Traditional Corned Beef & Cabbage

To be positive is to be mistaken at the top of one's voice. – Ambrose Bierce

I mixed some butter and fresh dill together for a slightly
non-traditional touch.

Many of us will be breaking out the corned beef for St. Patrick’s Day. It seems to be as much of a tradition as green beer and Irish soda bread. But is it really associated with the Irish at all? This is something I thought was true. But is it?

Corned beef is cured with "corns" of salt. Curing meat with salt is a very old culinary technique, dating back to the murky ancient times of both Europe and the Middle East.

That pink is because of nitrites. I have a recipe for non-nitrite
corned beef linked just below.

Corned beef really took off during the British Industrial Revolution, being a product that could be transported and used not only as food for long sea voyages but also as a trading commodity once port was made in North, South and Central America. 

Corned beef is thought to be traditional Irish food by North Americans. Corned beef is served in Ireland, but many Irish see it as a tourist commodity and not innately “Irish.” In Ireland pork is more commonly consumed than beef, and many view our North American association between Ireland and corned beef as crazy.

The most famous salted beef is kosher brisket, from the Jewish culinary tradition. It is widely believed that corned beef in America was eaten by the Irish because it was readily available to purchase from their Jewish co-immigrants. Both groups had large populations in New York City in the mid-1800 and 1900s.

So the association probably has more to do with commerce than culture. I recently read an excerpt from a “letter to the editor” by an Irish-American lady commenting on an article about the Irish-ness of corned beef. She grew up in Queens, NYC in the early part of the 1900s. From her recollection its consumption was actually made popular by New York bars. 

Bars offered a “free lunch,” consisting of corned beef, to Irish construction workers working on NYC skyscrapers. But the workers had to buy beer or whiskey to get the free lunch. Over time, corned beef became associated with the Irish in the USA.

After 2 hours, add the potatoes and carrots. It appears that
carrots float...

So the desire to serve corned beef on St. Patrick’s Day because it’s Irish is, at the end of the day, a load of blarney.

But it is tasty – if highly salty. So if you’re of the mind to serve up a chunk of the brined, pink delight, what follows is a very traditional Nova Scotia recipe. Just be warned, the pink colour comes of curing with sodium nitrite, which turns some people off. I have a recipe for making corned beef without nitrites here.

This recipe is how my mother made it, and probably her mother before her, and her mother too. So this stretches back into the late 1800s. 

Some cooks soak the corned beef before cooking to remove some of the salt, others do not. This dish takes very few ingredients, so is not expensive to make. Vinegar sprinkled on the beef and cabbage is a standard condiment with corned beef in many Nova Scotia homes.

Traditional Corned Beef & Cabbage

Prep: 10 min  |  Cook 2.5 hours  |  Serves 4-6

The cabbage wedges go in only for 10-15 minutes
right at the end.

1kg (2.2 lbs) boneless corned beef

1 medium green cabbage

4 large potatoes

4 large carrots

water (see recipe)

2 tsp cracked black pepper

white vinegar, for the table

Rinse the corned beef and place in a heavy pot with a well fitting lid. Add just enough water to cover the beef. Add the black pepper and bring to a boil.

Reduce the heat to medium low, cover and let cook for 2 hours. While the meat cooks, peel the potatoes and carrots and cut into large pieces. Core and cut the cabbage into eight wedges.

After the 2 hours, add the potatoes and carrots. Bring the heat up to medium high, cover again and cook for 15 minutes. Then add the cabbage wedges, re-cover and cook for an additional 10-15 minutes.

Remove the beef and slice against the grain. Serve with salt (taste first!!!) and white vinegar at the table. 

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Mongolian Beef

Fake is as old as the Eden tree. – Orson Welles 

This recipe is quite common in many Chinese/American restaurants. The only place it is not common (probably) is in Mongolia. This recipe has nothing to do with Mongolia. This is a fake.

But just because this is “fake” doesn’t mean it’s not good. As I typed that, I searched my mind for another example. But I couldn’t come up with one. Usually fake means cheap, knock-off tat. But this is tasty.

So perhaps rather than calling it fake, we should call it a misnomer. It’s got plenty of tasty Asian flavours, but it just has nothing to do with Mongolia, except for the beef. I guess it’s just supposed to elicit thoughts of "the exotic."

There’s lots of Chinese/American dishes like that. Any that are familiar with real Asian dishes know exactly what I am talking about. They’re the true exotics, to our taste.

So if you can get past the fact this isn't Mongolian, you’re good to go.

