Brining My Brisket for Charcutepalooza

Brining is the Charcutepulooza challenge for March.  I have prepared food in a salt brine a few times, so I was looking at this as opportunity for improving technique and trying new recipes to use with it. Pickles are a favorite. Especially of mixed vegetables. I did brined Chicken, and Corned Beef last year, both using Ruhlman's Ratio book and his web directions as well, but didn't post about it, other than to complain over all the room the brisket took up in my fridge. And, the fact that it was late for St. Paddy's. This year will be different.

I decided make more of those pickles, since I was out, and the Beef Brisket for Corned Beef, in time for St. Patrick's.

The pickles are easy. Just roughly chop your veggies and dump into the brine, with whatever spices or herbs you want. I added dill and garlic this time.  I wasn't as happy with this batch though.  The regular cabbage seems to pickle better than this Savoy.  Or, is it just me?  Also, the turnips were soft, not crisp like the last ones.

I used our office fridge again for brining the brisket, as our home unit is just too packed with stuff to get a big roasting pan squeezed in.  If you need a recipe for this ( I used the one in Michael Ruhlman's Charcuterie), there is also one here.  I was not able to find any of that pink salt, and was ambivalent  about it anyway, so just did without.  Hence, the beef colored beef.  Not bright pink.

Another not as pleased as last year result though.  A lot of it was gristly and just not as flavorful as my previous attempt.  I pressed the cooked meat with a weight after a 3 hour slow braise, and cooled overnight in the fridge, then served sliced thinly as cold cuts with horseradish cream.

I warmed a few slices of the brisket in 2 tablespoons of the reduced cooking braise, added a few slices of Swiss, a dollop of beautiful home made sauerkraut (that a friend brought over Sunday), on whole grain bread, spread with the horseradish cream.  That made not a Reuben, but a super lunch.

The remainder of the corned beef will go into a Shepherd's Pie for St. Pat's dinner.  That cream was mostly whole milk yogurt, Dijon mustard and horseradish.  Meanwhile, this will join all the tempting recipes over at Hearth and Soul Blog Hop.