Corned Beef

I just put 5 lbs. of beef brisket in brine, in the 'fridge, to cure into corned beef. I didn't use any pink curing salt - some say pink salt is a health hazard (I have no idea). Since it's only added to make the beef pink, and my wife and I really don't care about the color, I've been leaving it out lately.

The brine I used is real simple: 2 quarts of water, 1 cup Kosher salt, 1 1/2 tablespoons Pickling Spices, 1/4 cup Brown Sugar. I've experimented with spices some in the past, but this time I just used Mrs. Wages Pickling Spices from the store.

The meat is held down under the brine in a closed container, and during the next week I'll turn it over a couple of times to make sure it's all evenly exposed. After the beef has soaked for a week I'll rinse it several times and let it sit overnight in the refrigerator in cold water to get the salt out - then we'll cook it.

It's only 5 pounds of meat, so I doubt we'll make corned beef and cabbage this time - we'll do that with another one for St. Pat's Day in about seven weeks. But boy, a couple of lunches with Reuben sandwiches on rye bread with homemade sauerkraut, a couple more sandwiches with corned beef and horseradish mustard, AND a couple of breakfasts of corned beef hash and runny eggs - that's some good eating, there.

I need to remember to make corned beef more often - the ones I brine at home always turn out so much better than what the market sells, and the price per pound is about half!