Monday is St. Patrick’s Day! Our family tradition is to have corned beef and cabbage for dinner on St. Paddy’s. Of course, this tradition doesn’t go very far back in our family (I started the tradition) and it almost died out a few years ago. The problem was that none of us really liked the way the corned beef tasted – all those spices, they just didn’t work for us. Any leftovers sat in the fridge and waited to be thrown out because no one wanted to eat any more of the corned beef. Then, I found a recipe that I must have copied down from a magazine or a newspaper article (I wish I could tell you where I found this recipe). It was on a post-it note and sat for several years before I thought I should give it a try. I wish I’d had this recipe the first time I made corned beef and cabbage! My family went from not wanting to eat the leftovers to having deep discussions about who got to eat the leftovers for lunch! It’s THAT good! So, in honor of St. Patrick’s Day, I am sharing my favorite Slow Cooker Corned Beef & Cabbage recipe with you!
Slow Cooker Corned Beef & Cabbage
Ingredients:
1 – 4 lb. Corned Beef (I get the kind with the spices in the packet, not the kind soaking in the spices) – be sure to throw away the pack of spices – you don’t need it for this recipe
1 – large onion – chopped into chunks
Carrots (I use baby carrots to save time on prep)
Potatoes (I add these about 2 hrs. after I’ve started the carrots, onion and corned beef – if you won’t be home, go ahead and add them at the beginning, but leave them in larger pieces)
1 – head of cabbage – cut into wedges or large chunks(I don’t add this until the last 45 min. – 1 hr. of cooking, otherwise, the cabbage is mush)
2 c. water
3 T. sugar
3 T. vinegar (I use white vinegar)
Place carrots, onion, corned beef (not the spice packet), water, sugar and vinegar (if you won’t be home go ahead and add the potatoes, but don’t add the cabbage unless you like it cooked to mush – it will cook in as little as 45 min. when added at the end of the cooking cycle) in a 5 – 6 qt. slow cooker. Cook on low 10 – 12 hours or on high 6-8 hours.
Happy St. Patrick’s Day!
*Note: This recipe is naturally gluten-free as long as you don’t buy a corned beef that has added gluten.
P.S. I know the cabbage is missing from the photo – I am buying mine tomorrow so it will be super fresh!
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