The Great Corned Beef Experiment of 2012

St Paddy's Day beverage of choice

For a few years now, around St. Patrick’s Day I have seen articles popping up about curing your own corned beef at home.  I have been scared to try it and always said that next year we will give it a go, only to say the same thing the following year.  This year was the year we took a leap and did it.

Tom was tired of me just talking about doing it and went out on the internet to find the supplies I needed.  Turns out all I needed is a concoction called “pink salt”.  All of the remaining ingredients were normal items you would have in your kitchen anyway.  Tom purchased the inexpensive pink salt at www.sausagemaker.com .  It is called Insta-Cure #1 and is available in 8 and 16 ounce bags.  This salt has been dyed pink so you won’t confuse it with regular table salt.  It contains sodium nitrite which kills botulism during the curing process.  (I know some of you may be thinking “Eeek!  Nitrites!” but as I only make corned beef once a year, I am not sweating it.)  You use very little so a small bag will last you forever.

Pink Salt

It turns out that curing your own corned beef is pretty darn simple.  You mix up the brine, place it with your brisket in a large plastic tub, weight it down with a plate so it stays submerged, cover it and pop it in your fridge for 5 to 7 days.  Even though it sounded simple, we bought a “safety” corned beef brisket and threw it in the freezer in case mine didn’t turn out.

I checked it every couple of days to make sure it smelled okay and that the meat was still submerged and it was always just fine.  Finally, the big day came when we would see if we had pulled it off.  I had intended to braise it slowly in the oven but my oven died.  (More about that later.)  I ended up simmering it in a large roasting pan over two burners instead. While it was cooking, the whole house had a wonderful smell of spices and garlic.  I simmered it for a total of four and a half hours until it was fork tender. 

The finished product.

Finally, it was time to give it a taste.  We took it out of the pot, and let it rest for about 30 minutes, and then Tom cut it into thin slices with the electric knife.  It looked perfect.  It had the nice deep pink color that you expect from corned beef.  It looked juicy but not fatty like some corned beef can be.  Now for the moment of truth:  we each took a taste. 

Shut the front door. 

It was hands down, the best corned beef I have ever tasted in my whole life.  The depth of flavor that you get, compared to what you get from a purchased corned beef, is indescribable.  I will never again in my lifetime buy a corned beef brisket.  It was juicy, spicy, garlicky and just plain delicious.  When I think that fear kept me from trying this sooner I could kick myself.  If you enjoy corned beef, I strongly encourage you to cure your own.  The difference is unbelievable.

Delicious, tender lean corned beef with cabbage, potatoes and carrots.

Home Cured Corned Beef Brisket with Cabbage

4 to 5 pound beef brisket (get the flat cut; it is leaner)

For the brine:

1 gallon water
1 cup dark brown sugar
8 ounces salt, by weight
4 teaspoons pink curing salt

5 tablespoons pickling spices
4 cloves garlic, crushed

For cooking the beef:

4 cups reduced sodium or salt free chicken broth

4 cups water
1 large onion - roughly chopped
2 carrots - cut in big chunks
2 ribs celery – roughly chopped
2 bay leaves
1 tablespoon black peppercorns

For the vegetables:

2 or 3 large potatoes, peeled and quartered

6 carrots, peeled and cut into large pieces
A small head of cabbage, cut into wedges

A week before cooking the corned beef, heat the brine ingredients in a large stockpot until salts and sugar have completely dissolved.  Allow to cool completely to room temperature.  Place brisket in a large plastic container (I used a Rubbermaid bin I got at the grocery store) and pour brine over the meat.  Weight down the meat with a bowl or plate to ensure the beef stays submerged in the brine.  Place the container in the fridge and check it every couple of days to make sure it remains submerged.

The day you cook the beef, remove it from the brine and discard the brine.  Place the broth, water and next 5 ingredients in a large stockpot or roasting pan and bring to a boil.  Add the brisket, return to a boil, and reduce to a simmer and cover.  Simmer until meat is fork tender, about 50 minutes per pound.

Remove the brisket to a 13 x 9 baking dish and cover with foil.  Allow the beef to rest for 30 minutes before cutting.  Pour the cooking liquid through a mesh strainer into a Dutch oven and discard the solids. 

