Here's my March column from the Petaluma Post:
With March upon us it is time to bring out the corned beef
to celebrate Saint Patrick’s Day, but wait a minute; the Irish don’t celebrate St
Paddy’s Day, just us Americans.
But who
cares!
It’s an Irish-American tradition
we all embrace, it is great fun and a good excuse to make a classic New England
boiled dinner that we all love.
It is
easy to write about it now since the 400+ pounds of corned beef have not yet
made their way across our stoves here at PSC.
By the end of the month I won’t be able to
give it away.
I really prefer mine in
November.
Saint Patrick was a Christian missionary to Ireland in the
first half of the 5
th century.
Actually a welsh boy who was a slave in Ireland before escaping back to
Briton and joining the church, only to return to Ireland as a Bishop, and to be
so hailed by the Irish for his good works to become the patron saint of
Ireland.
That speaks very well of his
character, talk about someone with a cross to bear!
But he served the Irish people well and true
to his calling.
Our Irish (from Ireland)
friends tell us he is respected and remembered on his day, with a bit of
hoo-ha, but they don’t make a party of it, don’t particularly associate corned
beef with him either.
That’s all
us.
So enjoy a good old fashioned Irish
American holiday!
What is corned beef you ask?
To corn something is to preserve it in salt. It doesn’t actually have
anything to do with corn. The “corn”
refers to the large rough granules of salt they used in the past. The meat was preserved in either a wet or dry
method which also tenderized it.
Originally the brisket and the eye round were used but today you will often
also find bottom round which is a much larger cut. The most popular and common is the brisket,
this cut comes from the lower quarter of the cow and is thin and known to be
stringy, which makes it a great candidate to be tenderized by corning. It takes best to long slow cooking and needs
to be carved correctly for the best results.
The brisket will have a fat cap on the top, it is best to leave it
intact when cooking, and then remove while carving.
Corned beef is packed with pickling spices; they may be
loose with the meat or in a separate packet.
If loose it will rinse away when you rinse the meat, it has been in the
packaging and added flavor already. You
can add additional if you have in your cupboard. If it includes a packet with the meat add to
the top of the pot when you boil.
Buying corned beef depends on the use. As I mention there are eye rounds, usually in
the deli case and are best for sandwiches, then there is the bottom round,
which is quite large at 12 to 15 pounds and good for feeding a big family, and
finally there is my favorite, the brisket.
A full brisket will weigh about 12 pounds, however you can find it cut into 2 or 3 pieces
for home use. It is a triangular piece
of meat. The tip of the brisket is
usually on the thinner side getting thicker towards the blunt end. This can be
helpful if you are short on time. If you
are in a hurry and only have an hour or two to cook look for the tip portion, as
the blunt end will likely take 2 to 3 hours of cooking.
To serve 4
4 lb piece of corned beef
1 lb new potatoes
1 lb carrots, you can cheat and use baby or peel and cut
your own
1 head white cabbage
1 large pot
Open the corned beef package and rinse well. Then place it in a large pot and cover well
with water, it will float and that is okay since you will turn it during
cooking. Bring the pot to a boil, then turn
down to a low boil and leave to cook. For
a thin piece 1 hour, for the blunt end approximately 2 to 2½ hours. Make sure there is always in enough water
to cover and turn 2 to 3 times. After enough
time, test with a fork, which should go in and come out easily. Now add the potatoes and carrots, and boil
for an additional 15 minutes, until the potatoes are fork tender. Add cabbage and boil another 5 minutes till
all is tender.
Sidebar: Cooking of
cabbage- this is very personal; I like cabbage and do not feel the need to cook
it to mush, but others expect it that way.
You might need to add additional time for your taste.
Gently remove everything from the pot, and cover cabbage,
potatoes and carrots to keep warm. Transfer
the corned beef to a cutting board for carving; the key is to carve across the
grain, it should look like you just cut across a rope. Platter and serve. Our family likes it with a good stone ground
mustard.
Enjoy your meal, save the left overs, and now the best part
of corned beef --- the Hash! It’s not just for breakfast. Yes that I can eat
any time of the year. It is also a great
make ahead dish and freezes very well.
1 lb left over corned beef, chopped well or ground
1 lb boiled peeled potatoes
1 lb yellow onions well diced
Additions- diced red bell pepper, diced carrots
Hash is so simple; make it to your liking. Some like a very
big and chunky style, some a very smooth patty.
I am somewhere in the middle, a good hand chop fits the bill, pieces
small enough to get a bit of everything with every bite, but big enough to be
recognizable.
In a large skillet heat ¼ cup of vegetable oil, start with
the onions, sauté till tender and golden.
Add the beef and potatoes, if you like it crisp, stir well and then turn
the heat down and step away. Control the
urge to stir, instead use a spatula to turn over areas at a time. If necessary
finish it the oven till heated through.
Top with the classic poached eggs, and for a very decadent
meal think about topping with hollandaise.
Enjoy
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