Top O the Morning to Ye: Corned Beef and Cabbage

It is Lent and that means that Wednesday Soup Suppers have started.  Expect to see lots of tasty soup recipes here soon!!!   Seeing how it is also the week of St Patrick's Day we had to have a bit of the green for dinner last night.  While not technically a soup, it does have a bit of broth in the bottom of the pot so I count it close enough.

1 corned beef roast (any size that fits your pot)
enough boiling potatoes to fill your bellies
1 green cabbage

Rinse the beef under cold water.  Throw away the package of pickling spices (OK, you can keep them if you absolutely must have pickling spices on your corned beef and cracked mustard seeds stuck in your teeth.  In which case, don't rinse your beef and throw the spices in the pot as well.)  Cover the beef in cold water.  Bring to a low boil.  Turn down the heat and simmer.  All afternoon.  For hours.  As long as you can stand it.  Until an hour before dinner.

Then, cut up your boiling potatoes (I like red skin potatoes because they seem to hold together better than baking potatoes.)  Add the potatoes to the pot.  At this point you can sink the potatoes in the broth and let the roast rest on top.  Boil.  Gently.  Some more.  An hour.  Because, of course, dinner will be in an hour. 

In the mean time, put your feet up and read a few blogs.  There isn't much else to do since your entire meal will be in one pot.  Oh, and wash, core and cut up the the cabbage.  I didn't say chop.  We're not making cole slaw here.  Just cut it into wedges and then cut the wedges in half.  Big chunks.  Do NOT boil them.  Let the cabbage sit by the side of the stove soaking up the lovely cooking beef and potato smells that waft past on their way to making the rest of the house hungry

 About 2 minutes before dinner, tip the cabbage into the pot.  Cover and let it steam.  DO not boil for any more hours.  You just want the cabbage to get warm and slightly soft (unless you are a fan of soggy slimy cabbage in which case you can boil away to your hearts content).  Take a minute to slice the beef across the grain and pop it back in to the pan.  Quickly set the table, because of course, you've been reading lovely blogs like this one and forgot to do it before now.   A bowl, a spoon and a fork will be all that you need.  Then call the family and enjoy.  Just be sure to remind the family that you have been cooking it ALL afternoon, just for them.

Any questions?

• Yes, I am sure you can use red cabbage. 
• Yes, I am sure you can do this in a slow cooker, but don't ask me about times and settings because I am sure I haven't a clue.
• Yes, you can use whatever potatoes you have around.  
• No, you really can't skip the cabbage.  Just put in a tiny amount.  Think of it as decorative parseley.  You need it for the taste and a little will go a long way but it won't be corned beef and cabbage without it.  They don't call it corned beef and potatoes now do they.  If they were going to call it corned beef an potatoes it would be hash which is what you can make tomorrow morning with the leftovers.  Assuming there are any. Which there shouldn't be, unless you arrived at the store too late to buy a small one and they only have the ginormous (is so a word spell check didn't even blink) one left.
• Yes you can add onions.  Just be sure to put them in after the potatoes and before the cabbage so you get soft edible onions that aren't mushy.
• Garlic?  Is suppose if you must.  I never would.
• Still here?  Go.  Read something else.  I have corned beef and cabbage to eat.