Like many people, I cook corned beef once a year. I can never remember which I like better - cooking it in the oven or on the stovetop. Those are my two options. Any thoughts on the subject?
Thanks.
Oven, I go low and slow using a rib or brisket technique
Stove or crockpot, I braise with root vegetables in a tomato base broth until tender.
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Corned Beef & Cabbage is a New England Boiled Dinner. So we have always boiled it.
Anyone going to start a Bubble & Squeak thread? 
Always do mine in the slow cooker, adding just enough water to come up the sides of the meat, and adding a sliced, large onion. I always transfer the spices in the plastic spice bags to a pre-made muslin spice or tea sachet bag or into a piece of cheesecloth, tied with string. The spice bags are great to have on hand, so just ordered some from the big A. Cook on low til meat is tender and onions very soft, 8 or so hours. We take the meat out, keep it warm, throw away the spice bag, and get the carrots, potatoes and cabbage ready. We taste the broth, diluting with water if too salty, add to the vegetables, with the cabbage added last. Served with horseradish and mustards. Bread or rolls sometimes. Hope to make Irish Soda bread this year. Corned beef hash with leftovers. Love both meals, and eat it several times a year, buying extra beef while on sale. Strongly prefer brisket over other cuts.
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Neither. I like mine smoked!
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Both! I loosely follow a method posted on Chowhound when it was still a valuable resource. After a few days of refrigerated soaking in many changes of cold water, simmer in clean water for an hour or so. Drain. Slather with a paste of finely chopped/sliced onion, Dijon mustard, and brown sugar. Wrap in foil, place on one side of a sheet pan. On the other, arrange oiled and seasoned chunks of potato, rutabaga, and carrot (I add onion wedges too). Roast 45 minutes at 375F. In the last twenty minutes, steam cabbage wedges on the stovetop. Be sure to drizzle the veg wth the meat juices that leak from the foil.
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Sounds absolutely wonderful @greygarious!
Forgot to add in my post above, that we cook the vegetables on the stovetop for more control.
Love the idea of roasting the root vegetables.
Wow, that method sounds delicious and easy. Thxs.
I do mine in the slow cooker too. I use a Guinness Stout as the liquid though it kills Mr Bean to “waste” one for cooking - until he eats the corned beef.
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I simmer mine in a pot on the stove. When it’s done & I take it out to rest I put red potatoes in the pot to boil 10-15 mins. Cabbage gets cooked in a separate pot with butter & water from the corned beef. AND I make horseradish cream sauce. YUM!
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Sounds great! Here’s one thread on this specific topic , i.e. whether to braise or roast corned beef:
started by the ever reliable fourunder who is still active at CH and has kindly bumped up all the old corned beef threads. Everything this guy has to say about the roasting of meats is worth anybody’s time.
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Wish he’d migrate here!
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I used the method @greygarious posted upthread and that others endorsed and it was, by an order of magnitude, the best corned beef I have ever made. (For New Englanders, only saw red corned beef here in AZ.) Thanks for the recommendation!
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Simmered in water with the spice packet for 2 hours, then applied the mustard/onion/brown sugar rub and slow cooked it in the oven uncovered for appx. 2.5 hours. Texture is perfect, soft but not falling apart, not tough at all. Probably put a little too much brown sugar in the rub. Just need to find some decent rye bread.
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Interesting!
What part?
The difference in the presentation I guess. Also, I haven’t thought of smoked corned beef, except as pastrami. Did you do anything to the corned beef before smoking it?
