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Corned Beef Basics

The first corned beef was packed in salt, and sometimes spices, in order to cure it. It got its name from the corn kernel-sized grains of salt it was packed in.

Related Recipe Collection

Corned Beef Recipes

More Corned Beef Recipes

Corned Beef and Cabbage Recipes

About the Beef

For centuries, corned beef was a food reserved for special occasions. Beef was considered to be a decadent indulgence up until the 20th century. It was only available to very wealthy people, because most cows were kept for their milk or for breeding.

About the Brisket

Brisket comes from the heavily exercised front limbs of the animal, and is consequently a tough cut of meat. When cooked properly--braised--this cut is tender, juicy and succulent. Corned beef and other forms of brisket need to be cooked for a long time with low heat and plenty of moisture in order to realize their full potential as the star of your dinner table.

Beef Brisket Recipes

Cooking

To cook prepared corned beef, place it in a large pot along with the liquid and spices that accompanied it in the package. Pour in enough water to cover the beef, then bring the water to a boil on the stovetop. Reduce the heat to a simmer, and cover the pot. A three-pound corned beef will take about three hours to become perfectly tender. Check the meat occasionally, adding more water if necessary. The beef is ready when it pulls apart easily. For a one-pot feast, you can add shredded cabbage and chunks of potatoes and carrots to the pot during the last half hour of cooking.

Corning Beef

If you'd like to prepare your own corned beef from a fresh brisket, try these recipes:

Find more Irish recipes in our St. Patrick's Day collection!

Comments

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nancy

Sep. 20, 2009 6:01 am

The easiest way to prepare corned beef is to cook it in a crockpot. The "pot" does your work for you. You're welcomed home with the fabulous aroma of dinner ready to serve. It's at least as yummy. if not better than cooked on the stovetop!

Paula's favorites

Oct. 16, 2009 6:34 pm

We love corned beef with cabbage, carrots, and potatoes. This is a great recipe, but I altered it putting it in the slow cooker with a can of cheaa beer. Bring to to temperature, then turn it down to low and let it cook all night. The next morning, the smell is tantalizing. enjoy!

Ellie

Feb. 15, 2010 3:56 am

In charge of corn beef and cabbage dinner for 150 peo. Have 10 cooks that will be cooking the cornbeef, pot, carrots and cabbage. Need to buy the most tender corn beef available and cooking directions to pass along to the cooks. Also How many pounds of corn been do I need, knowing that the cornbeef shrinks . Appreciate you imput. Ellie

Rita

Feb. 18, 2010 5:28 pm

No matter how much water I use to cover my corned beef brisket for cooking or how long I simmer it per pound it still comes out dry. Any suggestions appreciated.

Jeff

Feb. 25, 2010 11:21 am

Rita, Dry meat usually means overdone. Are you cutting the temperature as soon as it comes to a boil? Maybe you should reduce the cooing time as well; 1 hour per pound is the absolute longest I go. When we simmer the brisket it isn't adding moisture to it. If it was the brisket would expand not contract. I hope this helps. Jeff

Loon Lake Lady

Mar. 2, 2010 2:27 pm

HELP! I plan to serve this meal on March 17 at a church dinner for about 40 people. As we don't have enough crock pots to use, can this corned beef with cabbage, potatoes & carrots dinner be prepared as successfully in a large, electric oven in lieu of multiple crock pots? Appreciate your kind help. Jenny

ncscratchcook

Mar. 4, 2010 12:16 pm

Rita - you also need to serve it with some of the liquid. I usually take mine out and slice it up and then put it back in the pot when I add the vegetables. When the veggies are ready, everything is ready to serve right from the pot. I always spoon some of the liquid over everything when serving.

jandy

Mar. 5, 2010 7:22 am

I usually simmer mine with red potatoes and carrots When meat is done make a honey mustard glaze (like you woould use on ham) and put under broiler for about 5 min. I boil cabbage separatly and serve with butter S&P. Also use creamy horseradish for dipping corned beef in. YUM

AliC

Mar. 5, 2010 12:26 pm

How do I get the corned beef to not be so salty? whats the trick

PATTY1980

Mar. 7, 2010 8:49 am

To make the corned beef less salty, place in pot of cold water, no seasonings. Bring to just boiling point, dump water and start over again for total of three times. After that follow recipe.

Ms Sam

Mar. 10, 2010 9:18 am

I see that there are different cuts of corned beef. What do you recommend?

