Corned Beef At Home: Recipes, Tips, etc.

[gfweb]

14 minutes ago, TdeV said:

@gfweb, how much of that spice mixture would be used on a 4 lb brisket?

 

guessing...half to 3/4 cup

[Smithy]

I'm bumping up this old, old topic to see whether any of the current members have preferred ways to ensure that their corned beef -- purchased that way from the store, not corned at home -- has a good corned flavor. My husband and I have noticed a difference between corned beef purchased at home in Duluth, Minnesota and that purchased in the southwestern US. It might have to do with buying a store brand (Kroger's, in this case) as opposed to a dedicated meat packer (Klement's? Flanagan's? at home) and cost-cutting efforts. It doesn't really matter why the difference; what matters is that there IS a difference. So how does one know in advance that the meat won't be as salty and spicy, and what can one do about it? 

[AlaMoi]

way back when, the question circulated:  "Would you fly to the moon in a rocket ship built by the lowest bidder?"

 

the same applies to "store brands"

#1 - they are inconsistent because the stores switch suppliers as fast as the price changes....

#2 - if 'made just for xxx' it's usually lowest cost and the joined-at-the-hip aspect of low(est) quality.

#3 - not all store brands are "bad" - well, at least this week.....

 

brand label producers are much more sensitive to producing the same product - good/bad/mediocre.... - "as always"

consumers either "like" the brand or "not like" the brand.

 

bottom line, if you find a specific brand 'really good' to your own tastes - stick with it.

a store brand will almost never be the same from (semi-extended) time-to-time.

[Smithy]

@AlaMoi, you raise very good points. We probably should memorize / write down the brand we like, and look for it down here. It may not be possible to find it, but if we find another single-source (craftsman?) version we might like it better than the store brand.

[gfweb]

2 hours ago, Smithy said:

I'm bumping up this old, old topic to see whether any of the current members have preferred ways to ensure that their corned beef -- purchased that way from the store, not corned at home -- has a good corned flavor. My husband and I have noticed a difference between corned beef purchased at home in Duluth, Minnesota and that purchased in the southwestern US. It might have to do with buying a store brand (Kroger's, in this case) as opposed to a dedicated meat packer (Klement's? Flanagan's? at home) and cost-cutting efforts. It doesn't really matter why the difference; what matters is that there IS a difference. So how does one know in advance that the meat won't be as salty and spicy, and what can one do about it? 

 

I find that there's St. Pat's corned beef and deli corned beef.  The latter has more spices and just tastes better. 

[gfweb]

Bumping-up for the yearly reminder that most corned beef from the supermarket at this time of year has papain in the bag.

 

If you cook that sous vide at ~140 or so for a day or  two, you will have CB with the texture of cat food.

 

Erin go bragh

[lindag]

Had to look that one up.

[rotuts]

for a zillion years , in my area

 

Stop&Shop had the best sale on CB.

 

started a few weeks before St.P's say

 

then the pandemic , and the rise in prices .

 

this year , starting today :  Point Cut $ !.49 //lbs.

 

therearlier CB is of better quality than the CB near the end of the multi week sale

 

the WHPS has purchased 6 so far , for the Yoder .

 

hope more details on that in the WHPS thread.

 

based on the rise in prices , esp beef

 

that's a very fine price.

 

Ill look them over , and perhaps get one.  for SV

 

and checking carefully for the papain.

[rotuts]

@gfweb

 

it presents and interesting problem

 

papain i n that C.B. you just bought

 

on that sale .

 

Id think there would be away to factor that in 

 

on a pellet smoker   ( seems 6 h or so )

 

and a SV 'd

 

Im thinking papain ' works '  at a certain temp range 

 

that's been mentioned here in threads    ( I hope to tied )

 

thus , if your method is in that range 

 

' tenderness ' will come sooner , maybe much sooner .

 

your ideas on this are of interest .

 

Papain Times , any method 

 

have not been mentioned 

 

Im sure there is an offset , in times // temps

 

 

[gfweb]

@rotuts Here's the temp curve for papain.  The free enzyme curve is the one for cooking. It has max activity at 60-70 C... and still is active right at corned beef sousvide temps

 

https://analyticalsciencejournals.onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/abs/10.1002/jctb.3714

[rotuts]

@gfweb

 

thanks .  excellent 

 

So ....

 

w SV  you pick a temp     for doneness

 

and a time     for tenderness.

 

In something brined , 

 

doneness is a bit different , but you get the idea :

 

for me , 140 F - 145 F  SV  to tenderness works well

 

so I do 142.5 F , to split the difference :

 

a bit more tender , but more Jus in then bag 

 

dichotomy.

 

news tomorrow on the S%S item

 

 

[rotuts]

S&S  $ 1.49 /lb CB has papain.

 

I passed .  non-papain ,  $ 7.49 more.

