Category Archives: beef

Corned Beef Brine (Dry brine)

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Specialty equipment: This process requires a vacuum sealer and Prague Powder #1 curing salt.

The amounts for the salt, sugar and Prague Powder are based on the mass of meat to be cured, and given as ratios per kilogram of meat.

Ingredients

  • Beef brisket flat, about 5lb (2.2kg) after trimming
  • Kosher salt, 4.5% by weight or 45g/kg
  • Brown sugar, 1.5% by weight or 15g/kg
  • Prague Powder #1, 0.5% by weight or 5g/kg
  • 2 tbsp black peppercorn
  • 2 tbsp coriander seed
  • 2 tbsp yellow mustard seed
  • 1 tbsp whole allspice
  • 1 tbsp fennel seed
  • 2 cinnamon sticks, broken up
  • 2 tbsp granulated garlic
  • 1 tbsp ground ginger

Instructions

Select a brisket flat with even thickness and minimal hard fat. Trim brisket, removing hard fat, silver skin and extra fat from the fat cap. Leave approximately ¼ in of fat on the fat cap.

Weigh the trimmed brisket and calculate the measures for salt, sugar and Prague Powder. Combine salt, sugar, Prague Powder, garlic and ginger in a bowl. Working on a rimmed baking sheet coat brisket on all sides, using all of the cure. Brisket may need to rest and “tack up” for all of the cure to adhere. Excess cure will be added to the vacuum bag before sealing.

Measure out spices and blitz several seconds in a spice or blade grinder, or coarsely crush in a mortar. Sprinkle spices over the meat on both sides paying more attention to the underside, opposite of the fat cap.

Place meat in a vacuum bag and collect any loose cure or spices remaining on the baking sheet into the bag. Spread excess cure in the bag, ensuring even coverage. Vacuum then seal the bag, and refrigerate up to 10 days. Flip the package over daily and gently massage the liquid to redistribute.

Remove meat from vacuum bag after 7 or 10 days, and rinse in cold water. Meat may be cooked immediately, or resealed and frozen.

Soaking recommendations

Corned beef will be very salty straight from the brine. When braising or boiling, the meat will seek an equilibrium with the cooking liquid. If the cooking method uses unsalted or low salt liquid, soaking may not be necessary. Refer to the recipe for soaking recommendations.

If roasting, smoking or cooking sous vide, the meat should be soaked in cold fresh water for one hour to reduce the salt. For further salt reduction, soak up to 2 hours changing the water every 20 to 30 minutes.

Adapted from Serious Eats: Corned Beef Brisket, Potatoes, Cabbage, and Carrots for St. Patrick’s Day Recipe

Beef Jerky Original #1

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This recipe uses a nitrite curing salt in the brine, and will be shelf stable in an airtight container 1-2 weeks.

Recommend a lean beef cut: eye round, top round, bottom round, flank, skirt or lean brisket flat.

Cut thinly across the grain, ⅛” to ¼”, for a more tender final product, or thinly with the grain for a chewier end product. Par-freeze the meat 30 minutes to 2 hours before slicing to achieve a consistent, thin slice.

When dehydrating, the meat is done when it is stiff when held, but barely cracks when bent.

Ingredients

Dry measures are approximate, I was eyeballing the ingredients.

  • Approximately 2lb lean eye round, bottom round, skirt, flank or lean brisket flat
  • ⅔ cup Worcestershire sauce
  • ⅔ cup dark soy sauce
  • 1½ to 2 tbsp Thai fish sauce
  • ½ cup brown sugar
  • 1 tbsp granulated garlic
  • 1 tbsp granulated onion
  • 1 tbsp ground black pepper
  • 1 tbsp smoked paprika
  • 1 tbsp sweet paprika
  • 1 tbsp hot paprika
  • 2 tsp chili powder
  • 1 tsp cayenne powder
  • ½ tsp white pepper
  • ½ tsp Prague Powder #1

Directions

Trim any surface fat from the beef roast and freeze 30 minutes to 2 hours to help with slicing thin.

