Point cut or flat cut?

[rxkeith]

not much of a deal here this year.
i bought flat cut to try. $5.49 was the cheapest price point cut was a dollar less.
i will cook it in the crock pot tomorrow with some chunked cabbage, and carrots.


keith

[rdback]

One store about 10 miles away had point cut @ $1.99/lb, whole briskets @ $2.25/lb, and flat cut @ $2.99/lb. It's rare to see whole briskets, here. Churches, Irish social clubs, and the like, usually buy up almost all of the whole ones.

...and competition BBQ teams, lol. Brisket is one of the four meats they have to cook, at least in KCBS.

[Tormato]

One store about 10 miles away had point cut @ $1.99/lb, whole briskets @ $2.25/lb, and flat cut @ $2.99/lb. It's rare to see whole briskets, here. Churches, Irish social clubs, and the like, usually buy up almost all of the whole ones.

...and competition BBQ teams, lol. Brisket is one of the four meats they have to cook, at least in KCBS.

A whole brisket, up here, would lose every BBQ competition. These are corned beef briskets.

[worth1]

Obviously Massachusetts isn't a melting pot.

[Tormato]

Obviously Massachusetts isn't a melting pot.

We still got a lot of tungsten people up here.

I blame the use of brisket, here, on the New England boiled dinner. Corning the beef, as you likely know, goes back to about the 17th century.

Many changes have taken place with the New England boiled dinner since the earliest Irish settlers cooked it. Originally they used bacon, until brisket became a more economical meat. They always used what root vegetables were available. I heard that cabbage wasn't used until the early 20th century. Cast iron Dutch ovens for hearthside cooking was the name of the game.

Smoking was likely done mostly with fish, caught in the spring summer and fall.

[rdback]

One store about 10 miles away had point cut @ $1.99/lb, whole briskets @ $2.25/lb, and flat cut @ $2.99/lb. It's rare to see whole briskets, here. Churches, Irish social clubs, and the like, usually buy up almost all of the whole ones.

...and competition BBQ teams, lol. Brisket is one of the four meats they have to cook, at least in KCBS.

A whole brisket, up here, would lose every BBQ competition. These are corned beef briskets.

Notice I didn't say "Winning BBQ teams", lol. Several years ago, a new team actually did cook and turn in a corned beef brisket. It was up your way, IIRC. It finished DAL. No surprise there, lol.

[worth1]

I heard the Irish lived around the Jewish folks when they came to the US and took up eating corned beef.

Corned beef doesn't seem to be that popular here and as of late any type of cabbage or sauerkraut.
Also clam chowder and many other northern foods I'm so fond of.
Depending on who it is many people won't eat something just because another group eats it and won't even taste it.

I remember an Italian Fire Marshal from New York that was flabbergasted that I was making 22 quarts of New England clam chowder, being I was from Texas.

[karstopography]

I heard the Irish lived around the Jewish folks when they came to the US and took up eating corned beef.

https://www.foodandwine.com/news/compli ... orned-beef

@worth1 the link above appears to confirm this, although, corned beef it seems had a prominent place in the history of Ireland before the potato famine sent so many of the Irish abroad.

[Tormato]

My local WalMart has flat cut on sale at $2.00/lb, right next to the $5.98/lb ones. It freezes extremely well, so I picked up a few. After getting home, I see that I still have some freezer space. I may go back tomorrow.

I think people are passing on these (at $5.98/lb) because they have the look of being between a point cut and a flat cut. In other words, in between fat content. The best of both worlds, to me.

[Tormato]

I heard the Irish lived around the Jewish folks when they came to the US and took up eating corned beef.

Corned beef doesn't seem to be that popular here and as of late any type of cabbage or sauerkraut.
Also clam chowder and many other northern foods I'm so fond of.
Depending on who it is many people won't eat something just because another group eats it and won't even taste it.

I remember an Italian Fire Marshal from New York that was flabbergasted that I was making 22 quarts of New England clam chowder, being I was from Texas.

Worth, you don't make true New England clam chowder. You make a bastardized Texas version of it, using hot pepper.

As for corned beef, Jewish delis would take brisket and make both corned beef and pastrami with it, as you know. The Irish would mostly buy the corned beef, being somewhat similar to Irish bacon, that they had in their homeland. For holiday meals, I believe Jewish people used just a plain brisket in their preparations. Both peoples used the low and slow method to tenderize an economical cut of meat.

Pastrami is the most confusing to me. I'll have to research the history of it. I hear that the point cut navel end (whatever that is) makes the best pastrami. And as for any kind, or cut, of beef, corned beef and pastrami are my two favorites.

