The Essential James Beard Cookbook (16 page)

Suspend the meat in the broth (it should not touch the bottom of the pot) by tying the ends of the string to the handles of the pot. Bring the broth to a full boil (the shock of heat seals the surface of the meat and keeps the juices in), then reduce the heat to a simmer, cover the pot tightly with aluminum foil and the lid so no steam escapes, and simmer the meat for approximately 15 minutes a pound, about 35 minutes in all, testing the internal temperature by inserting a meat thermometer after 25 minutes. The temperature should register 125° to 135°F depending on how rare you like your beef. Transfer the beef to a carving board, let it rest for 5 minutes, then remove the strings and carve crosswise with a very sharp knife into fairly thick slices, about ½ inch thick. Save the stock, strain, and use for bouillon or as the base for vegetable soups.

BOILED CORNED BEEF AND CABBAGE

MAKES ABOUT 6 SERVINGS, PLUS LEFTOVERS

This might qualify as a New England boiled dinner. It’s a good, hearty, basic dish that will serve 6, with some meat left over for cold corned beef sandwiches or 4 to 6 servings of corned beef hash.

When we talk about “boiled beef” or a “boiled dinner” we don’t really mean boiled; we mean simmered. Naturally, to create a simmer you first have to bring liquid to a boil and you do have to let the liquid boil for a little at the start of the cooking, to draw off certain elements in the beef that would cloud the broth. These form a grayish-brown scum on the surface and should be skimmed off with a skimmer or spoon.

Corned beef is beef that has been cured in a pickling solution, which used to be the way beef, pork, and sometimes lamb were preserved for the winter. It’s very traditional and one of the most delicious American beef dishes. There are different kinds of corned beef. There’s a very spicy kosher corned beef, the plain corned beef, and some simulated corned beef that is not nearly as good as the old-fashioned, pure kind we are so used to. Corned beef brisket is the choicest cut because it has some fat and good marbling and makes a flavorful, tender finished product that slices well and looks good on the plate.

To cook the corned beef, you will need a good, big pot, an 8- to 10-quart size, which can be aluminum, Magnalite or anything of that sort. The size is more important than the material.

For the Corned Beef

One 6-pound corned beef brisket

1 medium yellow onion, peeled and stuck with 3 whole cloves

10 large garlic cloves, crushed under a knife and peeled

1 tablespoon freshly ground black pepper

For the Vegetables

6 medium yellow onions, peeled

6 medium carrots, peeled

6 to 10 medium potatoes, scrubbed

6 turnips, peeled

1 medium cabbage

Mustards, prepared horseradish, and pickles, for serving

To prepare the corned beef: Wipe the corned beef well with a damp cloth. Put it in the pot and cover with cold water. Bring to a boil over rather high heat, and boil for 5 to 6 minutes, skimming off the gray foam scum that rises to the surface with a wire skimmer or large spoon. This will give you a clearer, purer broth. It’s very important, with a boiled meat, to skim off the scum drawn from the meat. [
Editor: The scum is only the gelatins and collagens from the meat, and while they aren’t harmful, they are unattractive and will give the broth an off flavor and texture.
]

Add the onion stuck with cloves, the garlic cloves, and the pepper and boil for another 10 minutes, skimming as needed. Then reduce the heat to a simmer, cover the pot, and let it simmer at a faint, gentle ebullition for 2 hours. At this point, test the meat for tenderness with a large fork. As this is not a very tender piece of meat, it will offer some resistance, but it should just yield to the fork. You must be careful not to overcook corned beef or the meat will become dry and stringy. It’s very important to maintain some moisture in the meat. If you are not sure about tenderness, remove the meat, transfer to a plate, and cut off a tiny piece from the edge to taste. If you have a meat thermometer, check the internal temperature, which should register 145° to 150°F.

If the meat seems tender, turn off the heat and let it rest in the liquid. If it does not test tender, either continue cooking or, if you have started it in the morning and are ahead of serving time, leave it in the liquid and finish the cooking later.

