What is corned beef?

The first thing you need to know about corned beef is that it does not have any corn in it. It does - though - have a lot of salt in it. Corn used to be a word for grains of sand or salt. The word "corned" refers to the fact that the beef is cured in salt.

Prior to the advent of refrigeration all meat which was not eaten immediately needed to be preserved. One common way to preserve meat was to put it in contact with a lot of salt. Salt draws liquid from the flesh and inhibits the growth of microorganisms. It also makes the meat taste really good. That's why we still salt-cure meats long after its necessity has disappeared. The salt creates flavor, breaks down tissue, and improves the meat's texture.

Salt-curing can be done by covering meat with salt (dry cure) or submerging it in salty water (wet cure, or brining). Corned beef is usually made with a wet cure. Herbs and spices also are added to the brine. No two recipes are alike, but bay leaf, allspice, peppercorns, and garlic are common. The meat is kept in the brine for at least several days.

Corned beef it typically made with the brisket cut. The brisket is from the cow's lower chest. It is a big, tough, and usually cheap cut of meat that needs to be cooked at a low temperature for a long time it tenderizes.  A full brisket is 10+ pounds and shaped like a triangle, with a thick fatty end (the "tip"), and leaner thin end (the "first cut")

After the curing process is completed the meat is braised or steamed for several hours until tender. Then it's cut into thin slices to be served.

The most common Jewish way to eat corned beef is in a large sandwich, with rye bread, and spicy mustard. That's the way Pearl's Kitchen is serving it up, between two slices of homemade rye and our mustard slurry.  Yum!