Crock Pot Corned Beef Recipe

This crock pot corned beef is absolutely perfect for us. It has all the flavors we love without the ones we don’t. And yes, feel free to add cabbage if you love it!

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My Gramps – my mom’s dad – was fully Irish, coming over on the boat as a kid when the family just couldn’t make it anymore in Ireland and needed new opportunity.

I also get more Irish blood from my dad’s side, so of course we celebrate St. Patrick’s Day in as many ways as possible.

I’ve shared my Irish tea cakes, my Gram’s Irish soda bread recipe, and more. And today? It’s all about the corned beef, of course.

Corned beef is one of my favorite foods, especially when it’s super juicy and sliced thick. And as much Irish as I have in me, I’m not a huge fan of cabbage.

It isn’t that I dislike it, but I could take it or leave it. More importantly, I’m not a fan of the scent of cooking cabbage.

So when I make my corned beef, I have a few alterations to the boiled corned beef and cabbage my Gram and my mom used to make.

And honestly? I think my crock pot corned beef actually tastes better than theirs does. Shhh, don’t tell them!

You absolutely can make crock pot corned beef, and it takes very little work. If you have a pressure cooker, you can also make this Instant Pot corned beef in even less time.

Best of all, when you’re working all day, this is something you can easily throw together in the morning and come home to a perfectly delicious dinner – and hopefully some leftovers if you’re lucky.

And if you are lucky enough to have leftovers, use it to make this corned beef hash that disappears like magic in my house whenever I make it.

What veggies go with crockpot corned beef?

Carrots, potatoes, and cabbage are the traditional veggies people eat with corned beef.

This version leaves out cabbage because I personally don’t like it, but you can add a quartered cabbage to the top of your veggies if you want to include it.

Another fun addition is parsnip. Simply peel and slice it like you do a carrot, and include that. I’ve also seen people use rutabega in their corned beef.

Even without the cabbage, I’m still getting my veggies in with the rainbow carrots I like to use for my corned beef. When I can’t find them, I use “regular” carrots, and that works just fine.

Red potatoes are traditional, but I like using new potatoes. You want potatoes with a thin skin, and there’s no need to peel them, which again saves time.

Generally, I use yellow onion, but you have a little flexibility here. I actually oopsed one year and changed the recipe because I like how it turned out.

I used green onion because I was mysteriously out of onion, but I actually liked this better than what I’ve done previously.

What liquid should I use to make this?

I use stout, which adds a rich and meaty flavor to the corned beef. If you avoid alcohol, you can use vegetable stock or even water in place of the stout, but it will be less flavorful.

That said, my mom and my gram always boiled their brisket in water, so it still tastes good. Just not as good.

You do want to use a stout rather than a pale ale or something along those lines because you want the more robust flavor it provides.

What is the best cut of meat for corned beef?

When you purchase corned beef brisket from the store, you have the option for a flat cut or a point cut. Buy the flat cut if you can.

The flat cut is leaner, which is what you want in this case. The flat cut also is the one that gives you the nice slices of meat when you cut it after cooking.

The point cut is more fatty, and it’s hard to cut it out as you make corned beef slices. This cut is better if you plan to shred your meat.

While more marbling in your meat can make for a more flavorful and tender cut, the way we cook it and the flavors we add eliminate this benefit.

How to Make Crock Pot Corned Beef

Peel your carrots and slice them into bite size pieces. I love the colors that rainbow carrots provide, but feel free to use your favorite carrots.

Cut your potatoes into pieces just a tiny bit larger than the carrots but still comfortable to eat. If you want to peel them, you can, but the thin skinned potatoes do not require it.

Trim your corned beef brisket of any excess fat, and add it to your crock pot. Sprinkle the pickling spices from the packet that came with your corned beef over it.

Cover that with the carrots and potatoes, as well as sliced green onion or your yellow onion.

Pour in a bottle of stout, and you’re done. All of this can be completed in under 10 minutes, including peeling and slicing your carrots, and your crock pot corned beef will be ready and waiting at dinnertime.

Just make sure that the beer you use is a stout, as you want that heavy type of taste for this dinner.

Cook it on low for 8-10 hours, and your mouth will be watering when you walk in the door smelling your crock pot corned beef!

Once it has cooked, remove it from the crock pot and slice the meat against the grain in thick slices. Use a slotted spoon or a spider to remove the veggies and serve immediately.

Bookmark this crock pot corned beef recipe to make again!

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