Traditionally, all the vegetables for a corned beef dinner are cooked in the pot with the meat. I have long since decided that the vegetables look and taste better if they are cooked separately in plain salted water, instead of in the briny fatty broth. If you have sufficient pots and burners, I recommend that you follow this procedure—each vegetable will then retain its own character and flavor. However, it is perfectly acceptable to cook the potatoes with the beef, provided you scrub them and leave them in their skins so they don’t absorb the fat, and to use only one extra pot, first putting in the longest cooking vegetables: first, the onions, followed by the carrots, then the turnips, and finally the cabbage. Or, if you have a large pot and a steamer, put the onions and carrots in the water and steam the turnips over them. Cook the cabbage separately.

One hour before serving, cook the vegetables.

TIMETABLE FOR COOKING THE VEGETABLES

ONIONS:
Put in a pot with water to cover, seasoned with 1 tablespoon salt. Bring to a boil. Cover, and simmer 1 hour, or until crisply tender when tested with the point of a knife.

CARROTS:
Follow the same procedure, seasoning the water with 2 teaspoons salt and ½ teaspoon dried marjoram. Simmer 30 minutes, or until tender when tested.

POTATOES:
Scrub but do not peel. Follow the same procedure, seasoning the water with 1 tablespoon salt, or simmer with the corned beef for 30 minutes, or until tender. If you are planning to make corned beef hash, cook the 4 extra potatoes, otherwise allow 1 per person.

TURNIPS:
Leave whole if small, halve or quarter if large. Follow the same procedure, seasoning the water with 2 teaspoons salt. Simmer for 20 minutes, or until tender when tested.

CABBAGE:
Remove the coarse or discolored outer leaves and cut into sixths. Put in a pot with water to cover, seasoned with 2 teaspoons salt. Bring to a boil and boil rapidly, covered, for 10 to 12 minutes, or until just tender but not overcooked or soggy.

When you are ready to serve, remove the beef from the broth (discard the broth; it cannot be saved for any other use) and let stand on a hot platter in a warm place for 10 minutes, to firm and settle the meat. This makes it easier to carve. Surround it with the drained vegetables, the potatoes still in their jackets. Do not add butter—the vegetables are better plain. Slice only as much meat as you need, keeping the rest in one piece for future use. Serve with the vegetables, with a variety of mustards, horseradish, and, if you have any, good homemade pickles.

POT ROAST

MAKES 10 SERVINGS

The braised beef dish we know as pot roast, one of the most popular foods in this country, is far too often served overcooked and dry. This is mainly the result of using the wrong cuts of beef or from a lack of fat—either in the beef or in the cooking. The best choice for a pot roast is a piece of well-marbled beef rump or chuck. You may, if you wish, further lubricate it with Cognac-soaked lardons, small strips of fatback inserted with a larding needle. While not strictly necessary for well-marbled beef, this does add a very pleasant flavor and looks attractive when sliced. Surround the sliced pot roast with cooked noodles sprinkled with grated Parmesan cheese, and have a salad or braised celery as the vegetable.

One 5-pound beef rump or chuck roast

¼ pound fresh fatback, cut into 6 to 8 strips

¼ cup Cognac

Salt and freshly ground black pepper

2 teaspoons dried basil

4 tablespoons (½ stick) unsalted butter (optional)

¼ cup vegetable oil (optional)

1½ cups
Beef Stock

1 cup drained and coarsely chopped canned Italian plum tomatoes

2 leeks, white and pale green parts only, trimmed, coarsely chopped, and well washed to remove grit

2 carrots, coarsely chopped

1 large yellow onion, stuck with 2 whole cloves

4 to 6 garlic cloves, crushed under a knife and peeled

1 bay leaf

3 tablespoons tomato paste

1 tablespoon freshly squeezed lemon juice

The strips of fatback, known as lardons, should be rather longer than the depth of the piece of beef and just wide enough to fit into the groove of a long larding needle. Soak these lardons in the Cognac for 3 to 4 hours before larding the beef. Following the meat’s grain, push the grooved blade of the needle through the roast, turning it to make a hole, withdraw, and insert a strip of fatback into the groove of the needle. Then insert the blade into the hole, pushing the top of the lardon with your thumb so it stays inside the meat. Withdraw the needle, leaving the fat behind. Repeat this with all the lardons, and trim off any overhanging ends level with the meat. [
Editor: Lacking a larding needle, use a metal knife sharpening steel to poke long holes through the meat, and force the fatback into the holes. Note that Beard says in the headnote that larding is not necessary for well-marbled meat.
] Rub the meat well with salt, pepper, and 1 teaspoon of the basil.

