Cedar Plank-Finished Corned Beef

Happy St. Patrick’s Day! My beef has been "corning" for the past four days and now it's show time! But first... A brief, yet corny history:

The corned beef you buy in the stores stays a lovely, rosy shade because it has some preservatives, which is fine- lots of delectable things from pepperoni to pasta have preservatives- but when you make it minus the sodium nitrate, it tends to stay more well-done colored. The advantage to grilling plank-finishing your corned beef is that smoky flavor and a nice, crispy crust to the meat, while the inside stays very moist.

Ingredients

1 Large Outdoor Gourmet Cedar Grilling Plank, soaked 2 or more hours.

4-5 lb. corned beef (you don't have to cure your own. Store-bought is just fine.)

2 Guinness... for cooking purposes. More for drinking purposes.

3 bay leaves

1 tablespoon coriander seeds

2 whole allspice

3 medium turnips

8 unpeeled medium white-skinned and red-skinned potatoes

6 medium carrots, peeled

4 medium onions, peeled, halved through root ends

2 medium parsnips, peeled, cut into 2-inch lengths

1 1-pound head of cabbage, quartered

Loaf of Irish Soda Bread, sourdough would work in a pinch.

Directions

First: Place corned beef in very large wide pot. Add Guinness and enough water to cover by 1 inch. Toss in the bay leaves, coriander seeds, and allspice. Bring to a boil, then reduce heat to medium-low, cover, and simmer until beef is tender, about 2 1/4 hours and remove from pot. Note: If you corned your own beef like I did, give it a quick rinse, then cook.

Then: Add turnips and all remaining vegetables to liquid in pot; bring to boil. Reduce heat to medium and boil gently until all vegetables are tender, about 25 minutes.

Next: While your veggies is simmering, heat grill to medium heat (350-400°) and place grilling plank on grill 1-2 minutes prior to brisket. Then place the beef on the grilling plank, close grill lid and allow to cook for 20 to 25 minute, checking periodically.

Finally: Remove from grill, slice thinly. Using slotted spoon, serve veggies with corned beef and Irish Soda Bread. Crack another Guinness and enjoy!

Just a shade over a year ago, I started blogging about everything grilling plank-related and one of my first experiments was the St. Patrick’s Day classic Corned Beef, except I finished mine on a plank. It was an early triumph that bears repeating.

A traditional Corned Beef is a cut of brisket that is brine-cured over a couple of days (or more) and the term “corned” refers to the course salt or rock salt kernels used to preserve the meat. Last year I used a pre-cured cut of meat because it was already the 17th and I didn’t have the time nor the salt. Well, I came at it this year a bit more prepared- I'm going to corn my own beef.

I called up my local ranch/butcher- the V-X Ranch and Wood's Meat Processing- and they pre-trimmed a beautiful 4.5 lb. brisket and had it ready to go a week before the big day.

Now, you know how Corned Beef can sometimes be that eye-catching red/pink color? That is from the sodium nitrate (NaNO3), a preservative found in tons of processed meats. Stuff like salami, pepperoni, bologna, hot dogs, and SPAM pretty much all contain sodium nitrate. There are two main reasons why sodium nitrate is added to meat- The biggie is color. This chemical preserves color and keeps your SPAM rosy pink rather than the color of over-cooked Hamburger Helper. Secondly, it prevents a modicum of foodbourne bacteria.

Fresh meats from your local butcher generally don’t contain any such chemicals- not that I’m against some NaNO3- I like my SPAM just as rainbowbrite as the next girl- but since I special-ordered this brisket, I decided to go preservative-free, even if it meant no brightly-colored beef. Ok, so no nitrates- then what to use?

Ingredients

4 1/2 lbs beef brisket

3 cups sea salt (the sea salt is better)

1/2 cup golden sugar

4 bay leaves

16 peppercorns

4 teaspoons pickling spices

4 garlic cloves, halved

Directions

First: Wash and pat dry your brisket dry, the rub with ¼ cup salt.

Next: In large saucepan, heat water about 16 cups of water, sugar, the rest of the salt and dissolve.

Then: Place beef in large brining vessel and pour salted water over and add bay leaves, peppercorns, pickling spice and garlic cloves.

Now: Refrigerate 72-96 hours.

First- Soak your Outdoor Gourmet Cedar Grilling Planks for two of more hours.

Next- Preheat grill to Medium Heat (350°).  Wrap the bacon around tenderloins, securing with toothpicks and top with pepper. Place soaked planks with steaks on grill and close grill lid. Allow to smoke and smolder for 9-10 minutes for medium-rare steaks.

Then- When steaks are almost done to your liking, top with cheese and drizzle with melted butter. Pull from grill and cover with foil to rest.

Finally- Once your steaks for have rested for 5-10 minutes, uncover, serve over a bed of greens and enjoy!