# Corned Beef & Cabbage **URL:** \ **Category:** Cafe Society\ **Created:** [August 18, 2010, 12:53pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/corned-beef-cabbage/550612 "2010-08-18T12:53:37Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![kayaker](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/kayaker/32/441_2.png) [@kayaker](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/kayaker)\ **Post date:** [August 18, 2010, 12:53pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/corned-beef-cabbage/550612/1 "2010-08-18T12:53:37Z")
A neighbor gave us a beautiful head of cabbage. I thought of making corned beef and cabbage. I bought a beef brisket (never even looked at one before). I put the brisket in a crock pot with chopped cabbage and some carrots. Cooked all day on low. I trimmed the fat off the finished meat and shredded the brisket. Served it with mashed potatoes (made with butter, sour cream, and horseradish). It wasn’t bad, but the meat was very bland. Any hints/tips? The meat came with a seasoning packet that I used, but it was still very bland. The cabbage and carrots were great! ---
**Author:** ![Athena](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/35a633/32.png) [@Athena](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Athena)\ **Post date:** [August 18, 2010, 12:59pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/corned-beef-cabbage/550612/2 "2010-08-18T12:59:01Z")
Beef Brisket does not equal Corned Beef. You need to buy something labeled Corned Beef instead, which is a brisket covered in salt and other seasonings and allowed to age for a while. So what you really had was brisket and cabbage. It would have probably been good had you added a bit more seasoning, but it still wouldn’t be corned beef. ---
**Author:** ![kayaker](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/kayaker/32/441_2.png) [@kayaker](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/kayaker)\ **Post date:** [August 18, 2010, 1:02pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/corned-beef-cabbage/550612/3 "2010-08-18T13:02:52Z")
OMG. Well, thanks. It explains a bit. 😉 ---
**Author:** ![Tamerlane](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/tamerlane/32/7602_2.png) [@Tamerlane](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Tamerlane)\ **Post date:** [August 18, 2010, 1:03pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/corned-beef-cabbage/550612/4 "2010-08-18T13:03:13Z")
Did you buy a corned beef or a plain brisket? It’s a little unclear from your op. If it wasn’t corned and you didn’t do it yourself ( which can be a little tricky I understand - hard not to get it too salty ), I’d suggest that was the issue ;). [Corned beef](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Corned_beef). ---
**Author:** ![kayaker](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/kayaker/32/441_2.png) [@kayaker](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/kayaker)\ **Post date:** [August 18, 2010, 1:08pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/corned-beef-cabbage/550612/5 "2010-08-18T13:08:08Z")
Yep, it was a beef brisket. I (and my gf) thought brisket was corned beef. In fact, at the grocery store they were in the same area and looked alike. Oh well. I’ll try again the next time someone gives me a heada cabbage. Now back to finding uses for zucchini. 😉 ---
**Author:** ![yojimbo](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/yojimbo/32/232_2.png) [@yojimbo](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/yojimbo)\ **Post date:** [August 18, 2010, 1:19pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/corned-beef-cabbage/550612/6 "2010-08-18T13:19:05Z")
Does it have to be beef? You could go the original Irish way. [Bacon and Cabbage](http://www.rte.ie/food/2008/0201/baconandcabbage.html) The corned beef thing is more an American invention to make up for lack of good bacon back in the day. It was reimported to ireland tosome extent but mostly Irish people if they are doing the cabbage thing have bacon. I had it yesterday when I made my weekly trip home to get my Da drunk and eat a nice Sunday dinner made by my Ma 🙂 ---
**Author:** ![kayaker](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/kayaker/32/441_2.png) [@kayaker](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/kayaker)\ **Post date:** [August 18, 2010, 1:28pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/corned-beef-cabbage/550612/7 "2010-08-18T13:28:46Z")
Wonder if it would work with turkey bacon? (We have a turkey farm nearby and haven’t used pig bacon in years) ---
**Author:** ![TruCelt](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/trucelt/32/523_2.png) [@TruCelt](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/TruCelt)\ **Post date:** [August 18, 2010, 1:34pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/corned-beef-cabbage/550612/8 "2010-08-18T13:34:15Z")
Keep in mind when they say bacon, they really mean ham. (Or pork belly) 😉 Get yourself a turkey ham, and fry it up in thick slices, then continue as usual. ---
**Author:** ![yojimbo](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/yojimbo/32/232_2.png) [@yojimbo](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/yojimbo)\ **Post date:** [August 18, 2010, 2:00pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/corned-beef-cabbage/550612/9 "2010-08-18T14:00:20Z")
> [@yojimbo](#): > > I had it yesterday when I made my weekly trip home to get my Da drunk and eat a nice Sunday dinner made by my Ma 🙂 Well not yesterday obviously as today’s wed :smack: I was laid up in bed for two days so it feeling like yesterday. ---
**Author:** ![kayaker](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/kayaker/32/441_2.png) [@kayaker](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/kayaker)\ **Post date:** [August 18, 2010, 2:28pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/corned-beef-cabbage/550612/10 "2010-08-18T14:28:26Z")
> [@yojimbo](#): > > > [@yojimbo](#): > > > > I had it yesterday when I made my weekly trip home to get my Da drunk and eat a nice Sunday dinner made by my Ma 🙂 > > Well not yesterday obviously as today’s wed :smack: I was laid up in bed for two days so it feeling like yesterday. A friend of mine is Irish, and plays in a band (punk sorta, not celtic). Anyway, around St Patrick’s Day he always performs (what he calls) The Irish National Anthem. He holds his Guinness aloft and sings: > [@](#): > > Weeeee drink, we drink, we drink, we drink, > we drink, we drink, we drink. > We drink, we drink, we drink we drink, > we beat our fucking kids. > > Weeeeee drink, we drink, we drink, we drink, Anybody recognize this Pittsburgh band that has been around since the 80s? > we drink, we drink, we drink. > We drink, we drink, we drink, we drink, > we hate the Protestants. And then we down our beers. Amazingly, he never gets any grief over the song. ---
