How to Cut Corned Beef in 3 Simple Steps

Corned beef is a dish that consists of beef brisket cured in a brine with large grains of salt, known as “corns” in the United Kingdom. Another curing agent in corned beef is sodium nitrite, which gives the finished brisket its signature deep pink color. Once cured, the corned beef is typically boiled in water, beef broth, or Guinness beer. You can boil corned beef on the stovetop, bake it in the oven, or make slow cooker corned beef. In America, corned beef is strongly associated with St. Patrick’s Day, served with boiled potatoes, carrots, and cabbage.

In the 1600s, corned beef was popularized in Ireland. However, beef was too expensive for most of the Irish population to afford at the time, so most corned beef was produced for trade with England. The 1660s, England banned the importation of live Irish cattle. This flooded the Irish market with inexpensive, local beef. At the time, salt was less expensive in Ireland than it was in other parts of the United Kingdom, so salted beef became an even more lucrative export to Europe and America.

For impoverished Irish-Americans immigrants, corned beef was an inexpensive, large cut of meat that could replace ham for celebrations and holidays. Affordable vegetables like carrots and cabbage, along with an Irish staple, the potato, were served alongside the corned beef. This meal became synonymous with Irish tradition and soon became associated with St. Patrick’s Day for Irish Americans.

You can cook corned beef in a large pot or Dutch oven on the stovetop, in the oven, or with a slow cooker. Follow a traditional corned beef recipe.

1. 1. Make the spice blend. Toast mustard seeds, cinnamon, black peppercorns, cloves, allspice, coriander, juniper berries, and a bay leaf in a large pot on the stovetop. (You can experiment with other pickling spices, buy a spice packet, or use a bbq dry rub.) Add water, salt, brown sugar, and pink salt and bring to a boil, occasionally stirring to dissolve sugar and salt.
2. 2. Marinate the brisket. Once the cooking liquid is cool, add the brisket to the pot, and place it in the refrigerator for ten days to marinate.
3. 3. Drain the beef. Drain the beef and rinse it under cool water. Return the beef to the pot and cover it with enough water to submerge. Alternatively, you can use Guinness beer or beef broth.
4. 4. Simmer the corned beef. Slow cooking this tough cut of meat will tenderize it. Add aromatics, such as carrots, celery, and onions to the pot for flavor. Bring to a boil over high heat, then reduce heat to simmer and cook corned beef until the meat is ffork-tenderand internal temperature reaches 145 degrees Fahrenheit. Cooking time is approximately three hours.

It’s essential to use a sharp knife and cut against the muscle fibers’ grain for the most tender cuts. Follow these steps to prepare corned beef for serving:

1. 1. Let the corned beef rest. After removing from the oven or heat, the corned beef brisket should rest on a cutting board before it is cut; otherwise, the meat juices will seep out of the cut of beef, leading to a dry brisket. Wait for ten to fifteen minutes before slicing the corned beef.
2. 2. Place the meat fat-side down. On a cutting board, position the piece of mbeeffat-side down so you can see the grain or muscle fibers. You can also cut off the excess fat from corned beef. There are two main cuts of beef brisket used for corned beef: the flat cut and the point cut. The flat cut is leaner, while the point cut has more fat, marbling, and connective tissue.
3. 3. Cut against the grain. Use a carving knife and slice against the grain of the meat to get tender slices of beef. Slicing along the grain, or in the same direction as the muscle fibers, will result in slices with a tough and stringy texture. Traditionally, slices of corned beef for an entree are a quarter-inch thick. For deli sandwiches, you can cut corned beef into paper-thin slices.

Corned beef has many applications on breakfast, lunch, and dinner menus. Consider the following ways to prepare and enjoy corned beef:

1. 1. Traditional corned beef: You can serve corned beef with boiled potatoes, cabbage, and carrots on a large platter. Make a side dish of creamy horseradish sauce or parsley sauce made from parsley and a buttery bechamel to drizzle over the boiled dinner.
2. 2. Corned beef hash: Popularized in American diners, corned beef hash is made with diced corned beef served over crispy hash brown potatoes with an egg.
3. 3. Corned beef sandwich: Corned beef is also popular in Jewish-American delis. Serve corned beef sliced thin in a classic Reuben sandwich or on rye bread with slaw and dijon mustard or Russian dressing.
4. 4. Corned beef tacos: You can thinly slice leftover corned beef brisket to make tacos. Top with julienned carrots and cabbage slaw.

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