (2 cups of Diamond Crystal brand Kosher Salt OR 1 cup 3 1/2 tablespoons of Morton's Kosher Salt)
5 teaspoonspink curing salt, optional, see Recipe Note
3 tablespoons pickling spices
1/2 cup (90g) brown sugar

For the brisket

1 (5-pound) beef brisket
1 tablespoon pickling spices

Method

Toast and crush the spices:
You can either used store-bought pickling spices or you can make your own. To make your own, toast the allspice berries, mustard seeds, coriander seeds, red pepper flakes, peppercorns, cloves, and cardamom pods in a small frying pan on medium heat until fragrant. Note that it is pretty easy to burn spices; you want enough heat to release their flavors, not so much that they get burned.
Remove from heat and place in a small bowl. Use a mortar and pestle to crush the spices a little (or the back of a spoon or the side of a knife on a flat surface). Add to a small bowl and stir in the crumbled bay leaves and ground ginger.
Make the curing brine:
Add about 3 tablespoons of the spice mix (reserve the rest for cooking the corned beef after it has cured), plus the half stick of cinnamon, to a gallon of water in a large pot, along with the kosher salt, pink salt (if using), and brown sugar. Bring to a boil, then remove from heat and let cool to room temperature. Then refrigerate until well chilled.
Brine the brisket for 5 to 7 days:
Place the brisket in a large, flat container or pan, and cover with the brine. The brine should cover the meat. The meat may float in which case you may want to weigh it down with a plate.
Alternatively you can use a 2-gallon freezer bag (placed in a container so if it leaks it doesn't leak all over your refrigerator), place the brisket in the freezer bag and about 2 quarts of brine, squeezing out the air from the bag before sealing.
Place in the refrigerator and chill from 5-7 days. Every day flip the brisket over, so that all sides get brined equally.
Cook the corned beef:
At the end of the cure, remove the brisket from the brine and rinse off the brine with cold water. Place the brisket in a large pot that just fits around the brisket and cover with at least one inch of water. If you want your brisket less salty, add another inch of water to the pot.
Add a tablespoon of the pickling spices to the pot. Bring to a boil, reduce to a very low simmer (barely bubbling), and cook 3-4 hours, until the corned beef is fork tender. (At this point you can store in the fridge for up to a week.)
Cut across the grain:
Remove the meat to a cutting board. (You can use the spiced cooking liquid to cook vegetables for boiled dinner or corned beef and cabbage.) Notice the visible lines on the meat; this is the "grain" of the meat, or the direction of the muscle fibers.
To make the meat easier to cut, cut it first in half, along the grain of the meat. Then make thin crosswise cuts, across the grain to cut the meat to serve.
Did you love the recipe? Give us some stars and leave a comment below!

Nutrition Facts (per serving)
531	Calories
32g	Fat
9g	Carbs
50g	Protein

Show Full Nutrition Label

Nutrition Facts
Servings: 6to 8
Amount per serving
Calories	531
% Daily Value*
Total Fat 32g	42%
Saturated Fat 13g	63%
Cholesterol 180mg	60%
Sodium 2530mg	110%
Total Carbohydrate 9g	3%
Dietary Fiber 3g	9%
Total Sugars 4g
Protein 50g
Vitamin C 2mg	11%
Calcium 115mg	9%
Iron 6mg	35%
Potassium 509mg	11%
*The % Daily Value (DV) tells you how much a nutrient in a food serving contributes to a daily diet. 2,000 calories a day is used for general nutrition advice.

Nutrition information is calculated using an ingredient database and should be considered an estimate. In cases where multiple ingredient alternatives are given, the first listed is calculated for nutrition. Garnishes and optional ingredients are not included.

With This Recipe, Homemade Corned Beef Is Worth It (2024)

FAQs

Is homemade corned beef worth it? ›

Sure, you can buy pre-brined corned beef in the store, but it just doesn't compare to making your own. Not only can you control the quality of the ingredients you use, but the flavor is just SO much better! Once you try it homemade, you'll see how much store-bought pales in comparison.

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What is the secret to the best corned beef? ›

One of the keys to simmering corned beef correctly is the amount of water in the pot. When there's not ample liquid to cover the meat, your dreams of tender corned beef may be replaced by a tough, chewy result. Instead: Start by filling a large pot with enough water so the corned beef is completely submerged.

Is it cheaper to make your own corned beef? ›

Home made corned beef can be cheaper than store-bought. And it's easy. And you can customize it. Once you've had the real deal, you can't go back.

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What makes corned beef so good? ›

Historically, it was made with large salt kernels that resembled corn (hence the name), but today, corned beef is typically made with a salt brine, similar to pickling, where the meat becomes tender after the long, salty cooking process (which can take up to a week or more).

How long does homemade corned beef last? ›

Keep in mind that salt encourages rancidity and texture changes but it is still safe to eat. Try to use within a month or two. After cooking, store corned beef for 3 to 4 days in the refrigerator. You can also freeze cooked beef 2 to 3 months.

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Is home cooked corned beef healthy? ›

Corned beef contains a variety of essential micronutrients and is rich in protein, which the body requires to build muscle, produce enzymes, and maintain tissue. However, it has a very high amount of sodium and fat. Therefore, it can harm people following a low-sodium or heart-healthy diet.

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Why does my corned beef always come out tough? ›

Question: Why is my corned beef always so dry and chewy? Answer: Because the brisket is a naturally tough cut of beef, it needs special TLC to become tender and moist. Slow cooking at a low temperature gives the collagen in the meat time to become soft and gelatinous, which makes your meat tender.

Is corned beef healthier than steak? ›

As an animal product, this protein supplies all the essential amino acids the body needs to get from food. However, corned beef is not a particularly high-protein cut of beef compared to other, less fatty cuts like eye of round or top sirloin.

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How many will a 3 lb corned beef feed? ›

Keep in mind that depending on the cut, corned beef will shrink by as much as one-third during cooking. A 3-pound brisket should feed four to six people if served with vegetables.

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Which corned beef has the most flavor? ›

Point Cut: More marbling and fat, ideal for slow cooking, results in a richer flavor and more tender meat, best for hearty dishes.

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How can I make corned beef taste better? ›

To add some flavor to your boiled corned beef, add some vegetables, such as carrots, onions and potatoes, to the pot. These vegetables not only add flavor but also make for a well-rounded meal. You can add some herbs and spices, such as a bay leaf, garlic and peppercorns, to the water for extra flavor.

What are the disadvantages of corned beef? ›

Corned beef is processed red meat made by brining brisket in a salt and spice solution to flavor and tenderize it. While it provides protein and nutrients like iron and vitamin B12, corned beef is relatively high in fat and sodium. It's also a source of certain compounds that may increase your risk of cancer.

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Why is corned beef so expensive? ›

Some blame the lack of workers in the plants to process the beef.

Does cooking corned beef longer make it more tender? ›

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