While the beef freezes, prepare marinade. Combine ingredients in a nonreactive steel or glass vessel. Adjust ingredients to taste.

Slice frozen meat thinly across the grain (recommended) into approximately ⅛” thick slices, about 2 inches wide. Combine sliced meat and marinade in a zip lock bag, thoroughly coating the meat. Displace air and seal. Refrigerate 8 hours to overnight, redistributing the marinade once or twice.

To dehydrate, spread meat slices evenly in a single layer on a dehydrator screen or metal rack, leaving a small gap between each piece. Blot each side dry with a paper towel to help drying.

Place in food dehydrator, electric smoker or oven at 165°F for 4 hours. After 4 hours, check meat for doneness. Recheck periodically until done, up to 2 more hours. Do not overdry.

Notes on Corned Beef Cures

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General ratios by weight for dry cure

  • 4.5% salt, 45g/kg
  • 1.5% sugar, 15g/kg
  • 0.25% PP#1. 2.5g/kg

General ratios for wet cure depend on how the meat will be cooked.

  • 5% to 10% brine, 50g/l to 100g/l
  • 1.5% to 3% sugar, 15g/l to 30g/l
  • 0.32% PP#1, 3.2g/l

Anywhere from a 5% to 10% curing brine is acceptable, 50 to 100g per liter. The meat will “finish” to the seasoning level of the cooking liquid. For a roasted product, use a 5% brine. Nitrite level for the brine should be 200ppm, 4.2oz per US gallon, 0.32% by mass or 3.2g per liter.

PP#1 in grams = 200ppm × product mass in grams ÷ ( 0.0625 × 1,000,000)

Corned Beef Brine (Wet brine)

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This is experimental, use at your own risk. Annotations and observations to follow.

Ingredients

  • 6-8 lbs beef brisket
  • 8 quarts water
  • 1½ cups Diamond Crystal Kosher salt
  • ¼ cup packed brown sugar
  • 1 tbsp Prague Powder #1
  • 1 tbsp black peppercorn
  • ½ tbsp yellow mustard seed
  • ½ tbsp coriander seed
  • 2 tsp fennel seed
  • 1 tsp whole allspice
  • 1 tsp crushed red pepper flakes
  • ½ tsp ground mace
  • 3 clove crushed garlic, or 2 tbsp granulated garlic
  • 2 bay leaves, crumbled
  • 2 anise pods
  • 2 cloves
  • 2 cinnamon stick, crushed

Instructions

Prepare beef brisket, trimming silver skin and fat. Reduce fat cap to ¼” thickness.  Set aside.

Combine water, salt, sugar, Prague Powder and spices in a pot and raise to a boil. Reduce heat and simmer 5 minutes, until salt and sugar are dissolved.  Remove from heat and cool to room temperature.

Combine beef brisket and cooled brine in a 2 gallon freezer bag, displacing air. Refrigerate 10 days, flipping daily to distribute cure.

After 10 days, rinse beef well to remove excess cure and spices, discarding brine. Refrigerate meat up to 2 weeks, or prepare as normal.

Tod Kratiem Prik Thai

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Thai marinated beef with garlic & black pepper, this is a potent dish requiring high heat to caramelize sugars and toast the garlic. Difficult to execute on a home cook top, but is possible with hot cast iron or carbon steel over a turkey fryer burner.

Normally served aside rice, over shredded cabbage and garnished with Julienne carrot and toasted, minced garlic.

This marinade works well for chicken, pork or shrimp.

Requires:

  • Cast iron wok, or
  • Carbon steel wok
  • 10kBTU burner (cast iron) or hotter

If the wok isn’t hot enough this dish will steam/sauté which, while still potent has a different character

Ingredients

  • 1 lb thin sliced chuck, cut into bite-sized pieces
  • 4 tbsp oyster sauce
  • 3 tbsp fish sauce
  • 1 tbsp light soy sauce
  • 1 tbsp dark soy sauce
  • 1 tbsp mirin
  • 1 tbsp dried cilantro (optional)
  • 1 tbsp granulated onion (optional)
  • 8 oz or ½ cup minced garlic
  • 1 tbsp black peppercorn, smashed
  • ½ tsp crushed red pepper
  • ¼ tsp white pepper
  • 2 tbsp high temperature oil for frying, such as vegetable or peanut

Prepare beef raw, slicing ¼” thick across the grain and then ½” into wide strips across the narrow dimension. Combine ingredients in a non-reactive bowl and toss to coat meat. Cover and rest 30 minutes to 1 hour in a refrigerator.

