Corned Beef and Cabbage: the easy and traditional recipe

Hearty and rich corned beef and cabbage is a great-tasting, easy Irish recipe that is a favorite St. Patrick's Day dinner in many households. Featuring melt-in-your-mouth beef brisket, tender carrots and potatoes, and delicious cabbage, plus some seasonings, this simple dish is an easy one to master. You can cook corned beef and cabbage on the stovetop or in a slow cooker. Each yields tasty results, but the stovetop method is much faster. Whichever way you choose to make your corned beef and cabbage, you're sure to love it, especially when it's slathered in homemade horseradish sauce!

How to Make Corned Beef and Cabbage

To make corned beef and cabbage, first, you'll need to place the beef, sugar, spice packet, and bay leaves into a Dutch oven and add enough water so that everything is covered. Bring the water to a boil then reduce it to a simmer. Pop the lid on and cook the beef for 2 hours. After 2 hours, add the carrots and potatoes, bring everything back up to a boil, then lower the heat and cook for another 30 to 40 minutes, or until the beef and all the veggies are nice and tender. Add the cabbage and cook for another 15 minutes, then take out the beef and vegetables, wrap in foil, and set to the side.

Next up, it's time to make the sauce. Strain 1 ½ cups of the cooking juices. Melt some butter in a saucepan, then whisk in the flour to form a roux. This will help the sauce thicken. Stir in the cooking juices, sugar, vinegar, and horseradish. Keep stirring as you cook! Bring it to a boil and keep stirring until the sauce thickens. Slice the corned beef and serve it with plenty of horseradish sauce and some of the vegetables.

What is the Best Cut for Corned Beef?

There are two types of brisket cut for corned beef. The first, flat cut, has less fat and is easy to cut. The second one is called point cut which is slightly fattier and is ideal for shredding. Which one you choose is entirely up to you. Both cuts have great flavor and will yield fantastic corned beef.

Tips for the Best Corned Beef and Cabbage

For extra flavorful corned beef, you can brine it overnight or up to 10 days. Use spices like cloves, peppercorns, salt, mustard seeds, and bay leaf to make the brine. If you choose to brine your beef, make sure to rinse it before you cook it.

Cut the vegetables into large chunks to prevent them from turning into mush.

You can cook your corned beef and cabbage in a slow cooker. Set your slow cooker to low and cook the corned beef for 8 to 10 hours. Add the cabbage in during the last 2 hours of cooking.

How to Store Corned Beef and Cabbage

Corned beef lasts for 3 to 4 days when stored in an airtight container in the fridge.

Instructions

Put the brisket, spices, brown sugar, and bay leaves into a Dutch oven. Add enough water to cover the brisket. Bring to a boil then reduce to a simmer and cook covered for 2 hours.

Put the potatoes and carrots into the Dutch oven. Bring the liquid to a boil, then reduce it to a simmer and cook for 30 to 40 minutes, or until the brisket and vegetables become tender.

Place cabbage in the Dutch oven. Bring to a boil, then reduce to a simmer and cook for another 15 minutes.

Remove the corned beef, carrots, potatoes, and cabbage. Wrap in foil to keep warm.

To make the horseradish sauce, strain out 1 ½ cups of the cooking juice, making sure to skim off excess fat.

Melt butter in a saucepan. Whisk in flour, then slowly whisk in cooking juices. Whisk in sugar, vinegar, and horseradish. Let the mixture come to a boil then cook until it thickens.

Slice the beef against the grain and serve with the vegetables and horseradish sauce.

Notes

Taste the horseradish sauce once it has thickened and make any adjustments it might need.