This easy recipe makes delicious and tender slow-cooked corned beef. With step-by-step instructions, you’ll have the perfect St. Patrick’s Day dinner with tender and flavorful corned beef, cabbage, carrots, and baby red potatoes.
SLOW COOKER CORNED BEEF WITH CABBAGE
This slow cooker corned beef recipe is delicious, easy, and dependable, with minimal prep time and minimal ingredients. The results are amazing, with tender, juicy, and flavorful corned beef, onions, carrots, potatoes, and cabbage. This recipe is easy enough for even the new cook to master for St. Patrick’s Day or any weeknight. If you like this slow cooker recipe, try slow cooker pot roast, crock pot pulled pork, crock pot chicken tacos, and crock pot chili.
SLOW COOKER CORNED BEEF INGREDIENTS
Corned beef – with spice packet
Beef broth – preferably low-sodium
Yellow onion
Carrots
Potatoes – small red
Green cabbage
WHAT IS CORNED BEEF
Corned beef is beef that has been cured or preserved with salt. Potassium nitrate or sodium nitrite gives commercially made corned beef its long-lasting pink color. We all know from our high school science class that nitrates and nitrites are forms of salt.
HOW TO COOK CORNED BEEF AND CABBAGE IN A SLOW COOKER
Unwrap the corned Beef and place it in a slow cooker, fat side up. Sprinkle the spice packet over the top of the corned Beef.
Pour the beef broth into the slow cooker over and around the corned Beef. Cover and cook on low for 5 hours.
Add the onions, carrots, and potatoes. Cover and cook on low for 1 hour.
Add the cabbage, cover, and cook on low for 2 hours.
RECIPE TIPS
Leave the fat on the corned beef when simmering, as it helps cook it tender and gives it lots of flavor. For this method, cook it fat side up.
Don’t skip the spice packet. It is full of peppercorns, mustard seeds, coriander seeds, anise seeds, and crushed bay leaves. It gives the corned beef its extra delicious flavor. Simply add it to the cooking liquid with the beef.
For aesthetic purposes, peel your carrots. You will appreciate the bright orange color.
Small red potatoes are traditional. Baby yellow potatoes work well, too, because they are waxy like red potatoes. Don’t use russet potatoes. They are not waxy, and they break down during the cooking process.
Once cooked, trim the fat from the beef. I like to leave a very small portion of fat on for more flavor, but my husband likes it trimmed completely.
Slice the corned beef against the grain, producing the most tender pieces that do not fall apart.
STORAGE AND REHEAT
Store leftovers in an airtight container in the fridge for up to 3 days. Reheat in the microwave at 50% power for 1 minute increments until warm. You can freeze the corned beef, potatoes, and carrots for up to 2 months, but I do not recommend freezing the cabbage
INGREDIENTS
3 lb corned beef brisket with spice packet
3 cups low-sodium beef broth
1 large yellow onion sliced in quarters
2 medium carrots peeled and cut in 1-2 inch chunks
12 small red potatoes
1/2 head green cabbage cut in wedges
INSTRUCTIONS
Unwrap the corned beef and place it in a slow cooker, fat side up. Sprinkle the spice packet over the top of the corned beef.
Pour the beef broth into the slow cooker over and around the corned beef. Cover and cook for 5 hours on low.
Add the onions, carrots, and potatoes. Cover and cook on low for 1 hour.
Add the cabbage, cover, and cook on low for 2 hours.
