Beer-braised Corned-Beef Bonanza

[Dannyalcatraz]

Been binging on meals made with my beer-braised corned beef.*  I cooked two 3lb ones for St. Patrick’s Day, and they disappeared by that Sunday (some to my paternal aunt’s house).  So as soon as I could, I went to the store and bought and cooked four more.  One got eaten, one we gave to a neighbor we occasionally swap meals with.  The other two were cut into halves, carefully wrapped up and frozen.

 

Here’s some of what we had:

 

Mom’s St. Patrick’s meal: corned beef, oven-roasted cauliflower, and half of a baked potato topped with green onions, butter, sour cream, and American cheese.

 

 

I basically had the same meal, but I crammed everything except the cauliflower into my potato.

 

 

This is a sandwich, opened to show the innards.  It featured beer-braised corned beef on toasted sourdough, with Cotswold cheese, diced green onions, dill pickle slices, mayo and yellow mustard.

 

 

On this one, the Cotswold cheese was replaced by onion Monterrey Jack, the green onions by radish sprouts, and the yellow mustard by spicy brown mustard.  Also, there was mayonnaise involved.

 

I typically soak my corned beef a few hours to reduce its saltiness, then braise two at a time for 9 hours at 220degF.  The result is tender enough to cut straight down like a wheel of cheddar: no sawing motion required.  I’ve braised corned beef at higher temps (350degF) for shorter times (3-3.5 hours) and gotten similar results, but I think the low & slow results in a tenderer end product.  I can literally cut this straight down like a hard cheese as opposed to (gentle) sawing.

 

The braising liquid for a pair of corned beef slabs is typically 2 beers, a half can of beef broth, and a beef bouillon cube. 

 

Besides the braising liquid, the briskets were topped with the seasoning packets, ground thyme, ground black pepper, while 4 bay leaves and some black peppercorns were added to the liquid.

[Dannyalcatraz]

Also, the grand finale:

 

https://imgur.com/gallery/MYBvvqM

[Caevan O’Shite]

You are a consummate cook and a boon to your family and friends.

Mmmm... your description of that "grand finale" sandwich has me salivating... !