If you’re into tender slices of beef in a sweet/spicy sauce, then you’ll like this dish. 

The recipe makes enough for four, if you serve another side with it. If not, it can make a good meal for two, albeit not very well balanced from the healthy eating food groups... Make some veggies for with it.

At just a few minutes to cook, it’s a great way to have something on the table on a week night that’s not your standard fare.

The sauce ingredient looks long, but it’s all stuff you should have on hand. Except perhaps for the Hoisin. It’s essential. Go get some.

Mongolian Beef

Prep: 10 min  |  Cook: 10 min  |  Serves 4

1 lb beef steak, sliced thinly

1/4 cup cornstarch (to coat)

1 tbsp vegetable oil

1 medium onion

1/4 cup Thai basil

for the sauce

1 tbsp fresh ginger, diced

1 tbsp garlic, diced

1/2 cup soy sauce

1/3 cup water

1/4 cup brown sugar

2 tbsp Hoisin sauce

1 tsp dried crushed red chilli

1 tsp sesame oil

2 tsp cornstarch

Mix all the sauce ingredients together in a bowl and set aside.

Keep the beef in the refrigerator until ready to slice – or freeze briefly. It makes it easier to slice. Toss the beef with the cornstarch to coat well.

Chop the onion into large pieces.

Heat the oil in a wok. Fry the beef slices in two batches until just barely cooked through. Remove to a bowl. Add more oil if necessary.

Fry the onion until it begins to soften. Then add the sauce and let cook until it begins to thicken. Then add the beef and let cook for a minute or two. Finally, stir in the basil.

Serve on hot cooked white rice.

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Recipe: The Third in the Pastrami Sandwich Trifecta

If thou tastest a crust of bread, thou tastest all the stars and all the heavens." – Robert Browning

Photo: avlxyz, Flickr Creative Commons license

The best rye bread ever. That's quite a boast. I have to admit, this recipe is quite unique. I promised to post a rye bread recipe to complement the pastrami and mustard. When I found this I stopped looking. This recipe has one step I have never heard of in making bread. And the boast (which isn't mine).. why go further? So I am posting it as I found it, with a link back to the site. 

Visit. There are many more goodies posted. Just back up to petitchef.com.

Don't be intimidated by bread. There are 3 important things:

1. Proofing the yeast. Keep it warm while it's rising. Sometimes I heat the oven at 175°F for a few minutes, or put it on the radiator. It has to be foamy.

2. Kneading. You need to knead until the dough starts to become elastic. What that means depends on the type of bread. Some is sticky when you knead, others not. Good directions will tell you what to expect.

3. Rising. It has to be warmer than a normal room. Either in a barely heated oven, or on a radiator. It should be at least 80°F. That way the yeast will keep doing its job.

If you can understand those three points, you can make your own bread. I'm going to try this recipe this weekend.

Photos are from the site. Click on them to enlarge. So, let's have at it!

From http://en.petitchef.com/recipes/the-best-rye-bread-ever-fid-767634

Posted the 11/04/2010 19:56:00 By Top Notch Eats

Adapted from: Smitten Kitchen

The Best Rye Bread Ever

This is hands down the best rye bread I have ever had in my life. It must be completed in three major steps and does take a little bit of time, but there is no reason why you can't do it. It is such a great feeling too when you finish a loaf of bread and it comes out of the oven all hot and smelling of home.

Step one - Creating the sponge

3/4 cup bread flour 

3/4 cup rye flour (bulk or natural food store)

1/2 tsp of granulated yeast

1 1/2 tbsp of sugar

1/2 tbsp of honey 

1 1/2 cups of water

Mix all of these ingredients thoroughly together so they become completely incorporated. Then set aside.

Step two - make the flour mixture

2 1/4 cup bread flour

1/2 tsp plus 1/8 tsp of instant yeast 

2 tbs of caraway seeds (slightly ground with a mortar and pestle if desired)

1/2 tbs of coarse salt

You can crush up your caraway seeds a little if you would like your bread to have a smoother taste and not crunchy. By using a mortar and pestle it will also release all the wonderful flavour of the caraway seeds too.

Step 3 - first ferment and rise

Then take your flour mixture and cover the sponge with it. This is a very important step. Just pour it on top completely covering the sponge mixture. Do not mix the two together. Cover with saran wrap and set aside for 3 hours in a warm spot. This step is going to allow the mixture to ferment. Which is basically just going to make your bread that much tastier.

