Corned Beef Brisket Recipe

4.67 from 12 votes

Corned Beef Brisket Recipe

I'll show you how to make corned beef brisket from scratch with a simple corned beef brine and a little time. You'll love this homemade corned beef, and now you don't have to wait until St. Patrick's Day to make one.

Course Main Course

Cuisine Irish

Keyword brisket, corned beef, st. patrick's day

Dietary Restrictions Dairy-Free, Gluten-Free

Prep Time 20

Cook Time 3 20

Total Time 3 40

Servings

Calories 563.9kcal

Author Lisa Lotts

Ingredients

FOR THE BRISKET BRINE:

2 cups Morton's kosher salt
1 gallon water
½ cup sugar
2 tablespoons pickling spices Use store-bought or a homemade recipe (given in the Variations above).
4 teaspoons pink curing salt (prague powder)
3 cloves garlic minced

FOR MAKING CORNED BEEF:

5 pounds beef brisket
2 tablespoons pickling spice
3 bay leaves
1 tablespoon black peppercorns lightly crushed
water

FOR TRADITIONAL CORNED BEEF AND CABBAGE

½ pound small red potatoes
1 head cabbage cut into eighths, vertically through the core
1 large onion peeled and sliced vertically, root to tip in ½" strips
3 large carrots Peeled and cut into 2" pieces

Instructions

MAKE BRISKET BRINE:

In a large pot, combine 2 cups Morton's kosher salt, 1 gallon water, ½ cup sugar, 2 tablespoons pickling spices, 4 teaspoons pink curing salt , 3 cloves garlic, and simmer until the salt and sugar are dissolved. Cool to room temperature and refrigerate for several hours until cold.

BRINING BEEF BRISKET:

Place 5 pounds beef brisket in a pot or receptacle large enough to hold both the brine and the meat. (I purchased an industrial restaurant container with a 12-quart capacity -- and filled it about halfway up).
Pour the chilled brine over the meat and refrigerate for 5 days. If the meat isn't completely submerged in the brine, place a plate on top to press it into the liquid. Flip the meat every day or so.

COOKING THE BRINED CORNED BEEF

Remove the brisket from the brine and rinse well under cold running water. Discard the brining solution.
Place the brisket in a large, heavy pot or dutch oven and cover with cool water.
Place 2 tablespoons pickling spice, 3 bay leaves, and 1 tablespoon black peppercorns, in the center of the cheesecloth. Bring the ends together in a bundle and secure it tightly with the kitchen string. Add the bouquet to the pot.
Bring the pot just to a boil, reduce the heat to a simmer and cover with the lid slightly askew. Cook for 3 hours or until the beef is very tender.
Remove the pickling spice bundle from the pot and discard. Transfer the corned beef to a cutting board and slice thinly across the grain to serve.

FOR TRADITIONAL ST. PATRICK'S DAY BOILED DINNER:

Proceed with cooking the meat as described above, but scale back the simmer to 2 hours and 15 minutes -- then add ½ pound small red potatoes, 1 head cabbage, 1 large onion, and 3 large carrots to the pot and continue the simmer with the lid tightly secured for an additional 45 minutes or until the vegetables are very tender.
Remove the pickling spice bundle. Transfer the brisket to a cutting board and slice thinly. Arrange a few slices of meat in a shallow bowl, adding potatoes, carrots and a wedge of cabbage. Spoon the liquid over the the dish to serve.

Video

Notes

Note: Nutrition information includes all of the brine (salt and sugar), which doesn't get eaten. The brisket soaks in the brine solution, then rinsed off, so the sodium and other nutritional values are off in the recipe card. The brine will only add nominal counts to a standard beef brisket.

I don't have a way of adjusting the values for more accurate reporting.

Nutrition