Corned Beef and Cabbage
K’s (the husband’s) family has so many different traditions for holidays, and it’s can be a tad intimidating to keep up, and try to remember them all. For St. Patrick’s Day they always do Corned Beef & Cabbage. Last year was the first time I followed their traditions myself, and, well, K likes corned beef, so I’ll continue to. It isn’t my type of meal, but he loves it, so I will continue to cook it.
Need a meal to help celebrate St. Patty’s day? Well, this is one I recommend, for tradition sake. We like to pair ours with Honey Dijon Roasted Potatotes.
Ingredients
1 pkg. corned beef brisket (3-4 lbs)
3 Tbsp. ground black pepper
2 heads cabbage
olive oil, for searing
1/2 can of chicken broth
1 cup balsamic vinegar
2 Tbsp. sugar
Mustard Sauce
4 tsp. dijon mustard
1 tsp. horseradish
4 tsp. mayo
1/2 tsp. black pepper
Instructions
1
Mix all of the ingredients for the mustard sauce together, then put in the fridge until you’re ready to serve.
2
Preheat oven to 325 degrees.
3
Unwrap the brisket and place it fat side up inside the baking dish. if it came with a spice packet, sprinkle it over the top, then sprinkle on the black pepper and rub it in. Cover the dish with heavy aluminum foil and place it in the over for 2 1/2 hour, then uncover and continue baking for 1/2 hour to 45 minutes.
4
Check the brisket by inserting a fork in the meat. If it goes in easily, it’s ready; if it meets with resistance then bake for another 30 minutes, or up to 1 hour or more in some cases. If the brisket is tough it hasn’t cooked long enough. Once the brisket is fork-tender, reserve it from the oven and let it rest, covered loosely in foil.
5
While the brisket is resting, make the balsamic reduction for the cabbage. Combine the balsamic and the sugar in a small saucepan over medium-high heat. Stir together and bring the mixture to a boil, then reduce it to medium-low, and simmer until the mixture is reduced by half, and thick. Set aside.
6
Raise the oven to 350 degrees. Next, make the cabbage. Cut the cabbage into 8 wedges. Heat olive oil in a large, heavy skillet over medium high heat and add the cabbage. Sear it on both sides until the cabbage gets as much color as possible about 1 minute per side. Use a spatula to transfer the cabbage to a rack placed over a baking sheet. Sprinkle the cabbage pieces with salt and pepper. Pour the broth into the bottom of the pan, then carefully transfer the pan to the oven. Bake the cabbage for 20 minutes, or until tender and deeper brown.
7
Slice, or shred the rested beef brisket on a cutting board (it should be very, very tender and almost falling apart). Then place it on a large platter alongside the cabbage wedges. Take generous spoons of the balsamic reduction and drizzle it all over the cabbage slices. Top the brisket with the mustard sauce and enjoy.
8
By The Pioneer Woman, http://thepioneerwoman.com/cooking/corned-beef-and-cabbage/
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