Whether you just stepped off a boat from Dublin or don’t have an ounce or Irish blood in you, you’ll most likely be doing some kind of celebrating when St. Patrick’s Day rolls around next week. I’m not much into the whole green beer thing, but I must confess that this Italian girl loves a good corned beef and cabbage feast. But, as you probably already know, I can rarely leave a good thing be. So, I’ve put together a tricked out version of the original for you adventurous souls out there.
It all starts with the slow cooker. I gathered together all of the ingredients for a traditional corned beef and cabbage dinner and prepared it in my crock pot. After that, I separated the components and made three separate dishes with them. My corned beef was baked with a delicious apricot-spicy mustard glaze. With some of the cabbage, onion and potatoes, I made Colcannon augmented by the judicious use of some nice, thick bacon. Then, I used the rest of the cabbage and sauteed it with onion, cider vinegar and yes, MORE BACON!
Just look at these beautiful little cabbages! Aren’t they gorgeous? These beauties came out of the last harvest from my Uncle Sal’s garden. They were the tenderest, sweetest cabbages I’d ever tasted. Cooking with them was definitely a bittersweet experience, but I think he would have approved of the end result.
The great thing about this dinner is that most of the ingredients are already cooked in the slow cooker once, so preparing the individual dishes hardly takes any time at all. You can even do it all in advance and refrigerate until you’re ready to make the individual recipes. Also, you can cook all of the bacon for the Cabbage Saute and the Colcannon at once and divide it for each dish, like I did.
Please don’t let the quality of my photographs deter you from trying any of these recipes. In the first place, mashed potatoes and cabbage are not the most photogenic foods around. In the second place, that corned beef turned out so incredibly tender, that it just fell apart as I tried to slice it. In the third place, I had to work reeeeeallllly fast because my hungry natives were getting restless! All three of these dishes were absolutely scrumptious!
Apricot-Mustard Glazed Corned Beef
Ingredients:
- 1 large sweet onion, cut into quarters
- 4 medium potatoes, peeled and quartered
- 1 1/2 cups low sodium chicken broth
- 1 1/2 cups water
- garlic cloves, minced
- 1 bay leaf
- 2 tablespoons sugar
- 2 tablespoons apple cider vinegar
- 1 (3 pound) corned beef brisket with spice packet
- 1 large or 2 small heads of cabbage, cut into wedges
For the Glaze:
- 1 cup apricot preserves
- 2 tablespoons brown sugar
- 2 tablespoons spicy deli mustard
- 2 tablespoons fresh lemon juice
- 2 tablespoons kumquat or orange syrup (optional)
Directions:
Place the onion and potatoes in a 5-qt. slow cooker. Combine broth, water, garlic, bay leaf, sugar, vinegar, and contents of spice packet; pour over vegetables. Top with brisket and cabbage. Cover and cook on low for 8-9 hours or until meat and vegetables are tender.
Preheat oven to 350 deg. F.
Carefully remove corned beef from the slow cooker and place in a shallow roasting pan.
Mix all glaze ingredients together in a bowl. Pour over corned beef. Bake 30-40 minutes, until glaze is nice and bubbly.
Remove corned beef to a platter, slice on the diagonal and serve.
Sauteed Cabbage
- 4-5 slices thick cut bacon
- 1/2 of the reserved cabbage from slow cooker, sliced into strips
- 1 large sweet onion, thinly sliced
- 2 tablespoons cider vinegar
- 2 tsp sugar
- Salt and pepper to taste
Place bacon in a large skillet and cook over medium high heat until evenly browned. Place on a plate lined with paper towels and cut up into small pieces. Set aside.
In about 2 tablespoons of the reserved bacon drippings, (Save the rest for later.), saute the onion until very soft. Add cabbage and the rest of the ingredients and saute until liquid is absorbed and all is heated through.
Serve.