Bunny

Supporting Member (Click to learn more about Supporting Membership)

Mar. 10, 2010 11:45 am

To Loon Lake Lady/Jenny: Simply put your corned beef & spice packets into a dutch oven as if you were stove-top cooking, cover with liquid, lay foil over the pot, then add the lid to the pot and if you can bring to boil on stovetop, do so; if not, just add enough time to the oven cooking (350 degrees)for liquid to come to simmer. Overall, you need an hour per pound to braise until tender. This is how I make pot roast and it is awesome...way better than crockpot which tends to cook to quickly these days, boiling the heck out of everything, even on low!

Bunny

Mar. 10, 2010 11:47 am

Sorry, Loon Lake Jenny - the oven cooking needs to be at least 3 hours...I didn't account for anything smaller than 3 pounds.

shoppernana

Mar. 12, 2010 4:45 pm

I have an 17 pound whole corned beef brisket. How to roast in oven???

gs777

Mar. 13, 2010 11:35 pm

Jenny (Loon Lake Lady): I just served this dinner for a church group of about 70 people. Yes, you can cook the meal in large electric ovens (we used 18 quart roaster pans)instead of crock pots. We bought point pieces of corned beef as they were the least expensive and they worked great - flat pieces would be even better. Because the roasts were small (2.5-4 lbs) we put 4-5 roasts in each roasting pan. Use the juice from the meat package along with all the spices from the packets and completely cover the meat with water. I cooked the roasts on low (about 250 degrees) overnight for about 7-8 hours. You can tell that the meat is done when it is pliable, but not shredding apart-you want it to have some body or else it will just be a shredded pile of meat (still tasty, but unattractive). Remove the roasts and put into a large aluminum pan covered with foil to cool slightly for about 20 minutes. When the meat is ready to slice, it is very easy to first "wipe" away the layer of fat that covers one side of the roast. Be sure to cut ACROSS the grain into slices between 1/4" and 1/2" thick - too thin and the meat will shred. You may want to strain out some of the fat pieces from the meat juices, but take care not to remove all of the seasonings. Because we didn't have enough space to cook the potatoes, carrots and cabbage with the meat, we cooked them separately while the meat was cooling. I boiled the potatoes and carrots on the stove replacing about 1/2 of the water with meat juices to flavor the vegetables. After taking the meat out of the roasting pans, we put the cabbage wedges in the meat juices and cooked them in the roasters - they will steam nicely. When we were ready to serve, I poured some meat juice over everything for the last bit of flavoring. The dinner turned out great and we got many, many compliments. Good Luck!

Betho

Mar. 14, 2010 8:33 pm

My husband & I have been doing St Pats dinner for last 23 years...have boiled it and slow roasted in oven. The last few years we have found that the best, tastiest & tenderest corned beef is done by slowly cooking it over a gas bbq. We place 2 corned beef flats, fat side up, in aluminum roasting pans & cover 3/4 of meat with a mixture of Guinness & beef broth. Preheat grill to 400 degrees then turn outside burners to med. & inside burners to low. Cover roasting pan with aluminum foil and place in center of grill and slowly cook, flipping flats every hour. If liquid appears to be evaporating quickly, add more beer or broth. Cooking time will vary according to grills. Ours averages a little less than an hour a pound. Remove foil for about last 45 minutes of cooking time so it gets that caramelized crisp. Be sure to baste during cooking time. We let the flats sit for a while after cooking before we slice them. We have also found that if you cook the corned beef the day before your party, it slices extremely easily and uniformly the next day. Absolutely the most flavorful and tender corned beef we have ever served for our annual St. Patrick's Day party.

sue

Mar. 15, 2010 12:23 pm

WOW-Great tips all, thank you so much. Enjoyed reading everything everyone said! HAPPY ST. PAT'S DAY TO ALL!!!

Tannapuppy

Mar. 15, 2010 1:08 pm

Ms. Sam. A point cut is fatty & the flat cut is less fatty.The flat cut is not. Patty 1980, Thanks for the info on how to cut the salt. My husband loves corned beef, but the salt gives him horrific heart burn.I will try your little trick the next time I make this.

dae

Mar. 15, 2010 11:34 pm

Question 1: I have 3 points to cook (about 3 lb each, 9 lb total). Since they are separate pieces, do I simmer for the time of one 3 lb piece (about 3 hrs) or as a 9 lb piece or what? Question 2: what's the best internal temp so the meat's not dried out?

Mar. 16, 2010 6:52 am

my brisket did not have any spices included what shall I use?

elizaBEASTie

Mar. 16, 2010 2:20 pm

If you've never made corned beef or have trouble with it coming out dry, use the SLOW COOKED CORNED BEEF FOR SANDWICHES recipe on this site. I have never had a failure and the flavour is out of this world. Don't let the name fool you, all you have to do is let the corned beef cook slowly all day (crockpot) or 4-5 hours on the stovetop. When done, drain the cooking liquid into a large pot and add all your veggies (I add cabbage, potatoes, turnips, celery and onions) and let them cook 20-30 minutes till tender. I always have my veggies peeled and cut and ready to throw in the pot and we're sitting down to a fantastic meal a half hour after we get home from work.