Add water to the strained cooking liquid until you have ½ a pot of liquid.  Taste for seasoning just in case, but it is doubtful you will need to add salt.  Bring liquid to a boil.  Add carrots and potato and cook until tender, about 20 minutes.  Remove from liquid and set aside.  Add cabbage and cook until tender, about 25 minutes.

A must-have for corned beef.

I serve the beef and vegetables with my simple mustard sauce.  This is made by combining 1 part hot mustard with 2 parts sour cream.  I use a jar of Coleman’s English Mustard and 1 cup of light sour cream.  It is creamy with just the right amount of mustard bite.

Now I just have to get rid of the safety corned beef brisket in my freezer.  I think I will smoke it and make pastrami.   That’s another experiment I have been putting off.  I hope it turns out as good as this one.

Cheesy, Salty, Sweet Multigrain Goodness

Amazing gourmet grilled cheese sandwich

One of the reasons I wanted to buy my KitchenAid stand mixer was the dough hook attachment.  I had envisioned myself making loaf after loaf of delicious wholesome breads, forsaking store-bought breads forever!  Well, that didn’t happen.  Even with the stand mixer, bread making still proved to be a bit of a chore.  That is until I stumbled on this recipe from Cooks Illustrated.  This bread gets its start from a multi-grain cereal mix so there is no hassling with putting together the various grains, it is already done for you.  This recipe produces a soft, artisan style bread like what you would get at a bakery and the stand mixer does all the heavy lifting.

Multigrain Bread

1 1/4 cups multi-grain hot cereal mix (I used Bob's Red Mill 5-Grain because I couldn’t find 7-Grain)
2 1/2 cups boiling water
3 cups all-purpose flour (not bread flour)
1 1/2 cups whole wheat flour
1/4 cup honey
4 tablespoons unsalted butter, melted and cooled
2 1/2 teaspoons rapid-rise yeast
1 tablespoon salt
1/2 cup rolled oats or quick oats(I used steel cut oats)

Instructions
Place cereal mix in bowl of your stand mixer fitted with the dough hook and pour boiling water over it; let it stand, stirring occasionally, until the mixture cools to 100 degrees.  It should look like thick oatmeal.  This will take about an hour. Combine flours in separate bowl.

Once the cereal has cooled, add honey, butter, and yeast and mix on low speed until combined.  Add the flour mixture, 1/2 cup at a time, and knead until loose dough starts to form, about 1 1/2-2 minutes; cover bowl tightly with plastic wrap and let dough rest for 20 minutes.  Add salt and knead on medium-low speed until dough clears sides of bowl, about 3-4 minutes.  You may need to add a little flour, but no more than a tablespoon.  Continue to knead dough for 5 more minutes.   Transfer the dough to a lightly floured counter and knead by hand until the dough forms a smooth, round ball.  (Next time I make this, I am going to separate the dough into two balls at this point.  I think I lost some of the airiness of the bread when I separated it into two balls after it had risen.) Place the dough in large, oiled bowl; cover tightly with plastic and let it rise at room temperature until nearly doubled in size, 45-60 minutes. 

Before rising...

After rising!

Grease two 9×5 inch loaf pans.  Transfer the dough to a lightly floured counter and divide it in half.  Gently press one piece of dough into a 9×6 inch rectangle, with the short side facing you.  Roll the dough toward you into a firm log, tucking it under itself as you go.  Turn loaf seam side up and pinch it closed with your thumb and forefinger.  Repeat with the second piece of dough.  Spray loaves lightly with water.  Roll each loaf in oats to coat evenly and place seam side down in prepared pans.  Cover loaves loosely with plastic wrap and let rise at room temperature until nearly doubled in size, about 30-40 minutes.

Thirty minutes before baking, preheat the oven to 375 degrees.  Bake until the loaves register 200 degrees on an instant read thermometer, about 35-40 minutes.  Transfer pans to a wire rack and let cool for 5 minutes.  Remove the loaves from pans, return the loaves to the rack, and let cool to room temperature, about 2 hours, before slicing and serving (if you can wait that long;  me, not so much).