[worth1]

The clam chowder I spoke about didn't have hot peppers in it.
I don't normally put hot peppers in clam chowder.

[worth1]

@Tormato
Beef navel is the same as beef plate.
It's farther back on the breast of the cow.
Pastrami dates back centuries if not longer as well as any salting of meat.
Not all corned beef has to be brisket it can be any part of the animal.
Corned beef shank would be really good.

[Shule]

They had 2 corned beef brisket left at the store yesterday.
Both flat and I didn't get either one for $24.
Opted for some fine localy made Slovacek sausage links instead.
What cabbage left was the size of a softball.
Didn't get any.
Looks like sausage links and small red taters with butter.

Hey, if you can't get cabbage where you live (not particularly for the purpose you had in mind), have you ever considered using prickly pear tunas? They're a pretty good vegetable. They taste more like peppers than they taste like cabbage, though, but they cook well like cabbage cooks well (in stir fry and such).

[Shule]

I've had many a Reuben in my life, but I never made my own. The Rueben is always my first test of a deli that I've never eaten at. If they don't make a Reuben, I won't eat there.

At a new, to me, Chinese restaurant, I always order the house lo mien.

This year, I think that I'll finally make my own Reuben.

The first thing I look for in a Chinese restaurant is a buffet. If they have that, I look for one (or ideally more) of the following:
- General Tsao's chicken
- Sesame chicken
- Orange chicken
- Something that tastes like the above
- Fried rice or rice noodles
- Ice cream

Things I look for next include these:
- Pineapple chicken
- Other chicken dishes
- Something with crab or immitation crab (which doesn't matter)
- Eggrolls
- Baked salmon
- Fish
- Jello
- Pizza
- French fries
- Chinese donut-type things and those little frosted cakes
- Fruit

If they don't a buffet, I'll likely still want to eat there (most Chinese food is good), but those things are usually my favorites. I know they're not authentic, per se.

I haven't eaten at very many Chinese restaurants that weren't buffets (unless you count takeout). Most of the ones I did eat at had dishes with stir fried vegetables and some kind of meat (similar to the broccoli and steak dishes at Chinese buffets). One had noodles and shrimp. Some (possibly all) had fried rice. 1 had General Tsao's chicken (I got one order and they gave me a /lot/! I loved it.)

I've never had a Reuben before, but I've heard the name (the sandwich name) since I was a child, and I've imagined they tasted good. I don't know what's in them.

[Tormato]

I've had many a Reuben in my life, but I never made my own. The Rueben is always my first test of a deli that I've never eaten at. If they don't make a Reuben, I won't eat there.

At a new, to me, Chinese restaurant, I always order the house lo mien.

This year, I think that I'll finally make my own Reuben.

The first thing I look for in a Chinese restaurant is a buffet. If they have that, I look for one (or ideally more) of the following:
- General Tsao's chicken
- Sesame chicken
- Orange chicken
- Something that tastes like the above
- Fried rice or rice noodles
- Ice cream

Things I look for next include these:
- Pineapple chicken
- Other chicken dishes
- Something with crab or immitation crab (which doesn't matter)
- Eggrolls
- Baked salmon
- Fish
- Jello
- Pizza
- French fries
- Chinese donut-type things and those little frosted cakes
- Fruit

If they don't a buffet, I'll likely still want to eat there (most Chinese food is good), but those things are usually my favorites. I know they're not authentic, per se.

I haven't eaten at very many Chinese restaurants that weren't buffets (unless you count takeout). Most of the ones I did eat at had dishes with stir fried vegetables and some kind of meat (similar to the broccoli and steak dishes at Chinese buffets). One had noodles and shrimp. Some (possibly all) had fried rice. 1 had General Tsao's chicken (I got one order and they gave me a /lot/! I loved it.)

I've never had a Reuben before, but I've heard the name (the sandwich name) since I was a child, and I've imagined they tasted good. I don't know what's in them.

A Reuben generally consists of corned beef, sauerkraut, Swiss cheese, Thousand Island (or Russian) dressing, on light or marbled rye bread.

My order of layering is a slice of unseeded light rye, thin coating of Thousand Island, Swiss cheese, sauerkraut, corned beef, sauerkraut, Swiss cheese, thin layer of Thousand Island, slice of unseeded light rye. Then lightly butter top slice, flip over, put on moderately hot skillet, butter the new top slice before flipping. It should be flipped only once in the pan frying step. I'm looking for a golden brown color of the bread, and melted cheese.

