Smoked corned beef with caveman cabbage

This tender barbecue beef is salty like corned beef but it has a smoky flavour like brisket – it's almost like corned beef pastrami! Serve with crisp charred cabbage drizzed with sweet and sour 'fire sauce'.

Smoked corned beef with caveman cabbage. Credit: Project Fire

• serves

  6

• prep

  15 minutes

• cook

  7 hours

• difficulty

  Mid

Ingredients

Pickling spice

• 6 allspice berries
• 6 whole cloves
• 2 dried bay leaves, crumbled
• 1 7.5 cm (3 inch) cinnamon stick, broken into pieces
• 3 tsp black peppercorns
• 3 tsp coriander seeds
• 2 tsp mustard seeds
• ½ tsp ground ginger

For corning (curing) the beef

• 8 cups hot water
• 1 cup coarse salt (kosher or sea)
• ½ cup brown sugar (light or dark – your choice)
• 2½-3 tbsp Pickling Spice
• 3 tsp Prague Powder #1 (pink curing salt – see Note)
• 8 cups ice water
• ¼ cup Irish whiskey
• 1.8-2.25 kg (4-5 lb) piece beef brisket flat, preferably grass-fed

Caveman cabbage

• 1 head savoy cabbage or green cabbage (about 900g / 2 lb), cut in quarters from top to bottom
• Coarse salt (kosher or sea) and freshly ground black pepper
• Sweet and Sour Fire Sauce (recipe follows)

Sweet and sour fire sauce

• 85 g unsalted butter
• ⅓ cup balsamic vinegar
• 2 tbsp + 1 tsp honey
• ⅓ cup of your favorite hot sauce
• Coarse salt (kosher or sea) and freshly ground black pepper

For serving

• Your favourite bread or 'biscuits'
• Your favourite mustard (optional)

Brining time: 8-10 days. Soaking time: 30-60 minutes. Resting time after cooking: 2 hours.

You’ll also need: 2 jumbo resealable heavy-duty plastic bags, and hardwood chunks or chips for smoking.

Instructions

1. For the pickling spice: Combine the ingredients in a mixing bowl and stir to mix. Store the spice in a sealed jar away from heat and light. It will keep for up to 6 months.
2. For the beef: Prepare the brine: Combine the hot water, salt, brown sugar, pickling spice and curing salt in a nonreactive stockpot. Bring to a boil on the stovetop over high heat. Let cool to room temperature, then stir in the ice water and whiskey.
3. Meanwhile, trim the brisket, if needed, leaving a 5-6 mm (¼ inch) layer of fat.
4. Place the brisket in one of the resealable plastic bags. Add the brine, seal the bag, and place it in another resealable plastic bag in a baking dish to catch any potential leaks.
5. Brine the corned beef in the refrigerator for 8 to 10 days, turning it daily.
6. Drain the brisket discarding the brine. Soak the meat in fresh cold water for 30 minutes to 1 hour, then drain again.
7. Set up your smoker following the manufacturer’s instructions and heat to 100°C (250°F). Add wood as specified by the manufacturer.
8. Place the cured brisket in the smoker fat side up. Smoke until the internal temperature reaches 74°C (165°F), 4 to 5 hours, replenishing the charcoal and wood as needed.
9. Tightly wrap the corned beef in foil, pleating the edges to make a hermetic seal. Continue smoking the corned beef until the internal temperature reaches 93°C (200°F), another 2 to 3 hours.
10. Transfer the corned beef in its foil to an insulated cooler and let it rest for 2 hours. If making cabbage and sauce, do this (see below) while corned beef is resting.
11. Transfer the corned beef to a cutting board and unwrap. Thinly slice it across the grain and serve hot. Or let it cool to room temperature, refrigerate until cold (overnight is best), then slice paper thin.
12. For the cabbage: Set up your grill for caveman grilling (see Note) and when ready to cook, rake the coals into an even layer using a grill hoe or garden hoe. Fan with a folded newspaper to disperse any loose ash.
13. Lay the cabbage quarters on the coals. Grill until charred black on all sides and very tender inside, turning often with tongs. This could take as little as 15 minutes or as long as 30, depending on the size and density of the cabbage. Use a slender metal skewer to test for doneness. It should pierce the cabbage easily.
14. Meanwhile, make the sauce: Place the butter, vinegar, honey, and hot sauce in a heavy nonreactive saucepan over high heat. Melt the butter, then boil the ingredients until syrupy, 3 to 5 minutes, whisking steadily. Remove the pan from the heat and let cool to room temperature. Add salt and pepper to taste.
15. Transfer the cabbage to a sheet pan and let it rest until cool enough to handle. Trim off the burnt outside leaves. Season with salt and pepper. Serve with sweet and sour fire sauce.

Notes

• Prague Powder #1, also known as cure #1, pink salt or pink curing salt, is used in curing or preserving various cuts of meat, such as bacon, sausages and jerky. It is available from specialist retainers and barbecue suppliers.
• Caveman grilling is how Steven Raichlen often refers to grilling directly on coal embers. You can read his tips for caveman-style barbecue here.
• The cabbage recipe will serve 3-4. The sauce recipe makes about 1 cup.

Cook's Notes

Oven temperatures are for conventional; if using fan-forced (convection), reduce the temperature by 20˚C. | We use Australian tablespoons and cups: 1 teaspoon equals 5 ml; 1 tablespoon equals 20 ml; 1 cup equals 250 ml. | All herbs are fresh (unless specified) and cups are lightly packed. | All vegetables are medium size and peeled, unless specified. | All eggs are 55-60 g, unless specified.