**Author:** ![redtail23](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/3e96dc/32.png) [@redtail23](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/redtail23)\ **Post date:** [August 18, 2010, 2:35pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/corned-beef-cabbage/550612/11 "2010-08-18T14:35:07Z")
You might try just braised or steamed cabbage next time. Cabbage is amazingly yummy, I only discovered this a few years back. We usually cut ours into wedges and put it into a saucepan with a little water (a half-inch or so in the bottom of the pan). Cook it for 10-15 minutes. Sprinkle a little soy sauce on top before eating. We also often do a boil-up with smoked sausage, potatoes, carrots, onions, and cabbage. That’s really tasty. ---
**Author:** ![kayaker](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/kayaker/32/441_2.png) [@kayaker](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/kayaker)\ **Post date:** [August 18, 2010, 2:46pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/corned-beef-cabbage/550612/12 "2010-08-18T14:46:35Z")
^sounds great! Will give both ideas a try. ---
**Author:** ![Athena](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/35a633/32.png) [@Athena](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Athena)\ **Post date:** [August 18, 2010, 3:23pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/corned-beef-cabbage/550612/13 "2010-08-18T15:23:48Z")
> [@Tamerlane](#): > > Did you buy a corned beef or a plain brisket? It’s a little unclear from your op. If it wasn’t corned and you didn’t do it yourself ( which can be a little tricky I understand - hard not to get it too salty ), I’d suggest that was the issue ;). > > [Corned beef](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Corned_beef). It’s actually super easy to make corned beef - just cover the brisket with a mix of salt and various spices, wrap in plastic, throw in the fridge for 5 days, flipping every day or so. You rinse the salt off before you cook it, so I’ve never had problems with over-salting. ---
**Author:** ![AllShookDown](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/d9b06d/32.png) [@AllShookDown](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/AllShookDown)\ **Post date:** [August 18, 2010, 5:50pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/corned-beef-cabbage/550612/14 "2010-08-18T17:50:48Z")
[Here’s a recipe for homemade corned beef.](http://host.madison.com/entertainment/dining/article_ef7948f2-2df2-11df-8469-001cc4c002e0.html) ---
**Author:** ![lizardling](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/f4b2a3/32.png) [@lizardling](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/lizardling)\ **Post date:** [August 18, 2010, 5:55pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/corned-beef-cabbage/550612/15 "2010-08-18T17:55:18Z")
Mmmm! Corned beef and cabbage! I’d also recommend NOT rinsing the corned beef before cooking, I did that last time I made one and it came out very non-salty to my taste. But that might be too salty for you, so YMMV. (My mom never did, so I’m used to pretty flavorful beef with this) ---
**Author:** ![DMark](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/e68b1a/32.png) [@DMark](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/DMark)\ **Post date:** [August 18, 2010, 7:07pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/corned-beef-cabbage/550612/16 "2010-08-18T19:07:06Z")
Invite me over - AFTER you have finished cooking it. Nothing stinks more than cabbage when cooking it - when my mother would make this, it was a sure way to get me out of the house for a few hours! Tastes great, once the odors disappear from kitchen… ---
**Author:** ![Huerta88](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/h/82dd89/32.png) [@Huerta88](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Huerta88)\ **Post date:** [August 18, 2010, 7:12pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/corned-beef-cabbage/550612/17 "2010-08-18T19:12:38Z")
> [@TruCelt](#): > > Keep in mind when they say bacon, they really mean ham. (Or pork belly) 😉 Irish bacon is I think back not belly (“streaky”) bacon. ---
**Author:** ![Lynn\_Bodoni](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/e47c2d/32.png) [@Lynn\_Bodoni](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Lynn_Bodoni)\ **Post date:** [August 18, 2010, 8:14pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/corned-beef-cabbage/550612/18 "2010-08-18T20:14:58Z")
I like salt very much, but even I rinse off corned beef before cooking it, because otherwise it’s too salty for me. Corned beef has a different color to it than regular beef brisket. And you shoulda barbecued the brisket, and made cole slaw out of the cabbage. ---
**Author:** ![Zsofia](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/z/7bcc69/32.png) [@Zsofia](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Zsofia)\ **Post date:** [August 18, 2010, 8:51pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/corned-beef-cabbage/550612/19 "2010-08-18T20:51:24Z")
Regular non-corned brisket can be amazingly awesome - [here’s](http://thepioneerwoman.com/cooking/2007/06/brisket_baby/) a great recipe. ---
**Author:** ![Lynn\_Bodoni](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/e47c2d/32.png) [@Lynn\_Bodoni](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Lynn_Bodoni)\ **Post date:** [August 18, 2010, 9:20pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/corned-beef-cabbage/550612/20 "2010-08-18T21:20:27Z")
My favorite corned beef recipe is the [New England Boiled Dinner](http://www.theheartofnewengland.com/food-NewEnglandBoiledDinner.html), which is actually simmered. I add the onion when I add the beef, and I add the rest of the veggies (other than the cabbage) about an hour before I think the beef will be done. I add the cabbage about 15-30 minutes before everything else is done. If you cook the cabbage too long, it WILL dissolve right into the liquid. The broth that’s left behind is quite flavorful, and I have sometimes saved it to boil up more potatoes in. DON’T add more seasoning, the broth will be pretty salty and otherwise seasoned. [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/corned-beef-cabbage/550612.md?page=2)