Slice with a serrated blade or electric knife to get even slices.

If you don’t have a stand mixer, just combine the cooled cereal mixture with the other ingredients until you get a “shaggy” textured dough.  Turn the dough out onto a floured surface and knead until you have a smooth round ball.  This should take about 15 -25 minutes.  Frankly, I think eliminating that task alone is worth the purchase price of a KitchenAid stand mixer.

Sandwich makings!

I used this bread to make one of the best grilled cheese sandwiches I have ever had.  I used Thomasville Tomme cheese from Sweet Grass Dairy ( www.sweetgrassdairy.com ), prosciutto and quince paste.  You get the creamy texture from the cheese, the salty bite of prosciutto and a sweet kick from quince paste, all on this delicious, toasty bread you made yourself.  I’ll take two please!

I get this paste in the deli at Publix.  It is delicious with cheese.

Five & Ten

Five & Ten is a great neighborhood restaurant.

Tom and I recently had the pleasure of having Sunday brunch at Hugh Acheson’s restaurant Five & Ten in Athens.  It is a bit of a drive from Lawrenceville but most certainly worth it.

The restaurant is housed in what used to be a Five & Ten store, hence the name.  Parking can be an issue, so be prepared to park and then walk a bit.  It was raining the day we went but we were lucky and got a spot right next to the restaurant.

Once inside, we found the restaurant to be cozy and casual.  The decor is relaxed and slightly random.  Not deliberately random like a TGI Fridays, random in a way that suggests things were acquired over time.  On one wall there was a beautiful handmade quilt, another held Audubon prints and another had unusual stylized wall sconces.  I counted at least 4 different types of lighting fixtures.   All of this gave the room a relaxed, homey feel.

The place has a warm, friendly environment

The crowd that morning was a mix of all ages and types.  There were several family groups, most of whom were enjoying a post-church Bloody Mary or glass of wine.  Babies were being passed from lap to lap while all the adult family members got caught up.  There were a couple of tables of UGA students, probably fraternity and sorority members.  Rounding out the crowd were couples like me and Tom.  Several of the people were obviously regulars given the way they were familiarly interacting with the staff.  It is clear that Five & Ten is a popular, community gathering place.

World's best Bloody Mary!  Note the small plate of biscuits and coffeecake.

We had reservations so we were seated pretty quickly.  Given the crowd, I would not try to come without a reservation. The hostess and the wait staff were friendly and very helpful.  We were immediately brought a plate with small biscuits, coffee cake, butter and jam.  The hostess circulated the room offering more biscuits throughout the meal.

Charcuterie refers to the art of preserving or processing meats.  This
includes but is not limited to pates, terrines, galantines and sausages.

Yummy!

Our first course was a charcuterie plate featuring a duck terrine and a pork pate.  These were served with house made mustards, pickled radishes and wonderfully fresh bread.   So delicious and kind of a genius offering from the kitchen, I must say.  It is a make-ahead dish that eases the burden on the kitchen while still impressing the diners.  I washed this down with easily the best Bloody Mary I have ever had in my whole life.  No Bloody Mary mix here, my friend.  If this is the Bloody Mary recipe from his book, it is made with fresh heirloom tomatoes and just the right amount of horseradish and hot sauce.  Delicious!!  Writing this makes me want another one.

For our main course, I got the 5 & 10 Eggs Benedict.  This is served with a potato latke, bacon, dill Hollandaise and lettuces.  The beautifully poached egg tasted so fresh with a bright yellow yolk and Hollandaise laced with fresh dill.  The creaminess of the eggs was countered by the crispy bacon and latke and clean taste of the undressed baby lettuce.  The portion size was perfect; I was full but not stuffed.



Amazing Short Ribs

Tom ordered the braised short rib with a leek-hominy stew.  The beef was fork tender and beautifully braised.  It was served atop the savory hominy stew that had a smoky flavor from roasted chilies.  I have made this at home from the recipe in Hugh’s book and I came pretty darn close to replicating the dish at home on my first try.  I think this is a testament to how well his cookbook is written.

Our experience at Five & Ten was relaxed, satisfying and worth repeating.  We will be making the drive to Athens more often.  I suggest you do too.