The great religious holiday is upon us again. Once a year to celebrate her birthday Camera Girl makes that traditional Barese meal, Corned Beef and Cabbage. Now, I won’t pretend that I’ve always enjoyed it. I confess that until I discovered the power of really strong brown mustard I didn’t always care for the cabbage. And even today I do require that the cabbage is extremely well drained. But with the availability of better grades of corned beef I’ve seen the light and now relish this once a year treat.
And as a special bonus this year, Camera Girl will be going for her first dose of COVID vaccine today. She is approaching this treat with a bit of trepidation. She has always been a little more aware of her mortality than I. And who can blame her? Any chance that her privilege of spending time with me could be curtailed would seem like an unacceptable risk. But honestly, if I can manage to snag a shot too this long imprisonment away from family will finally be over.
But to all those out there of Irish extraction and to anyone who lived in a place that celebrated St. Patrick’s Day, enjoy the day in your traditional manner while I get out the mustard jar.
Begorra!!!
Post Script: Well, Camera Girl arrived back from her shot alive so I guess she can relax. Although now she claims she’s really afraid of the second shot. I give up.
Once a year? Oh no no!
Corned beef is a great New Years Day meal as well.
You can make sandwiches all day from it.
I heartily agree. Corned beef, pastrami, ham, salami are wonderful parts of a food festival. But corned beef, potatoes and cabbage boiled together is some kind of re-creation of a NYC Great Depression passion play that we re-enact. It’s kind of like what those Civil War re-enactors do. It’s a duty that involves work and pain and mustard.
The St. Patrick’s Day Joke: Paddy O’leary was a true Irishman and asked the lovely Colleen O’Grady to be his bride on St. Patrick’s day. To seal the deal he placed a ring on her finger with a fat, one half carat diamond set into it. Colleen said yes and rushed home to show her ring to her family. Her father, Shamus, knew and liked Paddy but he also knew he didn’t have the means to buy a 1/2 carat diamond ring since Paddy was a poor potato farmer. Paddy showed the ring to his jeweler friend who confirmed that… Read more »
Poor Colleen O’Grady, I hope she could read the tea leaves from that. Happy St. Patrick’s Day to you Chemist.
Don’t. It’s an experimental vaccine, and really a genetic modification agent. Permanent. Check if your life insurer will pay in the event of vaccine injury leading to demise.
Here in New England the inhabitants are completely brainwashed. At this point I’ll drink cyanide if it means I can see my family again. Plus I’m basically unkillable.
No. Corned beef has to start 14 days in advance. It has to sit in the fridge in its pickling brine & spices for two weeks. Then slice it and cook it with the cabbage and potatoes. I prefer red potatoes. I low and slow it for 2-1/2 to 3 hours at 275 – 300 degrees in a cast iron enameled pot, depending on your oven. My kids and their families show up on St Paddie’s Day to my place for the feast. I buy a 6 pound roast. I only keep a little of the leftovers for myself for… Read more »
War Pig, we tried something different this year. We took half the meat and boiled it with the cabbage and potatoes and baked half of it with potatoes. The boiled beef was as I remembered it but the baked beef was good but extremely salty. Obviously the boiling removes a good amount of the salt. Next year we’ll go back to boiling with the cabbage and potatoes. But I also enjoy coned beef as a deli meat, sliced and somewhere in the middle on saltiness.
Sorry, I forgot to mention rinsing it after the brine.