Corned Beef...for 100? Gulp.
 

I was under the impression I was doing Pastrami, but was just informed yesterday that the Director now wants corned beef for her Hanukkah luncheon.

I've been a chef for along time and I have never done corned beef before, much less for a crowd this big. Add latkes and all the rest and I'm pretty sure I will have a few more grey hairs by then.

Any hints/tips/prayers for doing corned beef for 100?

Watson

I can say a prayer for you, Watson, but that's the limit of my expertise hahaha

Well, I have cooked for about that many people multiple times, having worked in school kitchen and then as head cook for a restaurant. I don't know how your kitchen runs or what is your normal procedures but I would consider crockpots. You can start hours before the meal, with crockpots lining the counters. When it's time to serve, it will be that much less of a headache.

Ii have always cooked corned beef in on stove pressure cooker---but never for 100! Perhaps now with the new electric ones you could cook quickly...then keep warm in oven in serving type pans...let us know how it went!

If your using a several crock pots, don't overload the circuits. Where are you going to cooking at, home or a meeting hall?

I'm a professional chef and have a full service kitchen....I've just never had occasion to cook corned beef before.

Any hints appreciated.

Watson

I have an ex SIL who was a chef and he cooked his corned beef in the oven covered first with plastic wrap and then that completely covered with foil. Sure keeps from drying out that way. Maybe you could convince her to go back to pastrami because there is so much waste fat in brisket so she will have to pay for more meat.:D

Pastrami and corned beef are essentially the same, a cured brisket of beef. Pastrami has the peppery coating and is smoked, corned beef does not have the coating and is slow simmered but can also be slow cooked in an oven. If you are corning (curing) the beef yourself you will need to allow the extra days for the curing process. If you are getting the brisket already corned (cured), simply proceed as you would for cooking a whole beef brisket. Low and slow. My preferred method is a slow simmer in water. But to do it for over 100 I think you are better off doing it in the ovens. My across the street neighbor did a non corned brisket for Hannukah a couple of years ago and cooked it in one of those cooking bags (like the kind you get for turkey). The corning does not effect how the meat cooks, only how it tastes. It turned out delicious, moist and fall apart tender! Now he was only cooking for around 15 and wasn't cooking the whole brisket of beef but two smaller ones. It only took a couple of hours to cook.

I don't know if you will be working with a whole brisket or cut up one. for 100 I am assuming you will need a minimum of 25 lbs (allowing a 1/4 lb serving per person) but I would allow extra as the brisket can sometimes be fatty and you will have some waste. The average brisket can weigh anywhere from 8 to 12 lbs so you may have anywhere from 2 to 4 briskets. So how long you slow cook would be dependent on the size of the brisket. When I do a 4lb corn beef I cook it on the stove in a big pot at a slow simmer, completely covered with water and I allow 3 hours or more. I will often add extra seasonings to the water such as bay leaf, peppercorns, mustard seeds and a healthy pour of wine to the pot (white). I guess for that many people you could have two or three 4lb briskets per professional chef stew pot and have several slow going at once. If this is your first time cooking corned beef, I would highly recommend you pick up one in the grocery store to experiment with just so you are confident the day of the luncheon.

---good point about doing one prior to the feeding of 100!

My suggestion: buy it at the deli and heat it up in your pots so it looks like yours. Ha. I won't tell.