Best Sweet & Hot Corned Beef
Submitted by PSL66
Sweet and hot corned beef brisket simmered with cloves, garlic, and chilies, then glazed with bitter orange marmalade and baked until burnished. The piquant cousin to the classic St. Patrick’s Day boil.
YIELD
16 servingsPREP
30 hrsCOOK
3 hrsREADY
3½ hrsThis isn’t your standard cabbage-and-potato corned beef. The brisket gets a long, slow simmer with whole cloves, garlic, peppercorns, and dried chilies, then a final blast in the oven under a coat of bitter orange marmalade that caramelizes into a sweet-hot crust.
Ask your butcher for the first cut, the leaner flat end of the brisket. It slices cleaner than the point and holds its shape after that 2 ½ hour simmer.
The marmalade glaze is what sets this version apart. The bitter orange peel cuts through the salty cure of the corned beef and the chilies, while the marmalade sugars caramelize into a sticky, lacquered top.
Pro Tips
- Resting matters here. Give the meat a full 15 minutes after baking before slicing, otherwise the juices run out and you’re left with dry beef.
- Always slice corned beef against the grain. The muscle fibers run lengthwise on a brisket flat, so cut perpendicular to them for tender, fork-friendly pieces.
- Bitter orange marmalade beats sweet for this glaze. Sweet marmalade burns faster and lacks the citrus bite that balances the cure.
- Save the cooking liquid. It’s gold for cooking cabbage, potatoes, or carrots as a side.
Variations
- Swap marmalade for whole grain mustard mixed with brown sugar and a splash of bourbon for a sharper finish.
- Add a tablespoon of honey and a star anise pod to the simmer water for a Vietnamese-leaning broth.
- Use chipotle in adobo instead of dried chilies for smoky heat under that citrus glaze.
Ingredients
Directions
When you buy corned beef, ask for the “first cut," which is the leanest part.
If you prefer your meat more piquant, add a few chilies to the pot.
Let the corned beef rest about 15 minutes after baking, for smoother, easier slicing.
Place corned beef in a large, heavy pot; cover with water.
Stud the onion with cloves.
Add to pot along with the peppercorns, garlic and chilies.
Bring to a boil over medium-high heat.
Reduce heat to low, partially covered and simmer for 2½ hours or until meat is tender.
Preheat oven to 350℉ (180℃) F.
Remove beef to a small, shallow baking dish . Set aside ¾ cup cooking liquid.
Sprinkle meat with salt and pepper, then spread marmalade over top.
Pour reserved cooking liquid into pan.
Bake 25 minutes, basting occasionally.
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