[karstopography]

I’ve got a corned beef point in the fridge. @Tormato

I’ve read about several ways to cook that point from braising in the slow cooker or wrapped in foil and put in the oven or put out on the smoker to convert the corned beef into pastrami. Some folks soak their corned beef points is water overnight to remove the excess salt, others simply rinse, some retain the brining liquid and others discard.

I too want to make a Reuben Sandwich. I have delicious homemade sauerkraut with caraway seeds. I can get the rye bread, swiss cheese and thousand islands dressing, but I don’t know what to do with the corned beef.

[worth1]

They had 2 corned beef brisket left at the store yesterday.
Both flat and I didn't get either one for $24.
Opted for some fine localy made Slovacek sausage links instead.
What cabbage left was the size of a softball.
Didn't get any.
Looks like sausage links and small red taters with butter.

Hey, if you can't get cabbage where you live (not particularly for the purpose you had in mind), have you ever considered using prickly pear tunas? They're a pretty good vegetable. They taste more like peppers than they taste like cabbage, though, but they cook well like cabbage cooks well (in stir fry and such).

We normally have a good amount of cabbage at the store.
There was probably a rush on it or supply issues.
I have a big head in the refrigerator now.

Prickly pear tunas are the fruit they put out the fresh pads are called nopal or nopale plural.
I can't stand them.
Sour and slimy.

[worth1]

I’ve got a corned beef point in the fridge. @Tormato

I’ve read about several ways to cook that point from braising in the slow cooker or wrapped in foil and put in the oven or put out on the smoker to convert the corned beef into pastrami. Some folks soak their corned beef points is water overnight to remove the excess salt, others simply rinse, some retain the brining liquid and others discard.

I too want to make a Reuben Sandwich. I have delicious homemade sauerkraut with caraway seeds. I can get the rye bread, swiss cheese and thousand islands dressing, but I don’t know what to do with the corned beef.

Braise it in the oven or use an electric slow cooker with water and the spices that came with it of use pickling spices.
It would be hard to convert the point into pastrami because there is a drying period and it needs to be covered in spices like black pepper and so on.
Then smoked.
But you could get close.
I never by pastrami here because most of it is processed meat of some sort like at Arby's.

I can't believe people have never made this stuff and never made the sandwich.
I guess my Mom really did pass her blessings down to me.

[worth1]

I got into an argument with the manager or someone at Jason's deli because they served my Hot pastrami sandwich ice cold.
He said it's supposed to be cold and I pointed out on the menu it was supposed to be hot.
He said we can pop it in the microwave.
I said give my money back.
Microwave sandwich at a deli give me a break.
Another time the Reuben was so soggy the bread turned into mush.
They didn't wring out the sauerkraut and the sandwich was sitting in a pool of sauerkraut juice in the plate like some sort of sandwich soup.
Got my money back and never went to that place again.

At the one in Austin I got stuck at the free frozen yogurt machine.
A group of women saw how lovely my ice cream cones looked and they wanted me to make theirs.
So here I am making ice cream cones for a group of people.
And showing them how to do it.

They said I must have worked a dairy queen.
I said no in the Marines we used to have ice cream cone making contests to see how high we could make them.
We would usually end up walking out with them around a foot tall at so.

[karstopography]

I’ve got a corned beef point in the fridge. @Tormato

I’ve read about several ways to cook that point from braising in the slow cooker or wrapped in foil and put in the oven or put out on the smoker to convert the corned beef into pastrami. Some folks soak their corned beef points is water overnight to remove the excess salt, others simply rinse, some retain the brining liquid and others discard.

I too want to make a Reuben Sandwich. I have delicious homemade sauerkraut with caraway seeds. I can get the rye bread, swiss cheese and thousand islands dressing, but I don’t know what to do with the corned beef.

Braise it in the oven or use an electric slow cooker with water and the spices that came with it of use pickling spices.
It would be hard to convert the point into pastrami because there is a drying period and it needs to be covered in spices like black pepper and so on.
Then smoked.
But you could get close.
I never by pastrami here because most of it is processed meat of some sort like at Arby's.

I can't believe people have never made this stuff and never made the sandwich.
I guess my Mom really did pass her blessings down to me.

We weren’t a corned beef eating family. I kind of do remember having corned beef as a kid once or twice, I didn’t particularly like corned beef as a child I do remember that. But, I can’t remember my first Reuben sandwich I had to have been a young adult. I probably haven’t eaten more than a dozen if even Reuben sandwiches my whole life. When I lived up north, I had corned beef, the NE boiled dinner, once a year. But, I’ve never cooked a corned beef myself and never made a Reuben sandwich either.