Braising the beef in the Crock Pot or Instant Pot with beer and vegetables results in fork-tender, crumble-apart chunks of beef, making this simple corned beef and cabbage a quick and delicious one-pot meal.
We serve corned beef and cabbage as the centerpiece of our spring menu every year, especially on St. Patrick’s Day, when the pansies emerge from the snow and college basketball’s March Madness continues through the weekends. Patrick’s Day. Over the years, I’ve prepared corned beef in a variety of ways, including in the oven or on the stovetop. But for one of the easiest dinners you’ll make all year, I always go back to throwing everything in the Crock Pot or Instant Pot.
The preparation time for this Crock Pot or slow cooker recipe for corned beef and cabbage with potatoes, carrots, and a tangy horseradish sauce for dipping is only 5 to 10 minutes. Alternatively, you can cook it in the Instant Pot pressure cooker, which only takes about 1 hour 30 minutes. I will cook a whole corned beef just to make my favorite Reuben sandwiches because of how simple this meal is to prepare. Corned beef and cabbage. It’s how we do March around here.
What makes this recipe special?
If you enjoy super-tender, crumble-apart corned beef, try this slow-cooked sous vide recipe. This is my preferred method for cooking a simple corned beef roast, and it just might become yours as well.
This cooking method not only results in a fall-apart roast but also preserves the roast’s juices. No outside liquid affects this even though I don’t use a vacuum seal like many sous vide recipes.
Many recipes call for boiling the beef, but doing so only dilutes the flavor. Using sous vide cooking preserves the flavor of the roast.
Additionally, if you enjoy using a sous vide, it is fun to try new things. This is a wonderful way to use your sous vide cooker and enjoy a different mouthwatering dish that you can prepare with it.
This dish is excellent on St. Patrick’s Day when served with potatoes and sauerkraut. This also makes for a fantastic Corned Beef Hash; alternatively, try this recipe for Reuben Casserole. No matter what you make, make sure to treat yourself![feast_advanced_jump_to].
This recipe is simple, and our short list of ingredients reflects that. This is what you will need:
- Corned Beef
- Potatoes
- Carrots
- Salt & Pepper
See the recipe card for quantities.
Flat cut or tip cut corned beef?
There are two different cuts of corned beef available in stores. Either the flat or the point will be an option. This recipe works with either cut, as I have tested it with both.
Although the Flat cut usually has a fat cap on top, it is generally leaner. The flat provides a nice-looking roast cut and is probably easier to cut.
The meat cut ends at the tip, which typically has more fat marbled throughout the beef cut. This typically indicates that the meat will be a little more tender and likely fall apart more easily.
Both are functional, though flat is probably the more prevalent cut in the store. If I had to choose between the two and they were in front of me, I probably would go with the tip. You know me… I like fat.
We use oven bags for this recipe, just like we do for our Sous Vide Prime Rib recipe. Usually, this is meant for turkeys or hams.
There are two variations from the way this is typically prepared that may be crucial for this recipe. Time and temperature.
The length of time and temperature at which we cook our sous vide corned beef results in a succulent roast. We cook this for a full day at 175° Fahrenheit.
This combination, however, can test the strength of the bags. For that reason, I suggest using two oven bags.
I only ever experienced a problem with a single bag having holes in it. Even then, the only time I encountered problems was when I was handling the bag at the very end, after the corned beef had finished cooking.
However, I prefer to cook our vegetables in the beef juice and don’t like losing it. The juices from the leftover corned beef are excellent for cooking the potatoes and vegetables.
Additionally, I advise using oven bags from a reputable brand. If you use good bags, your chances of getting a positive result are higher.
You might have baked or boiled corned beef if you’ve prepared it before. Today, we placed it in two oven bags and cooked it sous vide for 24 hours at 175 degrees. This creates a delicious, fall-apart end product.
After being cooked, add the resulting juices to a pot of vegetables. Add carrots, potatoes, the meat’s juices, and a little water to the pot. Bring to a boil.
Bake our finished corned beef at a high temperature for a brief period of time while the vegetables are boiling. This gives a nice finish to the roast. The vegetables should be cooked through and ready to serve when the roast is finished and has rested for a few minutes.
