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Not that I have Irish ancestors to celebrate Saint Patrick's Day, but I really like this corned beef & veggies soup.  It is simple and rustic, but very aromatic and filling. It does take a lot of time to boil meat, but if you cook  in two stages, it's really not that bad. The meat could be boiled in advance the evening before you actually cook the whole dish, the rest is quick and easy. It is supposed to be a one pot dish, but I did some adjustments. Nobody in my family likes boiled onions, so onions were sauteed, not boiled - this is the only difference from the original recipe.
The aromas of all vegetables blended together in a beautiful "quartet", especially to my Russian nose that is used to the smell of boiled cabbage in borsch and shchi. But if you try to cook corned beef & veggies yourself, whatever your roots are, you will be fascinated by the result.
What you need:
1.5 lb corned beef
Filtered water, about 4 quarts or some more
2 medium yellow onions
1 big carrot, sliced
2 large potatoes, cubed
2-3 cups of coarsely sliced white cabbage
Black pepper corns
1 bay leaf
1.5 Tbsp clarified butter/butter (if you will saute onion)
Chopped parsley
Meat preparation time: 3.5 hours
Soup preparation time: 30 minutes!
Feeds 4 people

Method:
Rinse meat with cold water, put in a pot, cover with water. Bring to boil on high heat, discard this water, rinse meat again. This will reduce the salt content in cured beef, and most likely you will not need any more salt besides the remaining salt in the meat. Cover meat with filtered water second time. Bring to boil, set heat to simmer, add pepper corns, one peeled (or unpeeled, but thoroughly washed) onion, and cook until meat is easily pierced with a fork. It took me about 3.5 hours, but it was very easy just checking on it from time to time, while I was able to do other things. Watch that meat is well covered with water during cooking, if it evaporates add some boiling water.
The next day I made a thick soup. Bring the broth and meat to boil, discard the boiled onion. Add sliced carrot and cubed potatoes, simmer until potatoes are half-done, then add cabbage and 1 bay leaf. You can add chopped onion right to the soup, but I sauteed onion until nicely caramelized and added it to soup with cabbage. It gave the broth a light tan color and additional flavor.
Simmer the soup until all vegetables are soft. Throw in a handful of chopped parsley, cover,  and set aside for 10 minutes to brew. Lay the table.
Now... remove the lid and feel the aroma of this wonderful  dish. Oh-so-good!
Take the meat out of the pot right before serving (it dries out fast), slice it across the fibers. Divide meat slices and vegetables between bowls, pour the delicious broth over. Serve with more chopped greens and good beer. :)
Happy Saint Patrick's Day!

Tags:    beef cabbage carrots easy international main course potatoes soup
Summary: a easy main course recipe
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