Corned Beef (salted beef)

While corned beef is very solidly traced back in Ireland and the UK, over in the India peninsula, it also has a rather rich history and a different method of preparation.

As I have just gotten a side of beef, I have a lot of options to experiment with.

I’ll be doing 2 different preparations of corned beef, one following a more European approach, and the other following an approach that appears to have been from the Cochin Jews immigration to the Indian peninsula.

https://www.foodnetwork.com/recipes/alton-brown/corned-beef-recipe-1947363

https://indianvagabond.com/2017/01/04/salted-beef-kolkata-anglo-indian-style/

Once the chuck roast I have thaws, I’ll evaluate it’s suitability for the indian method, as that requires trimming all fat off the meat. If the chuck roast is too marbled, I will need to wait a few days for a shank to thaw out so I can trip that.

RESOURCES:
for “traditional” corned beef:
https://www.thedailymeal.com/1228035/the-complete-and-fascinating-history-of-corned-beef/


for Indian corned beef:

White Bean Sausage Stew

It’s getting to be a bit crisper at night, lending to the desire for a nice warm bowl of something for dinner.

The fridge is a bit sparse, someone has been slacking in thawing meat or grocery shopping, so the recipe search was driven by minimal shopping needed.

Original Recipe from https://themodernproper.com/white-bean-sausage-skillet

1/2 t Oil
16 oz Sausage (I used cracked pepper by https://conecuhsausage.com/)
1 T garlic, minced
1/4 onion, diced
2 15 oz cans of white beans
1 1/2 c Chicken Stock
1/2 t black pepper
1/2 t thyme
3 cups kale, stemmed
1 T lemon juice
shredded parmesan, to garnish

Heat large skillet or pot over medium high heat
Brown sausage on all sides, remove from pan
When sausage is cool enough to handle, slice into rounds
Brown sausage rounds on both sides
Add onions to pan and cook until it starts turning translucent
Add garlic and cook until fragrant
Take 1/2 of a can of one of the beans and mash into a paste, an immersion blender does wonders
Add all whole beans to the pan (undrained), black pepper, and thyme.
Bring to a simmer
Add chicken stock
Bring back to a simmer
Add mashed beans
Bring back to a simmer
Add kale
Stir gently until kale is cooked to your preference
Turn off heat and finish with lemon juice, check seasoning and adjust
Serve up in a bowl with parmesan sprinkled on top.

Optional things that sound like they’d go really well with this:
– hatch chili paste (or other hot sauce)
– sourdough toast
– croutons

The verdict?
We will be making this again. Quick, easy, one pot, and the husband really liked it.

Pad Thai Experiments

For dinner the other night, we made some pad thai. As my kitchen journal went missing in the move, I didn’t have my go to recipe. Gimme Some Oven usually has recipes that hit the spot.

Overall, it was good, a solid 3/5. Changes we would make next time are:
1- add tahini or sesame paste to the sauce
2- reduce the amount of fish sauce. We found it very salty, even with using low sodium soy sauce

Here’s a link:
https://www.gimmesomeoven.com/pad-thai/