Displacement method vs. vacuum bags
With a sous vide machine, there are two primary methods of cooking: using vacuum bags or the displacement method. The vacuum bag requires purchasing specialty bags and machine sealing. You might have trouble locating a bag that fits a roast this size with such a large roast.
Put the roast in a bag large enough to hold the roast when using the displacement method, in this case two bags. Then, submerge the bagged roast.
Try to deflate the bag as much as possible before placing it underneath Make sure the bag is secured to the container’s side with a clip.
Bag of water for a weight
I had trouble keeping a roast this size submerged when I was cooking it. Bringing the roast to a temperature and cooking it evenly for a long time are the objectives of sous vide.
Apparently, these cuts of meat like to float. I overcame this by placing a ziplock freezer bag filled with water directly on top of the roast.
Although food-safe weights are available for purchase to address this issue, the water bag worked well for me. I secured the bag over the oven bags with a clothesline clip to keep the roast submerged.
Time and temp in sous vide
Many of the recipes I found called for two days of cooking corned beef at 140 degrees Fahrenheit. I cook mine at 175° Fahrenheit over one day. Fat will begin to render at 140°, but it will still be effective at 175°, especially when cooking it for a prolonged period of time.
My recipe’s timing and temperature are ideal for creating corned beef that falls apart. My favorite corned beef is when it falls apart.
Watch those water levels
Evaporation can become an issue. Your sous vide bath will lose water due to the time and temperature.
Although most sous vide machines have an alarm, I wanted to make sure you were aware that this might be a problem. You will probably have to fill it with water. It could help you avoid having to use the sous vide bath at a late hour if you fill it up before bed.
Oven, resting time, and cutting
This should be baked for ten minutes at 500 degrees Fahrenheit. This gives just a nice outer finish to the roast.
High temperatures, but not for long enough for the internal temperature to be negatively impacted by the oven It only requires five minutes to rest after being taken out of the oven.
Afterward, cut the roast against the meat’s grain. You will receive the desired slices as a result.
You might notice that the meat disintegrates because I prepare it to fall apart. You should be able to provide some excellent cuts of meat if you are careful when cutting.
Timing, potatoes & carrots
The timing at the end of this recipe is one crucial component. Timing is not very important while the roast is sous vide. But make sure to time out our process once that period has passed.
The key is to be prepared. Have your potatoes and carrots cut and ready to go. Preheat your oven before you remove from your sous vide. If you time this right, your potatoes and carrots will be ready when you finish the roast.
Substitutions and variations
There are a few ways that this can be changed.
- Regardless of the type of potato you have, use it.
- For the sides, I’ve included potatoes and carrots in this dinner recipe, but you can really use anything you like.
Allow the meat to cool to room temperature. After that, you can either place it in an airtight container or tightly wrap it in plastic wrap or aluminum foil. To prevent the meat from spoiling more quickly, make sure there is no air in the packaging.
For up to four days, cooked corned beef can be kept in the refrigerator. You can freeze it for up to two or three months if you need to keep it for a longer period.
The corned beef should be defrosted in the refrigerator overnight before being heated. Heat the corned beef once more in the oven, on the stove, or in the microwave.
Corned beef history tidbit
We tie corned beef to St. Saint Patrick’s Day and Ireland, but this dish also has a fascinating past Truth be told, corned beef was not a traditional Irish food.
Really, Ireland became a part of the industry because of the taste for beef by other nations. The land and beef industry was brought to Ireland. Still, according to this Smithsonian article, Irish folks couldnt even afford the beef raised there.
But in an interesting contrast, corned beef started to be associated with poverty in other parts of the world. It was excellent for rations for sailors because it was preserved meat.
It evolved into a food item for the underprivileged and slaves. The dish became more widely available as more Irish people immigrated to America.
While beef was pricey in Ireland, it was significantly less expensive in America. In addition, pastrami was widely available in cities like New York.
Though traditionally a different cut of meat than corned beef, pastrami and corned beef both used the same method of preservation. Today, the same beef brisket meat cut may be used to make pastrami.
According to legend, beef was preserved using salt chunks the size of corn kernels. That is where the name came from.
No. The package is not designed to be cooked.
