I broke all the rules with this St. Patrick’s Day meal, but who cares because corned beef isn’t very Irish to start with, and apparently, neither was St. Patrick.
Most corned beef recipes call for a brisket, but our new friends at TX Bar Organics had sent us a chuck roast. Could I “corn” a roast instead of brisket? And exactly what is a brisket? And what the heck does corn have to do with it?
A brisket is a cut of meat from the breast area, whereas a chuck roast is from the shoulder area…see:
Because both cuts are fairly lean with similar marbling, I was feeling pretty confident that I could substitute one for the other.
And corn has nothing to do with it. Corn refers to the size and shape of the salt grains that are traditionally used to cure the meat.
Why isn’t it pink?
This version doesn’t result in pink meat because that’s not the real color of corned beef! The pink comes from the use of saltpeter. Saltpeter contains:
Potassium nitrate – a strong oxidizer and used in explosives
Sodium nitrate – an oxidizing agent used in gunpowder and smoke bombs
Calcium nitrate – an oxidizing agent used in fertilizers
OK, I admit that I included the explosives, gunpowder and smoke bombs were included for the dramatic effect. Just because a chemical is used in a particular process doesn’t make it evil. Baking soda is used to make glass, and even though I refrain from crunching on glass, I use baking soda liberally. The part that causes the most concern with saltpeter is that it is such a strong oxidizing agent, and anything that may contribute to oxidative stress is something I want to avoid. On top of that, saltpeter isn’t very reliable or necessary. It just makes the meat pink.
There’s not much work here, but you’ll need to plan ahead because the brining takes 5-7 days.
Gather your spices:
This can be as simple or complicated as you want. Some people use a pickling spice mix, because that is basically what you are doing…pickling beef. But because I have a pantry full of spices that are probably going to get old before I use them all, I went all out:
Starting at the spoons, and going in a clock-wise spiral, we have:
3 bay leaves
1 tablespoon coriander
2 cinnamon sticks
1 tablespoon ground celery seed
1 tablespoon mustard seed
1 small dried red pepper
1 tablespoon allspice berries
1 tablespoon caraway
3 star anise
1 tablespoon cloves
2 tablespoons ground ginger
1 tablespoon black peppercorns
1 tablespoon red pepper flakes
10 juniper berries
Mix together and divide in half.
Start the brining:
To a cooking vessel (I used a Dutch oven), add 1/2 of your pickling mix, 1 cup of salt and enough water to cover your roast, but don’t add the roast…not yet! Bring the brine to a boil and remove from heat. Before adding the meat, the brine needs to cool. I allowed mine to cool naturally, but you can add some ice, transfer to the fridge once it’s not too hot, whatever method you prefer. I wasn’t in any hurry. When the brining solution is cool, add the meat. If you prefer, you can transfer to a well-sealed freezer bag, but I preferred to let it brine it the pot. The uncooked meat should be fully submerged in the brine, and placed in the fridge.
Now go do something else for a week or so.
On St. Patrick’s Day
Or whatever day you want to cook the roast, discard the brining solution and rinse the beef well. Place the roast back in the pot and add enough water to cover. Add the remaining pickling spice. Bring to a boil, then reduce the heat and simmer with lid on for 3-4 hours.
Since I had already thrown out tradition by replacing the brisket and skipping the saltpeter, I also replaced the cabbage with a wonderful kale salad, which I’ll post the recipe for soon. And the corned beef was dressed with some horseradish mixed with a bit of coconut milk…tasty but not so photogenic. The roast was incredibly tender and full of flavor! Maybe a tiny bit heavy on the cloves, but the lingering spiciness was very pleasant and satisfying. And the leftovers will be even better!
Our contest is over for the $75 gift card to TX Bar Organics, but you can still get 10% off of your first order by using the discount code PALEO. Their steaks and roasts are as good as it gets!
Do you grind up all the seasonings?
I didn’t John, I just tossed them in the pot and it worked well. But after I got mine started, I saw a recipe that said to lightly toast the peppercorns, mustard seeds and coriander in a dry skillet and then smash them just enough to crack them. So I’ll try that next time.
This looks like such a fun thing to try! I LOVE corned beef, but don’t have it much anymore because the only kind I can find here in the UK is the tinned stuff.
Just recently we tried cooking tongue for the first time, and to my surprise, it looked, smelled, and tasted EXACTLY like corned beef! No idea why. I did have it in the crockpot for like ten hours, but don’t see why that should alter the taste. But yeah, no need to be snobby about the cut! I made tongue and potato hash and was happy!
We’ve had tongue a couple of times, and now that you mention it, I can see that! Next time I get a tongue, I’m going to pickle it…thanks for a great idea!!