Step 4 - kneading

Once it has risen add in 1/2 tbs of vegetable oil. Then turn it out on to you countertop and sprinkle more flour. Begin to kneed your dough for 10 minutes until it becomes very elastic. Once it is quite elastic place it back into the bowl you mixed it all in. Then invert the bowl onto your countertop and let it rest for another 20 minutes.

After 20 minutes kneed it a bit more then smooth it around with your hands until it becomes a perfectly round loaf.

Step 5 - second rise

Then place it in a lightly oiled bowl and allow the dough to rise until its doubled in size. This should take about 1 1/2 hours to 2 hours.

Then take your loaf that has doubled in size and kneed for a few more minutes. Then form back into a beautiful loaf.

Step 6 - third rise

Place the loaf into your baking vessel, cover it with a tea towel, and let it rise for another 45 minutes. I used my cast iron skillet to bake it in. It was my first time using my cast iron skillet to bake in and I was beyond happy with the results.

Step 7 - baking

Once it has completely risen make an 'X' at the top of the bread. Preheat your oven to 450°F. Bake it for 15 minutes, then lower the temperature to 400°F and bake it for an additional 30 to 40 minutes until golden brown all over.

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Recipe: Homemade Dijon Mustard

Condiments are like old friends—highly thought of, but often taken for granted. – Marilyn Kaytor

Moutarde! Left to right: Pommery, Dijon and Tarragon.
 Photo: Michael Dietsch, Flickr ccl

OK, I promised you this one when I posted the Pastrami recipe. So here it is.

Making Dijon mustard is very easy. In fact, making any mustard at home is easy, and if you have a good recipe, you get stellar results. I have made Dijon for the past three years and it has never failed.

Keep in mind that store-bought mustard has stabilizers that make it extremely smooth. You won't accomplish that with homemade. Nearly, but not quite, and it has no affect on taste. 

Think about it, when you're making homemade bread, is your aim to come out with a loaf that looks like sliced bread from the store? No. The hand made quality is what drives us to create!

From Wikipedia:

Dijon mustard is not covered by a Protected Designation of Origin (PDO) or a Protected Geographical Indication (PGI) under the auspices of the European Union; thus, while there are major mustard plants in Dijon and suburbs, most Dijon mustard is manufactured outside of Dijon.

Dijon mustard originated in 1856, when Jean Naigeon of Dijon substituted verjuice, the acidic "green" juice of not-quite-ripe grapes, for vinegar in the traditional mustard recipe.

Mustards from Dijon today generally contain both white wine and red wine. Mustards marketed as Dijon style may contain one or both of these wines or may substitute vinegar or another acid in order to conform to local laws.

Some general notes from Docaitta: 

Homemade Dijon is pretty spicy, as a rule.

When cooking with wine in any dish remember that why you're using it is because of the flavor. Some of the alcohol will be burned off, so get a wine you like. Bad wine goes in, bad taste comes out.

The majority of the heat comes from the yellow mustard. You can substitute other dry mustards, but it won't be Dijon. If you're fancy, get mustard seeds and grind them. This will result in a coarser mustard than by using powdered.

For a sweeter mustard, add more honey, for less sweet, reduce. You can adjust the Tabasco to your liking as well.

To check out some of my other mustard recipes here click the links below:
Dijon Mustard (No. 2)
Porter Beer Mustard
Oktoberfest Mustard
Cognac Mustard
Yellow Hot Dog Mustard
14th Century Lumbard Mustard

Homemade Dijon Mustard

2 cups dry white wine

1 cup minced onion

2 cloves minced garlic

2 tbsp honey 

4 oz dry yellow mustard 

1 tbsp oil 

2 tsp salt 

1/4 tsp Tabasco sauce 

In a small saucepan, heat garlic, wine and onion, bringing to a boil. Then simmer for 5 minutes and remove from heat. Set aside in a bowl for 10 minutes.

Add the dry mustard into saucepan and slowly strain the heated wine mixture over top to remove the solids. Whisk until smooth, ensuring to remove any lumps. Add honey, salt and Tabasco sauce. 

Place over medium low heat and stir until the mixture thickens. It will set up more as it cools.

Remove from heat, cool, then store in glass or plastic jar. Refrigerate. 

It takes a couple days for the mustard flavors to meld completely, but it can be used immediately.

This is a great gift to make for the hard to buy for foodie.

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Recipe: Making Pastrami from Homemade Corned Beef

I find pastrami to be the most sensual of all the salted cured meats. – Vivian, Seinfeld Season 9, Episode 4

Photo: gtrwndr87, Flickr creative commons license

Here's a recipe to sop up some of that liquor I've been feeding you lately. Mouth watering pastrami on fresh rye, some spicy mustard and a crunchy dill pickle on the side. Sounds good, doesn't it. Well you don't have to go to the grocery store for any of it, if you're willing to put in the time.