You can either brown the meat in the butter and oil in a skillet or pan on top of the stove or put it on the rack of the broiler pan under the broiler, 7 or 8 inches from the heat, turning to brown all sides.

Transfer the browned beef to a deep Dutch oven and pour over it the fat in which it browned, or the drippings from the broiler pan. Add the beef stock, leeks, carrots, onion, garlic, remaining basil, and the bay leaf. Bring to a boil over high heat, cover the meat with a piece of oiled waxed paper, oiled-side down, cover the pan, and reduce the heat. Simmer over low heat on top of the stove or in a 325°F oven for 1 hour. Add the tomatoes. Continue cooking until the meat is just tender when tested with the point of a knife, 1½ to 2 hours. Do not make the common mistake of cooking the beef until it is grainy and coarse. The difference is slight but important.

Remove the meat and keep warm on a hot platter. Skim the excess fat from the sauce and strain through a wire sieve into a large saucepan, pushing through any vegetables to make the sauce thicker. Add the tomato paste and lemon juice, taste, and correct the seasonings. Bring the sauce to a boil and simmer 3 to 4 minutes to blend the flavors. Serve the sauce separately.

VARIATIONS

ANCHOVIED POT ROAST:
Stud the beef with garlic slivers and anchovy fillets (do not lard). Brown the beef and put it in a Dutch oven with 1½ cups canned Italian plum tomatoes, 3 carrots, and 1 celery rib, both chopped, 1 tablespoon dried basil, and 1 bay leaf; season with freshly ground black pepper. Cover and simmer until tender, about 2½ hours, turning once and adding a little water or tomato juice if the cooking liquid reduces too much. During the last 15 minutes of cooking, add 1 cup pitted black Mediterranean olives, such as Kalamata. Serve the meat sliced, with the sauce, buttered macaroni, and a green salad.

FLEMISH POT ROAST:
Sauté 6 large yellow onions, sliced, in 5 tablespoons (½ stick plus 1 tablespoon) unsalted butter in a large skillet until limp and golden, about 6 minutes. Season with salt and pepper. Put in a deep Dutch oven with the browned beef, 1 teaspoon dried thyme, 1 bay leaf, and 1 pint lager beer. Cover and simmer until tender, about 2½ hours. Remove the meat and slice. Adjust the seasoning in the sauce, and serve over the sliced beef. Serve with parslied potatoes.

MEXICAN POT ROAST:
Stud the beef with slivers of garlic (do not lard). Sauté 4 sliced yellow onions in ½ cup rendered beef suet or beef fat in a Dutch oven over medium heat until tender, about 4 minutes. Add the browned beef, 1 cup beef broth, ½ cup tomato purée, 2 tablespoons chili powder, 1 teaspoon dried oregano, ½ teaspoon coarsely crushed cumin seed, ½ teaspoon ground coriander, and ¼ teaspoon Tabasco; season with salt. Cover and simmer until tender, about 2½ hours, turning the meat several times in the sauce. If the sauce becomes too reduced, add more broth or tomato purée. Serve the meat sliced, with the sauce skimmed of all fat. Garnish with chopped fresh cilantro or flat-leaf parsley, and serve with pinto beans and tortillas.

RIB ROAST OF BEEF

MAKES 6 SERVINGS

Choose preferably a
4- or 5-rib roast
cut from the first ribs, to serve 6 people, with some leftovers; if you are having a large dinner party you may need a 7- or 8-rib roast. Have the roast “cut short”—with the short ribs removed, sometimes referred to as a 7-inch cut. The chine bone should be removed by the butcher, the ribs left intact, and the roast well trimmed of any connective tissue and gristle, and the excess of fat. A properly prepared rib roast should be well balanced—even in size and compact. Rub the meat well with
½
teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
and
½
teaspoon of dried thyme
if you wish. For added zest, you can also rub the fat and bone with
a crushed garlic clove,
but this is a matter of taste.