Why it works: Beef and sugar are a kitchen classic. They rank in the top 37% of all ingredient pairs, and cooks put them together in 5,435 recipes. Both carry beta-damascenone, which smells apple, rose. The science ↓
To Corn Beef
Ingredients
Directions
Cure the beef
Rub each piece of beef with a mixture of salt and 1 ounce of saltpetre until the salt is dry on the surface.
Set aside the beef in a cold place for 24 hours.
Repeat the rubbing process thoroughly.
Prepare the brine by boiling 5 gallons of water with 1 gallon of salt, 4 ounces of saltpetre, and 1 lb of brown sugar for 10 minutes.
Let the brine cool completely.
Pour the cooled brine over the beef, which should be wiped dry.
Check the pickle regularly.
If it doesn't keep well, remove the meat.
Wipe the meat.
Rub in dry salt until you can prepare new brine.
Prepare and cook
Skewer the beef into shape.
Tie the skewered beef with twine.
Wash the beef in several waters to remove salt.
Place the beef in a pot.
Cover the pot with cold water and boil for about 20 minutes per pound.
Turn the meat three times while cooking.
Drain well.
Serve
Serve with drawn butter and mashed turnips.
Transcribed from a scanned cookbook and modernised for today's kitchens. Where the book gave no heat or time, or said "a moderate oven", the temperatures and times here may be modern equivalents rather than the book's own figures.
Explore the science
The flavor team
The pairs that carry this dish. Each one is judged two ways: how much their aromas overlap, and how often cooks already put them together.
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Beef + sugartop 37% of all pairsSmell alikelowCooked together5,435 recipes
Shared aroma: beta-damascenone (apple, rose).
Ranks compare each pair with 20,000 random ingredient pairs on CompKitchen. How we score pairs
What each ingredient does
- Beef
- The main meat, which is cured and then boiled until tender.
- Saltpetre
- Helps preserve the meat and gives the cured beef its characteristic pink color.
- Coarse sea salt
- Draws moisture out of the meat and seasons it during curing.
- Brown sugar
- Balances the saltiness of the brine and adds a mild sweetness.
The step that matters
Keep the beef submerged and cold during the cure. Salt and saltpetre must penetrate evenly, and the cure must stay cold so the meat does not spoil. Checking the brine regularly catches problems early.
“What each ingredient does” and “The step that matters” were written by Claude from this recipe’s own method and reviewed in samples by CompKitchen.
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