Corned Beef

Editor's note: The recipe and introductory text below are from Irish Traditional Cooking by Darina Allen. Although this dish is eaten less frequently nowadays in Ireland, for Irish expatriots it conjures up powerful nostalgic images of a rural Irish past. Originally it was a traditional Easter Sunday dinner. The beef, killed before the winter, would have been salted and could now be eaten after the long Lenten fast, with fresh green cabbage and floury potatoes. Our local butcher corns beef in the slow, old-fashioned way which, alas, is nowadays more the exception than the norm.

Use leftover corned beef or a few slices from the deli. Trim the fat from the corned beef and use it to sauté the vegetables. If there's not enough fat, supplement with butter.

Modern-day Reuben sandwiches are often open-faced and broiled, which dries out the corned beef and makes the cheese rubbery. Or, under the misguided belief that more is better, they are overstuffed. The main things to remember for a great Reuben are to keep the filling under control and in balance, so when you bite into it you get a harmonious and succulent mouthful; and to grill the sandwich slowly and under some pressure, so the bread gets toasty brown and buttery crisp, the meat gets warmed through, and the cheese is just melted enough to be oozy.

If you choose to make this hash with eggs, you’ve got breakfast. Take away the eggs, pair it with a green salad, and dinner is served.

Stir-frying--an unorthodox technique for red flannel hash--yields a dish whose components are crisp and separate rather than melded into a cake, as is traditional. Can be prepared in 45 minutes or less.

Using frozen hash brown potatoes really reduces prep time. This easy hash goes well with fried or poached eggs and some steamed broccoli.

Piled high, this easy pizza delivers all the flavor of the deli sandwich it resembles. The best accompaniments are, of course, potato salad, coleslaw and pickles.

Like gumbo, this is a thick and flavorful stew. But it takes a lot less time to make. Active time: 45 min Start to finish: 1 1/4 hr