How to Make Corned Beef
Curing your own corned beef at home is easier than you might think. It basically involves soaking a brisket of beef in a brine for several days. You're essentially pickling the meat. If you have a marinade injector (compare prices) you can pump some brine directly into the meat for even more flavor.Be sure to check out the ingredients you'll need below.
Difficulty: Easy
Time Required: 5 Days
Here's How:
- In a gallon of cold water, combine the Kosher salt, Prague powder and sugar. Stir until dissolved.
- Using a marinade injector, pump about 10 ounces of the brine into the beef brisket. Inject the brine at various locations evenly spaced around the brisket.
- Add the pickling spices, garlic, bay leaves and optional chili peppers to the remaining brine liquid.
- Transfer the brine into a shallow nonreactive (i.e. stainless steel or glass) container and then add the brisket. You can weigh it down with a dish to keep it submerged. Cover with plastic and refrigerate for 5 days.
- When you're ready to cook your corned beef, check out this simple corned beef recipe.
What You Need
- A five-pound brisket of beef, with fat trimmed to about ¼ inch.
- 1 cup Kosher salt
- 1 tsp Prague Powder
- ½ cup sugar
- 3 Tbsp pickling spices
- 4-5 small dried red chili peppers (optional)
- 3 cloves garlic, smashed
- 4 bay leaves
- Marinade injector (compare prices)