After sous vide cooking, it is typically advised to slice the corned beef because it may be more tender and simple to cut. However, you can slice it beforehand and vacuum-seal the slices in a bag for sous vide cooking if that’s what you prefer to do.
Tips and tricks
- I like serving mine with sauerkraut. Cooking some cabbage with the potatoes and carrots is an alternative.
- In the event that you’re using the displacement method, double bag with oven bags.
- Before you remove the beef from the sous vide, be sure to prepare and preheat your potatoes and carrots.
- For nutritional information, I am using a 4 pound roast. Depending on individual appetites and the size of the roast, your serving size may change.
- Mustard goes great with this dish.
Products used in this recipe
That is fantastic, and I appreciate you trying my recipe for sous vide corned beef. It would be greatly appreciated if you could give this video a rating in the comment section below. This gives me feedback on how I’m doing and aids people in deciding whether they want to try the recipe. Most of all, thanks for visiting Ramshackle Pantry.
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Sous Vide Corned Beef
- Author: Ben
- Prep Time: 15 minutes
- Cook Time: 24 hours 30 minutes
- Total Time: 24 hours 45 minutes
- Yield: 6 servings 1x
- Category: Beef
- Method: Sous Vide
- Cuisine: Irish
Sous Vide Corned Beef can be tender, delicious, and perfect. Make a fantastic fall-apart Corned Beef dinner using this recipe and your Sous Vide cooker. We also provide a recipe for potatoes and carrots that can be used as a fantastic side to the dish.
- 1 Corned Beef 3-5 pounds
- 2 pounds of small red potatoes, halved or quartered
- 6 medium carrots, cleaned and roughly chopped
- Salt and pepper, to taste
- Add corned beef roast to 2 oven bags, and then sous vide it for 24 hours at 175 degrees Fahrenheit.
- Preheating the oven to 500 degrees Fahrenheit when the cooking time is almost up
- Remove roast from sous vide and remove from bag. Reserve liquid .
- Place roast on roasting pan
- Cook in oven for 10 minutes
- Put bag juices, potatoes, and carrots into a big pot while they’re cooking.
- Cook until tender over medium-high heat while covering with water and bringing to a boil.
- When the roast is finished, remove it and give it five minutes to rest.
- Cut against the grain.
- Serve roast with potatoes and carrots.
- I like serving mine with sauerkraut. Cooking some cabbage with the potatoes and carrots is an alternative.
- In the event that you’re using the displacement method, double bag with oven bags.
- Before you remove the beef from the sous vide, be sure to prepare and preheat your potatoes and carrots.
- For nutritional information, I am using a 4 pound roast. Depending on individual appetites and the size of the roast, your serving size may change.
- Mustard goes great with this dish.
- Serving Size: ⅙ of Total
- Calories: 676
- Sugar: 3 g
- Sodium: 2994 mg
- Fat: 40 g
- Saturated Fat: 13 g
- Unsaturated Fat: 27 g
- Carbohydrates: 32 g
- Fiber: 6 g
- Protein: 45 g
- Cholesterol: 147 mg
Keywords: sous vide corned beef
How to Cook the Best Tender Corned Beef in the Slow Cooker~Easy Cooking
FAQ
Why is my corned beef not falling apart?
The quantity of water in the pot is one of the keys to simmering corned beef properly. Your hopes of a tender corned beef dish may be dashed if there is not enough liquid to completely cover the meat. Instead: Begin by completely submerging the corned beef in a large pot of water.
What temperature does corned beef fall apart?
Cook the corned beef to 185-200 degrees F. The more fall-apart tender it will become as the temperature approaches 200 degrees. The meat becomes tender and melts in your mouth thanks to the high internal temperature that causes collagen to break down.
How do you cook corned beef so it’s tender?
Boiling is the most typical way to prepare corned beef and cabbage. Place the meat in a sizable pot, cover it with beef broth or water, add a seasoning packet, and bring to a boil before simmering. Cook the meat for two to three hours, or until it is tender and cooked to your preference.
What is the secret to best corned beef?
Low and slow is key. Experts concur that the best way to make corned beef tender and juicy is to cook it for a longer period of time on a low heat. They warn that if the internal temperature of the beef rises above 180 degrees Fahrenheit, it could start to crumble.