Prepare wok (“hot wok, cold oil”) over high heat. Add beef and marinade, stir fry until beef is browned and cooked tender and the marinade liquid has reduced. Remove from heat as the marinade thickens, the garlic toasts, and/or the sugars caramelize. Do not scorch.

Serve on a bed of shredded cabbage, and garnish with carrot and toasted garlic, accompanied with rice.

Yankee Pot Roast

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This is a crock pot recipe that takes about 8 or 9 hours to cook. Halve cooking time for conventional oven and dutch oven roasting.

Ingredients

  • 2 1/2 lbs lean beef chuck roast, trimmed of fat & cut into serving-size pieces
  • 3 medium baking potatoes,  cut into quarters (about 1 lb)
  • 1 large parsnip, cut into 3/4-inch slices
  • 2 celery ribs, cut into 3/4-inch slices
  • 2 large carrots, cut into 3/4-inch slices
  • 1 medium white onion, sliced
  • 2bay leaves
  • 1/2 tsp dried thyme leaves
  • 1 tsp dried rosemary
  • 1/2 c beef broth

Directions

Trim roast of fat and silverskin.  Season roast with salt & pepper.  Combine vegetables & seasonings in crock pot.  Place beef over vegetables, & pour broth over beef.  Cover and cook on LOW until meat is fork-tender, approximately 8 -9 hrs.  Remove beef to serving platter, & arrange vegetables around beef. Remove & discard bay leaves.

To make a gravy, ladle the juices into a 2c measuring cup; allow to stand 5 mins, skim off & discard fat. Measure remaining juices & heat to a boil in small saucepan. For each cup of juice, mix 2 tbsp of flour with 1/4 cup of cold water or dry red wine until smooth.  Stir mixture into boiling juices, stirring constantly until thickened (about 1 min).

Classic Beef Stew (Pressure cooker edition)

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Who doesn’t love beef stew? Who doesn’t love the whole afternoon it takes to make beef stew for dinner when there’s a right proper Nor’Easter afoul? Assuming you still have power, this is a great pressure cooker adaptation of a traditional beef stew .

Beef Stew (Pressure Cooker)

Servings 4
Total Time 35mins
Prep 15 mins
Cook 20 mins

To make an easy Beef soup, omit the potatoes, add more water and a few boullions and serve with egg noodles or rice.

Ingredients

1 tablespoon canola oil
1 1⁄2 lbs rump roast
2 garlic cloves, chopped
1 large onion, cut up
4 carrots, peeled and cut into chunks
4 celery ribs, peeled and cut into chunks
4 potatoes, cut into chunks
salt & pepper (to taste)
1 -2 teaspoon dried parsley
1 1⁄2-2 cups water
1 -2 beef bouillon cube (optional)

Directions

Cut the roast into chunks, about 1 inch (or larger if that is your preference). Heat oil in bottom of pressure cooker until hot and add the meat all at once (do not turn for at least 1 minute – you really want to let the meat sear – this gives the stew such yummy flavor.

Stir the meat, letting it brown on all sides. Add the chopped garlic, stir for 1 minute, then add the onions, carrots, celery, potatoes, salt, pepper, parsley, water and optional beef bouillon(the bouillon gives a stronger flavor – you can also wait to see how it comes out, and if you feel that it’s not flavorful enough, you can add the beef bouillon and boil the stew for a minute or so).

Lock the pressure cooker lid in place and bring to high pressure over high heat.

Cook 15 minutes.

Cool pot immediately and serve. ENJOY!

Optional ingredients – you can add some chopped tomatoes if you’d like before cooking, or after bringing it to pressure, you can throw in some canned mushrooms or frozen peas and heat thoroughly.