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| How
Do I Make ... ? |
Corned Beef |
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Corned beef is virtually
impossible to find on the Chinese mainland, although
'Catering packs' are sold in 'Food City', Guangzhou.
This meat can be bought in cans from Hong Kong, where
you will also find Chinese made brands which taste disgusting!
(We think they actually add 'corn' to the meat?). Any
Expats wishing to eat corned beef regularly will probably
be interested in the simple recipes below:
• American Corned Beef (Salt
Beef)
• British Corned Beef
(Bully Beef)
The term corned beef refers to two entirely different
products:
• American Corned Beef refers to
a joint of beef (Usually Brisket) that is pickled in
a brine solution. This is then eaten, canned, or smoked
to make pastrami. British call this version 'Salt Beef'.
• British corned beef is known as 'Bully Beef',
and whilst being made with a similar technique, it is
ground beef and has gelatine (Aspic) added. It is usually
sold in distinctive quadrate tin cans first invented
by Arthur Libby in 1875.
Corning
The word 'corned' refers to the 'corning' process, and
comes from the British word 'corn' meaning a small grain
(In this case salt). This basically means the meat is
marinated or pickled in brine.
Meat
Cuts
Usa and British cuts of meat are also different, although
this is not a big factor concerning corned beef. We
include pictures below for your reference - please click
to enlarge:
| American Beef Cuts |
British Beef Cuts |
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Let's begin with the American style corned beef, as
Bully Beef is basically an extension of this recipe:
Recipe Source:
Quick Tips:
1.
Choose a well marbled joint of meat, and ensure
there is a enough fat remaining. The fat is essential
in preventing the meat drying out and becoming tough.
2. When corning (Pickling) use
ceramic vessels; as metal ones can react with the salt.
Aluminium pans are a definite no-no!
3.
One of the key steps is getting the salt balance
right. The longer the corning, the more tender but saltier
the meat.
4. Decide if you want
to use saltpetre [Potassium nitrite (E249)]. This preserves
the meat and keeps a rosy red colour. If not used the
meat will be gray in colour, but healthier if less visually
appealing.
5. Once you have the
basics sorted experiment with herbs, spices, chillies,
plus salt and fat content. |
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| Let's get started:-
Marye's American Style Corned Beef |
| Ingredients: |
Image courtesy Marye Audet |
| |
• 4-8 lbs brisket, fat trimmed to 1/4
inch or so
• 1/4 cup kosher salt
(Sea or Rock Salt)
• 1 tablespoon
pickling spices
• 1 tsp peppercorns
(I used a mixture of red, black, white, green,
pink)
• 2 bay leaves
• 3
garlic cloves, peeled and chopped
• 2
cups kosher salt
• 1/2 cup sugar
• 16 cups water |
Special Equipment Needed for corned beef:
• Large ceramic pot, with
ceramic weight such as a bowl to place on top whilst
corning to keep the meat down.
• Refrigerator
for 5 to 7 days. Ensure things like Creme Brulee and
delicate sweets are not put in at the time of corning
- or they may come out tasting of corned beef!
| Method - Part 1 |
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Mary has produced a brilliant picture
walkthrough, which you can find on the website
below:
Baking
Delights: Corned Beef & Baking
Delights: How it turned out
Part one refers to the corning process only, as
given in the first link above. This is followed
many days later by a very slow simmer for several
hours. This and the eating results are given in
link 2 above.
Both articles also include blog style comments
and Marye's answers to common questions. There
is also a section referring to Saltpetre (Saltpeter),
and it's two forms: Potassium Nitrite (E249) and
Sodium Nitrite (E250), the latter being a known
carcinogenic! Do not use Sodium Nitrite!
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1. Rub the meat
with 1/4 cup salt, place in a large glass or ceramic
pan or basin.
2. Sprinkle with the pickling
spice, peppercorns, bay leaves, and garlic.
3. Bring remaining salt and sugar
to a boil in the 16 cups of water, stir until
dissolved. |
4. Pour over meat.
5. Weigh meat down under the
brine and leave for 3 to 5 days.
Marye actually left hers corning for 7-days, and
it turned out fine and delicious. |
Image courtesy Marye Audet |
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| Method - Part 2 |
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6. Rinse the corned beef well.
7. Place it in a large stock
pot.
8. Add 2 teaspoons
more pickling spice, some more peppercorns, two
bay leaves, and three peeled cloves of garlic.
9. Covered it with water,
covered the pan and simmered for about 4-5 hours. |
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British
Corned Beef (Bully Beef)
Try as we may, we have not yet found a recipe that is
suitable for making this staple British and Commonwealth
dish. All we know for certain is that it was first put
into quadroid cans by Arthur Libby in 1875, and that
it is not difficult to make.
Bully Beef is made when the above recipe by Marye finishes.
All you need to do is grind the meat into a course paté,
put it into a suitable container, and add aspic (a form
of gelatine) to seal the meat. We suggest you then shrink-wrap
it, and store it in the freezer.
We are open to any suggestions, and especially those
compatible with life in China. |
| Additional Information: |
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Answers.com
An excellent guide to British and American style corned
beef. No recipes, but tells you a lot about the meat
and it's history. |
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Wikipedia:
Our stalwart for dedicated information:
General information here
Cuts of meats here |
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This information is as supplied by ourselves, and ably
supported by our friends and various internet portals.
In addition we personally wish to thank Marye
Audet for sharing with us all her excellent skills
and recipe. |
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