Colcannon
Ingredients:
- Reserved potatoes from slow cooker
- 1/2 of the reserved cabbage, cut into small chunks
- 4 strips bacon
- 1 large sweet onion, sliced
- 1/4 cup half and half
- Salt and pepper to taste
- 2-3 tablespoons butter (preferably Irish)
Directions:
Place potatoes in a large bowl. Smash them up a bit and set aside.
Place bacon in a large, deep skillet. Cook over medium high heat until evenly brown. Drain, reserving drippings, crumble and set aside. In the reserved drippings, saute onion until very soft. Add the cabbage for the last few minutes and continue to saute so that the cabbage absorbs some bacon flavor.
Mix the half and half into the potatoes and season with salt and pepper. Fold in the bacon, cabbage, and onions, then transfer the mixture to a large serving bowl. Make a well in the center, and top with butter.
Serve immediately.
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• 54 Comments
Filed Under: Bacon, Beef and Veal, Celebrations, Ethnic, Holiday Dishes, Holidays, Meat, Recipes, Rice and Potatoes, Vegetables
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On March 13, 2009 at 12:26pm, 5 Star Foodie said...
I love the apricot-mustard glaze on your corned beef! I made mine glazed too this year
The cabbage with bacon sounds awesome!
On March 13, 2009 at 12:44pm, Rosa's Yummy Yums said...
What a gorgeous meal! Everything looks delicious! That corned beef looks terribly tempting…
Cheers,
Rosa
On March 13, 2009 at 2:12pm, Snooky doodle said...
wow these dishes look delicious nice way of cooking withbacon and corned beef
On March 13, 2009 at 2:42pm, Farmer Jen said...
Your corned beef looks delicious! Thank you for the great ideas.
On March 13, 2009 at 4:37pm, J.Danger said...
I cant do it. I just can’t. If I ever veered away from my dear Irish Catholic mother’s recipe (who she got from her mother, who got it from her mother, who got it from hers….) I would be cut off from the family an forced into confession!
On March 13, 2009 at 4:40pm, Lisa@The Cutting Edge of Ordinary said...
I have a confession to make…I am one Siclian girl who has never tasted corned beef in her life. It never looked appealing to me….until I saw yours - Wow. I think you need to invite me over to try some and make sure, lol.
On March 13, 2009 at 4:47pm, StickyGooeyCreamyChewy said...
Thanks for coming by! I'm glad you liked my recipes!
J. Danger- I hear ya! But, I'm Italian, so I can get away with it. ;D Now, if I tried to screw around with my meatball recipe - watch out!
Lisa- The first time I ever ate corned beef & cabbage was when I made it for my Irish husband the first year we were married!
I'm making another one of these on Tuesday. Come on over!
On March 13, 2009 at 5:48pm, Engineer Baker said...
Oh wow. I LOVE corned beef and cabbage (and yes, I’m almost 100% Irish). Your version looks absolutely fantastic!
On March 13, 2009 at 8:04pm, Elyse said...
I think your pictures are just fabulous. They totally did the trick and made me hungry-even though I just ate dinner! Man oh man, I love that this comes together in a crock pot for the most part. Everything looks just delicious!
On March 13, 2009 at 8:40pm, Ingrid said...
Oh,man that corn beef looks mouth watering goooood! I can’t get past it to anything else.
~ingrid
On March 13, 2009 at 8:47pm, Simple Simon said...
Your Irish meal looks divine. I can’t wait to do the annual corned beef and cabbage next week. I love the cabbage and potatoes with bacon idea. Lovely photos.
On March 13, 2009 at 10:18pm, Nina Timm said...
Corned beef falling apart????Is there any other way to enjoy it? Definitely not, this is the way to go!!! Fab dinner, no wonder your family couldn’t wait!
On March 13, 2009 at 10:48pm, redmenace said...
This looks amazing!!!!! I can’t show it to my boyfriend, however. He’d definitely leave me for you!
On March 14, 2009 at 6:55am, Lydia (The Perfect Pantry) said...
I’m really new to crockpot cooking and have never tried corned beef in the crockpot. Thanks for the inspiration!
On March 14, 2009 at 11:14am, noble pig said...
