So here’s the deal. Between work, errands, and the random “surprise” events that get added to my calendar without my consent, the end result for dinner can sometimes be… uh, pretty spontaneous. Like, toast and string cheese spontaneous. So when I find a recipe that I can throw into the slow cooker in the morning, and forget about it until it’s magically dinner ready? That is GOLD. GOLD. I don’t care if it’s raining cats and dogs, snowing, or 90 degrees outside. I’m always in if it saves me time. And I only have to clean up less than three dishes from the sink!
So here we are at this corned beef and cabbage recipe—How did I come about it? Well, Allrecipes posted a video on YouTube. I’m pretty sure I watched it three times in a row. It was just so I could talk myself into thinking it was that easy. It is. No fancy prep, no twenty-step cooking process of browning something in a separate pan before you put it into the slow cooker. No way. This one is just chop, toss, put the lid on, walk away. Rainbow bless it.
Corned beef and cabbage is one of those meals that makes me feel like it should be more complicated than it actually is. For some reason, I used to think you had to boil it in beer or soak it in brine for three days. Or something equally insane. Nope. This version is totally doable! It’s hearty. It’s old-school. Its flavor still indicates that you put in a considerable amount of effort to make it, when the truth is that you surely did not.
As far as the basics of it… pretty simple. You are going to need corned beef. Which I think we all know are the vacuum-sealed packs you see around St. Patrick’s Day that include a spice packet. You will, of course, need cabbage, and then you have some root vegetables—carrots, potatoes, onion. There is no need to be precise, and just cut the vegetables roughly into chunks. They will soften up, and become saturated with all of the flavors from the slow cooking process. So don’t worry about cutting them perfectly. If your potatoes are not the same size, who cares? You are just going to coat everything in broth and it will definitely fall apart on the plate at dinner.
When everything is ready, you just layer it all into the slow cooker beef, vegetables, or honestly, the other way, I’ve done both plenty of times and it all came out fine. You then just pour some water on the entire thing. Broth if you are feeling brave. Or beer, some people do that. Anyway, no pressure, it is flexible. You add the seasoning packet that comes with the beef. Or you can pack in some extra bay leaves, peppercorns, whatever you like. Lid on, 8 – 10 hours on low, and that’s literally all there is to it.
When it is dinner time, I promise your whole house smells so good and nostalgic in that savory, “dinner is definitely going to happen” way. This is the kind of meal when someone gets home, they walk in the door and just go “ooh, what’s that smell?”. And you get to say, “oh, just something I threw in the slow cooker this morning” and feel like you are definitely nailing at life. And not at all doing anything that looks like effort.
When it is ready, the cabbage will be soft but not mushy, and the carrots and potatoes get that perfect slow cooked flavor, tender but not mush. The beef slices so easily, you will barely need a knife. You just put it all out, maybe a side of grainy mustard (highly, highly recommend), and all-of-a-sudden you’ve got a hearty, legit dinner situation with very little effort.
Also, as a side note, leftovers reheat really well. I mean really well. You could even chop it all up and fry it in a hash situation with eggs the next morning if you’re feelin’ frisky.
There’s a video version if you want to watch the whole process, step by step. It’s on Allrecipes’ YouTube channel. Super easy to follow. And honestly it’s kind of satisfying to watch them just throw everything together and end up with a perfect meal. If you prefer reading, the written recipe is linked too. Nothing fancy, just all the steps laid out so you don’t have to guess.
Anyway, if you’ve got a slow cooker and a little time in the morning (like, 15 minutes max), this one’s worth trying. Especially in the colder months when all anyone wants is something warm and filling and vaguely Irish. So yeah—thanks Allrecipes for this one. It’s a keeper.
