March is the best time to cook this corned beef stew when we find a lot of corned beef in the markets. The stores put it on sale as low as $1.60/lb. so it’s really affordable. Cabbage and potatoes are also on sale so why not? It’s a very satisfying meal for the family especially on a cold day.
The main ingredients are simply corned beef, onion, carrots, potatoes, celery, and parsley. Use the spice packet included in the corned beef package along with whole peppercorns. There is no need to salt it in the beginning because corned beef is already salty. At the end you can adjust the salt if needed.
Make the Corned Beef Stew
Corned beef comes with a liquid and a spice packet. Sometimes the liquid can be thick and sort of slimy. Discard the liquid and rinse the meat lightly with running water to get rid of the slime and excess salt.
The process is basically dump-and-cook where you place the whole piece of corned beef in a pot with chopped onion, celery, carrots, spice packet, parsley and whole peppercorns. Add 4 1/2 cups of water into the pot. Cover the pot and let it boil on high heat. When it starts boiling, lower the heat and simmer for 1 hour and 45 minutes.
Then, it’s time to add the potatoes in and let it cook at medium heat for another 25 minutes covered. The cabbage can be added at the end. Add a little bit of freshly ground pepper and let it cook for 5 minutes. When the cabbage is tender, take out the meat and place it in a cutting board. Slice it 1/4 inch thick and arrange the slices in a big platter with the vegetables.
Serve it warm with a side of Irish soda bread and butter or steamed rice. I enjoy it both ways and I hope you do too.
Corned Beef Stew with Cabbage and Potatoes
Ingredients
- 2 1/2-3 lbs corned beef including the spice packet
- 2 carrots chopped
- 2 celery stalks chopped
- 1 large onion chopped
- 3 medium potatoes red or gold, cut into 1-inch pieces
- ½ head of cabbage chopped into 2-inch pieces
- 3 sprigs of italian parsley
- 12 whole peppercorns
- freshly ground pepper to taste
- 4 ½ cups water
Instructions
- Open the corned beef package and discard the liquid. Save the spice packet and set aside. Rinse the meat lightly in running water to get rid of excess salt.
- Place corned beef in a large pot. Add onion, carrots, celery, parsley, spices (from packet), whole peppercorns and 4 1/2 cups of water. Cover the pot and let it boil on high. When it starts boiling, lower the heat and simmer for 1 hour and 45 minutes.
- Add the potatoes, cover it and let cook for another 25 minutes on medium heat.
- Stir in the cabbage, add a little freshly ground pepper to taste. Cover it again and let it cook for another 5 minutes.
- Take out the meat and place it in a cutting board. Slice it to about 1/4 inch thick. Arrange slices in a platter with the vegetables. Ladle some of the broth on top.