Corned beef

New England Boiled Dinner–the Great Corned Beef Cookoff

December 7, 2017 / / Mains, Recipes

Certain dishes remain locked up as seasonal holiday preparations when they could easily be unleashed to enjoy any time of the year.  Some examples include goose or prime rib for Christmas, lamb or ham for Easter and corned beef, the centerpiece of a New England boiled dinner, traditionally served on St. Patrick’s Day. But these are wonderful whenever you want to have them.

That’s what I thought when on a recent weekend I was at Bisson’s, the Topsham butcher, and spied their corned beef, which is in the meat case year-round.  It’s a great cut of beef, prepared traditionally–with the dividend of leftovers in sandwiches or corned beef hash.

Bisson’s corned beef wrapped and ready brined with salt, sugar, and pickling spices

Read more…

For corned beef, cook it low and slow and serve with the flakiest biscuits

March 16, 2016 / / Baking & Desserts, Mains, Recipes

There’s no secret formula to preparing corned beef except this one caveat: buy the best.  Unless you’re going to cure your own slab of brisket into a “corned” beef, buy from the expert butchers who do it up every year.

I could have gone to any one of the purveyors who brine their own beef like Pat’s Meat Market, Rosemont, The Farm Stand and Bisson’s ( 116 Meadow Rd., Topsham, 207-725-7215).  Whole Foods also has several brands of commercial grade corned beef, and if you’re bent on paying up for it you might as well get it there at a few dollars more per pound.  The cured brisket from Bisson’s was $6.99 per pound.

Since this is a work in progress, here is the corned beef (from Bisson's) that I will make tomorrow

Since this is a work in progress, here is the uncooked corned beef (from Bisson’s) that I will make tomorrow

Since I was at Bisson’s last Saturday I picked up my cured beef there, which comes straight from their brining barrels.  It’s available throughout the year well wrapped and ready in their meat case next to the bacon, hams and other smoked cuts of meat.

Read more…