Your pics are beautiful are you smokin’ crack? Geez, I have been teetering on Colcannon this year and you’ve pushed me towards it! Thank you.
On March 14, 2009 at 11:37am, Bellini Valli said...
It does remind me that I need to come up with something green for St. Paddy’s Day. Your menu looks delicious Susan!!
On March 14, 2009 at 1:32pm, Blog Hendersonville said...
I’ve never tried a glaze on corned beef before. What a great idea. Your photos are terrific!
On March 14, 2009 at 1:58pm, Shari@Whisk: a food blog said...
This sounds perfect for St. Patrick’s day!
On March 14, 2009 at 3:17pm, Proud Italian Cook said...
What a great idea for a glaze on your corned beef, I love that! Your whole meal is making me do the Irish jig!!
On March 14, 2009 at 4:12pm, Debbie said...
All of the pictures of your food look wonderful Susan. What a different take from the usual corned beef and cabbage that I have made. Thanks!
On March 14, 2009 at 4:46pm, pigpigscorner said...
The glazed corned beef looks absolutely amazing! I can’t stop staring at the picture!
On March 14, 2009 at 6:06pm, onlinepastrychef said...
Gorgeous, gorgeous, gorgeous! And big thanks to Uncle Sal and his lovely cabbages. I’m sure he approves:)
I am drooling. Just a little, but still….
On March 14, 2009 at 6:49pm, MaryBeth said...
Your corn beef looks so darn good I cant stop staring at it in awww..
On March 14, 2009 at 7:25pm, Claudia said...
Almost makes me want to buy an Irish cookbook. I am always unclear as to what to do with cabbage. Everything tastes better with bacon … and onions. And the glaze - yes, that would work.
On March 14, 2009 at 8:09pm, Donna-FFW said...
Oh mY! This looks so verydelicious. I LOVE the glaze, I should try it that way. Awesome photots!
On March 14, 2009 at 9:15pm, White on Rice Couple said...
The apricot glaze tops it perfectly for me, too. Beautiful photos. Especially love the cabbage. I don’t know if I could cook those either, they are so pretty. Thanks for sharing. Todd.
On March 15, 2009 at 1:43am, Manggy said...
Water you talking about? The pictures look beauuuutiful. Makes me wanna be Irish for a day
And separating the components? Yes please! They look much more appetizing! (Well, how can you go wrong with a glaze, huh? 
On March 15, 2009 at 9:30am, Karen said...
The glaze for the beef sounds just delicious!
On March 15, 2009 at 9:39am, The Food Librarian said...
Delicious! I’m pulling up a chair at the table right now! Yum!
On March 15, 2009 at 12:02pm, Heather said...
Those potatoes look completely gossamer in spite of their rich additions, and that corned beef? Impossibly tender. It looks like you could cut it with a spoon.
On March 15, 2009 at 12:39pm, Nicole said...
Your corned beef looks perfect. While I don’t make or eat it much, I sure do appreciate it when I do.
On March 15, 2009 at 1:14pm, CookiePie said...
OOOOH yum - that looks fabulous! I think your photos are great!
On March 15, 2009 at 2:07pm, Kevin said...
Now that is a great looking meal! The cabbage with bacon is calling my name.
On March 15, 2009 at 2:22pm, Coleen's Recipes said...
The close up photo of the glazed corned beef makes me want to run right out and buy the ingredients. It is a FABULOUS photo!!
On March 15, 2009 at 2:55pm, we are never full said...
all i can say is WOW - you’ve outdone yourself on this one. bacon! bacon! bacon! B-A-C-O-N!!!!
On March 15, 2009 at 6:33pm, Lori Lynn said...
Looks terrific to me. Love corned beef, with cabbage, on rye, you name it.
Love the little cabbages too, so sorry about Uncle SAL.
LL
On March 15, 2009 at 7:08pm, The Short (dis)Order Cook said...
That is some yummy looking corned beef!
On March 15, 2009 at 7:24pm, Tangled Noodle said...
