Irish Spiced Beef

This is an Irish recipe which I believe hails from County Cork, but is a cured beef that is sliced thinly and eaten with brown bread and butter and chutney at Christmas time.

I tried this because we get through a fair bit of cooked sandwich meat which is relatively expensive and doesn't last for long once opened. This mini 500g beef joint I bought was only £5.50 and its lasting for ages. You can just cook it as it is, of course, but this way it is cured and tastes more like pastrami. After curing it lasts for about 3-4 weeks in the fridge. The only odd ingredient involved is saltpetre which is actually sodium nitrate (£3.49 Amazon for loads) and is used to cure meats.

Ingredients:

500g mini beef joint
20g soft dark brown sugar
1 tbsp. allspice berries
1 tbsp. juniper berries
1 tsp. cloves
1/2 tsp. nutmeg
1 tsp. saltpetre
1 tbsp. sea salt

Method:

Trim off any excess fat on the meat and rub in the sugar. Put it in a covered bowl in the fridge for 12 hours.

Grind together all the spices and salt. Rub all over the meat, cover and return to the fridge for 6-7 days, turning daily.

After 7 days, put it in a sauce pan and cover with water. Bring to the boil, turn down the heat and summer for 1 hour. Leave to cool and then slice.

I like this in a sandwich with mayonnaise, mustard and cornichons. Delicious. Not only does it keep for 3-4 weeks but you know what's in it - unlike pre-packed meats!