Sarah

Mar. 17, 2010 10:26 am

I have found that corned beef rounds come out more succulent than the brisket! I don't have a crock pot or a dutch oven so I usually boil mine on the stove stop first (apple cider and guiness)then trasnfer it to a tukey bag to finish braising in the oven. Don't add any spices to the liquid until AFTER you skim away the fat that rises to the top! As always, cover your meat with foil once you pull it out of the oven and let rest before slicing into it!

Sarah

Mar. 17, 2010 10:33 am

MK- 1)Rub fresh cracked pepper and fresh salt over your beef to taste. 2) Take some cheesecloth (or I take a tea bag and remove the tea), and add 2 teaspoons Peppercorns, 4 Allspice berries and 2 whole Cloves. Stick in the pot AFTER you skim the fat that rises to the surface. Also, add 2 bay leaves to the pot but not in the tea bag. Hope this helps! Happy St. Patrick's Day!!

KATSINTHEKITCHEN

Mar. 28, 2010 8:59 am

I used to bake my corned beef in a dutch oven but when I discovered the results from my pressure cooker, I was hooked. We just had corned beef last night, in fact. I have several pressure cookers, one os which is the size of a deep chef's (or saute) pan. It accomodates a flat of corned beef perfectly. I use boxed or canned low-sodium chicken broth for the liquid, put the brisket on the perforated rack insert fat-side up, press the whole spices from the packet into the fat layer and pressure cook for 55 minutes. I let the pressure reduce naturally while I separately steam the cabbage, carrots and potatoes. The resulting corned beef is so tender and juicy that I won't make it any other way. Not to mention the time savings. If you own a pressure cooker, try it sometime.

Howard Schwartz

Aug. 4, 2010 10:46 am

Who says Corned Beef is not traditional in Ireland??? Certainly nobody from Ireland I know and I'm married to a Dublin girl and go there regularly.

brian

Sep. 20, 2010 5:54 pm

"Who says Corned Beef is not traditional in Ireland???" I'm from Ireland and had never seen American-style corned beef until I moved here in my 30s. I certainly ate lots of 'corned beef' sandwiches for my school lunches as a kid, but it's a shredded cold meat taken from little cans produced in Brazil or Argentina! You can make slices with it when it's cold, but it falls apart if you try to heat it up. Corned beef is certainly not a traditional Irish meal for St. Patrick's Day, though I have seen it offered in pubs and restaurants in recent years. But it's totally a Irish-American tradition that has actually nowadays been imported into Ireland (and a great one, too!) I rate it along with little shamrock stamps on Guinness head; another US import you'll see on the tourist trail.

Steph

Oct. 2, 2010 8:07 am

I've had the most success using a slow cooker, with Guinness or another dark beer for the liquid. Comes out great, moist and tender every time!

Witkost217

Oct. 31, 2010 7:54 am

I add minced garlic and bay leaves to the water as the beef simmers slowly. I also change the water at least 3 times during cooking to reduce the saltiness of the meat.

Atha

Dec. 19, 2010 6:53 pm

I had never cooked a brisket before and This was so simple to follow and my brisket was so tender it fell apart.

Penny

Jan. 9, 2011 12:05 pm

i cooked mine in my electric pressure cooker for 90 minutes for a 4 pound brisket i added 2 cups of water and a can of beer and it was very good. love my electric pressure cooker!!!

cat228

Feb. 19, 2011 10:56 am

Thanks for all the helpful hints. Question: Do I skim the fat from the top of the pot while I'm cooking it, or wait until it's done? Also, is there such a thing as cooking the corned beef brisket with too much water? I added more to cover it, but it's floating! Thanks...

Sharon HARRIS

Mar. 8, 2011 7:57 am

A crockpot is great for smaller amounts. If you are having a crowd use the oven Place brisket with the spice packets in a large roasting pan (turkey), cover with water.Cover tightly with heavy duty foil. Put into a 350 degree oven and let it cook. The shrinkage will be a little less and you arenot boiling out all the flavor. Check after 2 hours and continue cooking til tender. Drain the water and juice into a large pan to cook your cabbage in. Cut in quarters remove core and simmer till done. As far as how may people will a pound serve...depends on appetites. Shrinkage and fat consume 50% of the product. So if 10 people want 1/2 lb per person, that's 5 lbs of cooked. You need 10 lbs due to fat and shrinkage. Good Luck!!

gena

Mar. 12, 2011 9:42 am

I have only made a brisket about four times. Three times the packages said to cook in the oven in water, covered, which I did. Once it turned out great, the other tow were tough. Today I tried another one. The package said to cook in a pot on the stovetop covered in water. Bring to a boil, then simmer for 2.5-3 hours. DOne at 160 degrees. After one hour it was already 160 degrees! Yes, I had my stove on simmer, I even questioned (flattop stove) if it was still on as the water was not moving (bubbling) around the roast. My goal is to make one that is tender! Help please!! :)

dianna

Mar. 12, 2011 6:08 pm

I cook my corn beef stove top for at least 3 hours.It has always turn out tender.I add carrots and potatoes about 30min before its should be done, then add cabbage last.this seems to work for me.Please check meat with fork to be sure its tender before adding veggies.Happy Saint Patrick's Day To All.

