Corned Beef Slow Cooker Meal

This, sadly, is not as frugal a meal as it used to be. But I only buy corned beef once a year, in the spring, so I allow for the cost. And if you can find this on sale after Easter and have the space to freeze it, this will be a more frugal recipe.

I spent just under $14 for the roast and about $3 for the white and sweet potato which were perfect for my needs. I also spent $2.99 for the broth. I got 5 servings out of this and could have stretched that to 7 if I had served it with a side salad at each meal. I also bought a can of cranberry sauce for $1.29, which I rarely buy except at special occasions such as holiday. I thought it would be good with the roast and potatoes. given that I got 5 meals out of it, this cost about 4.26 per serving.

Remember, I only cook for myself, and I don’t eat a lot of potatoes because I have diabetes. I only used a couple of russet potatoes and 1 sweet potato for this recipe. I do keep the peels on both but scrub them very well under running water and cut out the iffy parts after scrubbing. Potatoes are not something I have all the time, so I do enjoy them every so often.

Corned Beef Slow Cooker Meal

Serves 5 (or up to 7 if served with a side salad)

I cooked this in a 3-quart crock. If you will be cooking a lot, you will need a bigger one.

Ingredients:

1 corned beef roast (I do not use the seasoning packet.)

beef broth

2 medium potatoes

1 large sweet potato

1/2 tsp onion powder

1 tsp garlic powder

1 tsp sea salt

1/2 tsp pepper

a few garlic cloves, diced

1 tsp grnd parsley

1 tsp grnd oregano

1/3 cup frozen corn and pea mix

Nutritional yeast (optional)

1. Scrub all the potatoes under running water to remove the dirt. Dry with a towel.
2. Cut out any bad parts of the potatoes.
3. Cut the potatoes into bite size pieces and put them in the slow cooker.
4. Open the roast packaging and discard that and the seasoning packet.
5. Place the corned beef roast in the slow cooker.
6. Pour the beef broth over the roast and potatoes. Leave some space from where the broth is to the top to prevent overflow when things start bubbling.
7. Cover and cook for three hours.
8. Add the seasonings. You can use more or less. It’s a matter of taste.
9. Also add the corn at this time.
10. Cover and cook until the roast falls apart when you stick a fork in it. This might be another hour or two. I have read where it should take about 5 hours on high. But mine pulled apart at about the four-hour mark. I did let it cook about another 20 minutes after that. My slow cooker temperature might run a little higher than yours. It’s pretty old.
11. To serve, I sprinkled my potatoes with nutritonal yeast and mashed it all up.

Notes:

• I know a lot of people like carrots and/or cabbage with their corned beef. These can also go into the slow cooker. I do like carrots but didn’t have any on hand. I strongly dislike cooked cabbage, but like it raw.
• Use whatever seasonings you like. Everyone has their preferences. Switch things up if you like.
• My parents get their corned beef from somewhere other than the supermarket. It doesn’t come with the spice packet. And my understanding is it is far better quality. Not sure if it is a farm or a processing place.
• I don’t know what quality of seasonings go into those packets. This is why I don’t use the seasoning packet. I’d rather just use my organic seasonings.

Serving Suggestions:

• I know I shouldn’t, but I love cranberry sauce on the side of this dish.
• If your blood sugar levels can handle more carbs, rolls with butter would also be good. Or buttermilk biscuits. I decided the extra carbs on top of those from the potatoes was not what I wanted. I did miss the rolls though.
• A side salad is always a good option. Greens with cucumber and tomato is a good option.

Frugal Tips:

Be sure to freeze any leftover broth you may have after pouring what you need into the crock. It will come in handy later.

Also, if there are leftover potatoes after the meal these can be mashed and frozen. It is perfectly acceptable to mash the white and sweet potatoes up together.

And, of course, the meat can also be frozen if there are leftovers.

How do you cook your corned beef? What side options do you like best? I am interested in learning how people with diabetes cook theirs when they don’t eat carbs and cabbage. Let me know!

~ Shannon