Rye bread, spicy mustard and pickles can all be accomplished in a single afternoon. (I'll post all in due course.) Pastrami is a little different, but far from impossible. In fact it's pretty easy. The most difficult thing is having to wait. You have to start with corned beef brisket. 

In an earlier post in January (To Meat or Not to Meat) I outlined how to make delicious homemade corned beef. Link to that recipe is at the bottom of this post. It takes 2-3 days to cure.

Pastrami, although traditionally smoked, can be done without this step with more than satisfactory results. The secret is smoked paprika, and a slow, low roasting. The spices permeate the meat as it cooks.

This recipe is an amalgam of several recipes I discovered when looking on process to make homemade pastrami. Sounds good, doesn't it?

Homemade Pastrami

Prep: 15 min  |  Cook: 6 hours

Photo: beeJim828, Flickr creative commons license

4 1/2 lbs homemade corned beef brisket

1/4 cup dark brown sugar

3 tbsp coarse ground black pepper

2 tbsp ground coriander

2 tbsp minced garlic

1 tbsp smoked paprika

1tsp red pepper flakes

1 tsp ground yellow mustard

oil, for rubbing on first layer of tin foil

Preheat the oven to 240°F. Rinse the corned beef well and remove most of the fat, leaving 1/8" to melt into the meat as it roasts.

Mix the spices and rub onto all sides of the meat. Tightly wrap the spiced meat in aluminum foil rubbed with oil. Repeat this two more times, without the oil. You are trying to create a seal that will keep in all the juices, and consequently all the flavour.

Roast for 5 hours. Remove from the oven and let cool slightly. Place in the refrigerator overnight. Slice the next day.

Note: If you wish for less spicy pastrami, simply remove the spices from the surface before slicing.

This is the link to the homemade corned beef:

http://docaitta.blogspot.com/2011/01/recipe-to-meat-or-not-to-meat-that-is.html

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Recipe: This probably won't kill you

Corned Beef, Spinach and Celeriac Casserole*

Finished product not exactly as illustrated.
Photo southernfood.about.com

After a while in the kitchen, if you paying attention to what you're doing, you begin to see patterns to what works and what doesn't, what goes with what, and basic overall preparation techniques.

As untested as it gets, I just made this recipe up as a way to use leftover corned beef. Inspiration for this came from southernfood.about.com so it's not totally out of the blue — but substantial parts of it are.... 

If you're a regular reader of my blog, or wish to become one (hint), over time you'll notice I do a lot of one-pot (or close to it) meals. I'm not really into leaving a sink full of dishes to stare at you while you're eating.

Serve this corned beef casserole with a salad and crusty warm bread, bottle of red wine, etc.

1 lb pasta, small shapes like fusilli, rigatoni, bow ties, etc.

1/4 cup + 2 tbsp butter, divided

1 cup onion, sliced thinly

2 cups celeriac, sliced and chopped into small sticks

1 lb leftover corned beef, shredded (see note)

8 ounces baby spinach (1 bag)

1/4 cup flour

1 tbsp dijon mustard

1 cup white wine (or chicken stock)

2 cups milk

1 egg, beaten

1 tsp black pepper

1/2 tsp cayenne pepper

1 tsp thyme, dried

2 cups swiss cheese, grated

1/2 teaspoon salt, or to taste

2 cups small bread cubes, dried and tossed with butter

note: if you haven't made your own corned beef, take care in choosing canned corned beef. They're not all the same. Hereford's is basically a mush of mechanically separated whatever. Others can be worse. I have found certain brands at the local Asian grocery actually have chunks of recognizable meat. Usually products of Australia or Argentina. They're far different, and much tastier, than what we're used to in the chain grocery stores.

Preheat oven to 400°.

Cook pasta until just a minute or two before time according to package instructions. Drain. Cover with cold water and set aside. (The noodles will finish cooking in the oven.)

In a sauté pan melt the first 2 tablespoons of butter. Add the onion and celeriac. Cook over medium heat until they start to brown. Remove from pan and set aside. 

Wash spinach, but do not dry. Add spinach to remaining butter in the pan. Sauté spinach until wilted. Add to onion and celeriac and mix.

Melt remaining 4 tablespoons butter in the same saucepan over medium heat. Stir in flour until well blended to make a roux. Allow to brown slightly if you wish. This will add some depth of flavour.