RickySlade

Mar. 13, 2011 7:32 am

Gena, the brisket (corned beef) is a heavily exercised muscle...because of that, it's tough and needs a lot of time to break down and become tender. I'm sure it can reach an internal temperature of 160 degrees in as little as an hour, but that doesn't mean the muscle/fat/connective tissue/etc will be sufficiently broken down at that point. Don't focus on the internal temperature--keep it cooking until it reaches the desired tenderness (at least an hour per pound...usually longer, though).

Smoker

Mar. 13, 2011 11:23 am

Rinse off the briskets first. It helps reduce some of the salt also. Meat goes into a pot to boil for 3-4 hours with the spices, garlic, onion, 50/50 water guiness mix. Remove meat from pot and throw in veggies(parsnips, potatoes, carrots, and celery for 30 mins then throw in cabbage for another 20mins. When the veggies are cooking the meat goes on charcoal grill and baste with real apple cider, stone ground mustard, honey and some good Irish whiskey. Let the meat set for at least 10 mins and slice.

prettylawyer_jannalee

Mar. 13, 2011 4:56 pm

looking delicious, i would lke to try it one of this days..:)

aslan500

Mar. 16, 2011 10:20 am

I'm cooking corned beef and cabbage for 20 people tomorrow. I bought 5 Briskets totalling 18 ibs. How lonf should I cook these. It says an hour a pound. Does this mean I have to cook it foe 18 hours?

Howard Schwartz

Mar. 16, 2011 1:24 pm

Who says corned beef is not traditional in Ireland? Certainly no one who as ever actually been there on St Patrick's Day. They call it Salt Beef but trust me, it's the same thing and it's mega-traditional in Ireland.

Royall

Mar. 16, 2011 6:31 pm

Hey aslan... Glad you posted! I've got 20 people coming over too and have the same question! Hope you get an answer so I don't mess up the dinner here!

jarvia

Mar. 17, 2011 9:05 am

Aslan and Royall-if the brisket was one piece at 18#, yes that would be your cooking time. Since you have smaller pieces, say 4 or 5# each, the cooking time is for that amount, even if you have a few pieces in a single cooking pan. They will cook and tenderize individually, not based on the total pounds. Advice: cook like sizes together. A 3# piece and a 5# piece will be done differently if cooked together. Hope this helps.

Royall

Mar. 17, 2011 11:46 am

Thanks Jarvia! I was thinking that would be the way but just wanted to be sure. Didn't want to ruin the meal! Aloha, Royall

chef rudy

Mar. 20, 2011 7:31 am

Why does everyone think that the BRISKET you buy in the store is automatically CORNED BEEF? A brisket is a brisket unless it is cured in a brine before slowly simmering it in water with pickling spice. Only then does it become CORNED BEEF! When you buy the "Corned Beef" in the store and it is raw and it includes the "mystery packet" it is just a BRISKET! If you were to wander over to the deli section and ask for corned beef, you will get corned beef. However, this has already been brined, cured and boiled.

Laurie

Mar. 27, 2011 6:22 pm

Does anybody have any hints on what to do with the left over broth? I hate to throw it out! Thank you.

Flatliner04

Apr. 5, 2011 1:14 pm

OK I havent read all the comments but for a really quick meal esp when camping....1 or two cans of corned beef put in pot over heat add barbque sauce you like heat and stir mix well and serve on any type bread you want

Joycegl

Oct. 4, 2011 1:15 pm

Don't throw out that broth, it's the best of the dinner, when cooking the corn beef, add a diced onion to it, the spices that come with it, cover the roast with water so you have plenty broth, when it's tender add the potatoes , 15 minutes before its done, add the cut up cabbage, serve in a bowl like beef stew, that broth is awsome

Joycegl

Oct. 4, 2011 1:20 pm

corn beef stew, I for got to tell you to make sure to season with salt and pepper for the corn beef stew, its awwsome, best broth in the world

Joycegl

Oct. 4, 2011 1:43 pm

You have to get a corn beef brisket, it has a package of seasoning