Fried Corned Beef and Cabbage Recipe – Made In A Fraction Of The Time Of Traditional Recipes

Fried Corned Beef and Cabbage is a great way to enjoy the taste of the traditional American-Irish Corned Beef and Cabbage dish without all the work. In fact, instead of taking hours to prepare, this recipe is ready to eat in under 20 minutes!

Every St. Patrick’s Day millions of Americans set out to celebrate the Ireland holiday with a plethora of Irish inspired food, and of course drinks. However the most popular dish that you will find being made in kitchens across America is corned beef and cabbage.

Although, beyond popular belief, this recipe did not originate in Ireland. Instead, the iconic dish was developed in Irish and Jewish settlements that settled in New York City.

This type of beef was considered one of the cheapest cuts of meat to purchase. Therefore, the immigrants that were struggling to make ends meet would eat it along with inexpensive cabbage and potatoes.

It was a way to feed a family a hearty meal that didn’t cost a lot of money. Although in Ireland you will find fried cabbage and bacon as the dish of choice, corned beef and cabbage is the most common recipe that is made on March 17th in most homes across America.

What Is Corned Beef?

So what exactly is corned beef? It is actually a cut of beef that has been cured, most often in a salt based brine.

However, before brines were readily available and used, the meat was packed in chunks of large, corn size bits of salt. The salt would then cure the beef and the term ‘corned beef’ was born.

The most popular cut of meat used for corned beef is brisket. And more specifically, the flat cut section of the brisket is used.

It is much more lean than the point cut and requires low and slow cooking methods to become nice and tender. Therefore, you will find most recipes will require the meat to be boiled or roasted for a couple of hours.

Although, you will also find others that swear it is best to use a Slow Cooker recipe or an Instant Pot recipe for the most tender meat. Regardless of the cooking method chosen, the traditional recipe requires quite of bit of time to perfect.

Therefore, I came up with an easier, and more time efficient way to make this recipe. With just a few shortcuts, your Irish inspired meal can be on the table in less than 20 minutes.

And no, I am not using canned corned beef in the recipe. Instead, I use pre-cooked corned beef or deli cut meat to make the classic combination of flavors come to life.

Fried Corned Beef and Cabbage Recipe

*Specific measurements and complete recipe instructions are located in a printable recipe card at the bottom of this article. However, be sure to continue to read the tips and tricks to making this recipe below.

INGREDIENTS

• Medium onion, peeled and cut into thin slivers
• Large head of cabbage, coarsely chopped in 1-2 inch sections
• Olive oil
• Leftover or deli corned beef, chopped
• Fresh ground black pepper and salt, to taste

*Just a word of caution about the use of salt in this recipe. Corned beef is naturally salty and therefore it is recommended that only a pinch of salt is added to the recipe during the cooking process.

Then during serving, additional salt can be provided for individual servings. Remember, in any recipe that you cook, salt can always be added but not taken away.

INSTRUCTIONS

The first step in making Fried Corned Beef and Cabbage is to peel and cut the onion into slivers. Do this by removing the skin of a white or yellow onion and slicing it in half through the center.

Then place each half, cut side down on a cutting board. Using a sharp knife, slice the onion into thin slivers. Set the onion aside.

Next, prepare the cabbage by coarsely chopping a half head of a large cabbage into 1-2 inch sections. This size will make it easier to eat when the meal is prepared. Set the cut cabbage aside.

Then cut the cooked corned beef into bite size pieces. This is easy to do if you use thick cut, deli slices. However, if you made Homemade Corned Beef, you may need to shred the meat. Either way is okay.

Now it is time to get cooking! Start by placing a large frying pan over medium-high heat. Then add the oil and let it heat until it is hot and shimmery.

Once the oil is nice and hot, add the prepared sliced onion to the pan. Use tongs to frequently toss and turn the onions so that they cook evenly.

Cooking Times

Continue to saute and cook just until the onions start to brown around the edges. This will most likely take 3-4 minutes.

When the onion edges begin to turn light brown, add the chopped cabbage to the skillet and season with fresh-ground black pepper and a pinch of salt (remember that corned beef is salty so you don’t want to add too much here).

Continue to cook the chopped cabbage until it starts to become wilted and is reduced in size by half. You will notice that the cabbage will also start to turn brown around the edges during the cooking process.

Then add the chopped corned beef to the skillet and cook 3-5 minutes more. Cook, tossing frequently so that the corned beef and cabbage are fried to the point of tender.

Serve immediately with an optional side dish of Air Fryer Baby Potatoes or Colcannon (Irish Mashed Potatoes).

Other Corned Beef and Cabbage Recipes

If you are looking for other cooking methods to enjoy the taste of this popular dish, be sure to visit the recipes listed below. I am sure you fill find one that will work for you and your family.

• Oven Roasted Corned Beef
• Air Fryer Corned Beef
• Instant Pot Corned Beef, Cabbage & Potatoes
• Slow Cooker Instructions

Enjoy! Mary

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