 

passed on that too

 

WHPS  has 6 points

 

this Rx :

 

https://amazingribs.com/tested-recipes/beef-and-bison-recipes/home-made-pastrami-thats-close-katzs-recipe/

 

Ill suggest taking one off @ 140 F in eternal , and see if its tender.

 

 

[FeChef]

13 hours ago, rotuts said:

S&S  $ 1.49 /lb CB has papain.

 

I passed .  non-papain ,  $ 7.49 more.

 

passed on that too

 

WHPS  has 6 points

 

this Rx :

 

https://amazingribs.com/tested-recipes/beef-and-bison-recipes/home-made-pastrami-thats-close-katzs-recipe/

 

Ill suggest taking one off @ 140 F in eternal , and see if its tender.

 

 

Why not just flush it for a few hours before cooking. If memory serves, Papain is only active at temps above 120F. I wouldnt pass up $1.49/lb at least nowadays.

Edited March 12, 2024 by FeChef (log)

[rotuts]

@FeChef

 

its my impression , after reading the package 'double-speak'

 

is that the papain in injected into the CB

 

thus soaking it won't help too much.

 

I remember when papain was introduced into the $ 1.49 CB.

 

put me off my game , which was 10 - 12 packages a year 

 

cut into decent chunks , SV 143.5 x 48 hours , then

 

i hour cold smoke outside , in the cold , on a cold Weber.

 

that was some good eating in the summer time .

 

if papain simply tenderizes at working temps 

 

ie there days the Yoder , check tenderness when the center reaches 140

 

and remove from Yoder when tender.

 

 

[rotuts]

I have a general question re papain in CB:

 

StP's day is a big deal in this next of the country.  

 

much less so where I grew uo N.Calif.

 

traditional CB Dinner :  cured brisket , potatoes , carrots  and cabbage 

 

got simmered together , in a big pot , possibly brunt out for the occation

 

for several hours.   veg added at times so it all get done at the same time.

 

S&Shop always had the best deals , but all the major supermarkets did.

 

traditional deals vanished ,prossibly during the pandemic 

 

and took quite some time , i.e. this year

 

to S&Shops level.  Market Basket :  point 2.99 /lb   savings of $ 3.00

 

my assumption is that there are many households that use the sale point or flat 

 

w the papain , in a traditional simmer.

 

adjustments , simpler the better , no doubt evolved 

 

to get a similar result , esp texture.  

 

re SV  :  I remember an early way much result , hen knotted the 

 

papain , washed it off  , very brief soak

 

and SV'd    

 

Im sure ( made note of it  in the Red Book , and probably here.

 

to sum up :

 

large conglomerates ( Stop & Shop is a chain Dutch owned, and very large )

 

wouldn't sell the papain , esp on deep sale 

 

it if didn't turn out to be popular , year after  year.

 

 

[rotuts]

Im pleased to report a test SV of 

 

that the S&S point , w papain @ $ 1.49 //lb 

 

145 F x 36 H came out , Im told ' perfect '

 

tender , not mushy 

 

made into a panini :

 

 

said to be the best Ruben-esk ever.

 

 

 

 

[FeChef]

Not bad for $1.77/lb on sale. Stay away @rotuts you dont want this, it has papain in it.

Btw, Instant Pot, 70 minutes, came out im told "Perfect".

 

Edited March 24, 2024 by FeChef (log)

[rotuts]

@FeChef

 

Wagyu CB Point ?

 

papain does not seem to be a problem w SV

 

just drop the total time some .

Edited March 24, 2024 by rotuts (log)

[gfweb]

1 hour ago, rotuts said:

@FeChef

 

Wagyu CB Point ?

 

 

 

I was thinking wagyu too. LOL.

 

 

 

 

[rotuts]

@gfweb

 

CB Point

 

is the poor person's Wagyu

[Shelby]

Smaller grocery store had CB's on sale--limit of two with $20 additional purchases.  Papain free.  Decided to SV.  Went for 24 hours at 155F. Turned out really good.

 

 

 

 

 

Went back and bought a couple more for the freezer.

[rotuts]

@Shelby

 

excellent.

 

what was the sale price ?

 

was this after St.P's day ?

[Shelby]

48 minutes ago, rotuts said:

@Shelby

 

excellent.

 

what was the sale price ?

 

was this after St.P's day ?

I don't remember the price--maybe 2.99/ lb? --nothing majorly cheap.  No, the sale price was before St. Pat's.

Edited March 24, 2024 by Shelby (log)

[lindag]

For the first time that I can remember Corned Beef is still available after the holiday.  In the past, when the day was over all the CB was gone until the next year.  I wanted a flat cut but that was sold out before the 17th so had to to do with a point cut.  Now they have more of the flat.  (No longer on sale though.)

[rotuts]

@Shelby

 

$ 2.99  sale price sounds about right for here

 

MarketBasket had papain free point for that 

 

on sale.

 

regular price $ 5.99  

 

as indicated on you CB label.

 

nothing even close to S&S's $ 1.49 //lb

 

w papain in the area.

Edited March 24, 2024 by rotuts (log)