I’m making corned beef and cabbage for St. Pat’s for the first time this year. Between you and 5 Star Foodie, it looks like glazed is the way to go!
On March 15, 2009 at 7:33pm, Bren said...
oh my gosh, did u say “tricked” out!?!? lol!
On March 15, 2009 at 9:13pm, Peter M said...
You’ve certainly injected some life into the St.Paddy’s day classic. This is McMeatloaf heaven!
On March 16, 2009 at 9:49am, vibi said...
I didn’t just step off the boat from Dublin… and although I do have a lot of Irish in me… I don’t need it to looooove that kind of hearty, rich and soooo flavorful foods!
You seem to have very well succeeded at it too!!! WOW! Yummy… actually, decadent!
On March 16, 2009 at 1:22pm, duodishes said...
Great glaze recipe!
On March 16, 2009 at 7:17pm, Proud Italian Cook said...
FYI, I’m making this tomarrow. Got everything ready I even dusted off my slow cooker! I’ve been thinking about this ever since I saw these photo’s!!
On March 16, 2009 at 7:36pm, StickyGooeyCreamyChewy said...
Wow! I'm so happy to see that there are many other corned beef lovers out there! Thank you all so much for your great comments! I'm glad (but surprised) that you all liked these photos. I wasn't happy with them at all!
Redmenace- Lol! Make it for your boyfriend. He'll be worshiping at your feet! 😉
Lydia- You're welcome! I'm no expert either, but briskets, pot roast and corned beef always come out fab in the crock pot.
Proud Italian Cook- What! No Tarantella? I'm so glad you decided to try this, Marie. You must let me know how it turns out.
Onlinepastrychef & Lori Lynn- Using Uncle Sal's cabbages to make this really made it special. The funny thing is, I don't think he ever ate corned beef and cabbage in his life! 😉
Bren- Hey! I'm hip! 😉
On March 17, 2009 at 8:19pm, Teresa said...
Thank you, SGCC! I was looking for a crock pot recipe for this Saint Patrick’s Day, and here it is. We just got up from the dinner table, and my husband was wowed. He and our son just got in from a four-day backpacking trip and it was the perfect welcome-home Saint Paddy’s Day feast. Yum, yum, YUM!
On March 18, 2009 at 4:22am, Cakelaw said...
Yum! Corned beef and cabbage reminds me of being a kid.
On March 18, 2009 at 2:44pm, Brian and Katie said...
This was awesome! I had to make some modifications to fit into my time slot (doh! didn’t catch the slow cooker 8-9 hours the first time I skimmed the recipe!) but it was still incredible. Thanks for sharing, this is now going to be my standard St. Patrick’s Day meal.
On January 01, 2010 at 4:52pm, Teresa said...
Yum. Made this last March, and husband requested it again for New Year’s Day. Delicious both times. For the side dishes I cook the bacon, onions, and then saute the cabbage together in one skillet before pulling half out for the mashed potatoes. The glaze makes MUCH too much for us, but otherwise it’s memorable for all the right reasons!
On March 13, 2011 at 4:36pm, Joan Nova said...
I’m not planning to cook anything special for St Patrick’s Day but if I were… This is one helluva a menu!
P.S. Touching to read about your uncle.
On March 17, 2011 at 1:51pm, Heather said...
We “tested” this out a few weeks ago and it made the cut for tonight’s St. Patrick’s Day Dinner. I ended up using fresh lemon instead of vinegar and it worked great! This not only tastes good but it LOOKS so much better than the whole boiled in water corned beef. . .. SUPER YUM!
On March 19, 2012 at 9:37pm, Wendy said...
Thanks so much for these recipes! Made them again tonight, and they were as amazing as ever.
On March 01, 2014 at 7:44pm, Nancy O said...
I am making this meal again for the 4th - 5th time. It’s become popular among our friends who come for a St Paddy’s Day treat. I will be tripling the recipes overall. I’ve lightened it up a bit the last couple of times, but it is a great meal. Thank you for a great dinner plan! Nancy O
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