Whisk in mustard. Then slowly add wine (or chicken stock), to make a thick sauce. Then, still whisking, add stock and cook until thickened. Remove from the heat. Add a little of the sauce to the egg to temper. Then add back into sauce. Stir in both peppers, thyme and 1 1/2 cups of the cheese and heat until cheese is melted. Add salt to taste. (Remember, if your corned beef is already slightly salty adjust the salt down as you deem fit.)

To assemble, place half of the noodles on the bottom of a buttered 9x9 casserole dish. Then add the shredded corned beef, and then the vegetables, in separate layers. Top with the remaining noodles. Then pour the sauce over the casserole. 

Distribute the bread cubes on top and sprinkle with remaining cheese. Bake for 30 minutes, or until hot and lightly browned.

Serves 4 to 6.

* It just came out of the oven. Tastes very good, if you ask me. Success!

Recipe: To meat or not to meat. That is the question.

Two recipes today. Neither one is mine but both are fantastic. I am always ready to give credit where credit is due. I routinely search Food.com to see what I can make for dinner with what I have in the fridge without having to buy too much (search by ingredient) or to see what other people think is good for certain occasions. We have a vegetarian friend that we have over for dinner (not often enough) and it's always nice to serve something tasty and surprising.

For the meatatarians: "Corn Your Own" Corned Beef

Corning your own corned beef is not a difficult task. This recipe is from Food.com, posted by "evelyn/athens". Important note - it takes 2-3 days. The following recipe is verbatim. When I did it, my beef was only about 2 1/2 lbs, so I halved everything. It still worked great.

Thanks go out to her for posting such a great recipe. Actual link is
http://www.food.com/recipe/corned-beef-corn-your-own-85332

4 1/2 lbs beef brisket

1/4 cup salt

16 cups water

2 cups salt (the sea salt is better) 

or 3 cups sea salt (the sea salt is better)

1/2 cup sugar

4 bay leaves

16 peppercorns

4 teaspoons pickling spices

4 garlic cloves, halved

Trim all but ¼ inch of fat from meat. Wash and pat dry. Rub with ¼ cup salt.

In large saucepan, heat water, salt and sugar and stir to dissolve. Place beef in large glass bowl and pour salted water over. Add 2 bay leaves, 8 peppercorns, 2 tsps pickling spice and 2 garlic cloves. Place weighted plate over so meat is completely immersed.

Refrigerate 48-60 hours. Remove meat and rinse thoroughly.

Place in large saucepan and cover with boiling water. Add remaining bay leaves, peppercorns, pickling spice and garlic. Cover and simmer for 4 hours, or until meat is tender.

Serve hot with boiled potatoes and cabbage or cool the brisket and slice thinly to serve with rye bread and mustard.

For the vegetarians: Amazing Tofu Parmesan

image from eatingwell.com

This recipe was posted on Food.com by "Reggie's Mom". Wow. Try this recipe to believe it. It actually tastes like Chicken Parmesan. I left the garlic in the marinade pan and added the sauce for more flavour. Next time I'll halve the flour and yeast. There was a lot of waste for the 350g of tofu, unless you did a bound breading (double dip). Kudos. This was fantastic - and I am not a vegetarian. Thank you to Reggie's Mom for sharing such a wonderful recipe. Direct link is

http://www.food.com/recipe/amazing-tofu-parmesan-428797

350 g extra firm tofu

4 tablespoons soy sauce

4 tablespoons olive oil

1 teaspoon minced garlic

1 egg, lightly beaten

1/2 cup flour

1/2 cup nutritional yeast flakes

24 ounces of your favourite spaghetti sauce

1/2 cup canola oil (Docaitta note: I used 1/4 cup)

1 cup mozzarella cheese

parmesan cheese

Cut tofu into 1/4 inch slices. Lay out slices between several layers of paper towels or clean tea towels. Place a cutting board or other flat surface on top with some weight on it to draw the moisture out. Press for about 30 minutes.

Mix the soy sauce, olive oil and garlic together and place the drained tofu slices to marinate for a couple of minutes. (Docaitta note: I did ½ to 1 hour in the fridge)

In a shallow dish combine the flour and nutritional yeast. Dip each tofu slice in the egg and then coat in the flour/yeast. Heat oil in a skillet over medium heat. Cook tofu slices on both sides until crispy golden.

Place a thin layer of sauce in an 8 inch square baking pan. Arrange tofu slices in the pan. Spoon remaining sauce over tofu, top with shredded mozzarella cheese and parmesan cheese.

Bake at 400 degrees for 20 minutes. Serve with a crisp salad or pasta.