Drunken Corned Beef and Kraut

So here's the deal. Corned beef and kraut looks disgusting but tastes really delicious. In the past, I never gave corned beef much thought. Sure, I'd had bites of it here and there when I tried the Mr.'s favorite Reuben sandwich, but I never considered making it at home or ordering it in a restaurant. I'm happy to say that is no longer the case. This recipe transformed my humble corned beef slab into a beer soaked, slightly sweet, and impossibly tender hunk of meaty bliss. The best part is it couldn't be easier to make. I cut up the veggies the night before, rubbed the beef with brown sugar, layered all of it in the crock pot, covered with beer, then refrigerated over night. In the morning, all I had to do was take it out, plug in the crock pot, and go! Let me tell you, nothing compares to coming home to the smells of meat and potatoes slowly cooked for 8 hours in a vat of beer.

I thought about not sharing this recipe until next year's St. Patrick's Day, but honestly this corned beef is way too good to make just once a year. It's a perfect stress free weeknight meal and you can use the leftovers to make a killer Reuben sandwich. Easy. Quick. Beer. Meat. That should be enough to convince you to put this on your menu stat!


Drunken Corned Beef and Kraut
Yield: 4-6 Servings
Recipe adapted from allrecipes.com

Ingredients:
2-3 lbs. corned beef brisket
3/4 cup brown sugar
2 bottles stout beer
4 carrots
8 small red potatoes
1 12 oz. bag of sauerkraut

Directions:
1. Rub corned beef brisket with brown sugar on all sides. Lay in bottom of a large crockpot.
2. Cut up carrots into 3 inch pieces. Quarter potatoes or leave whole if you prefer (I left mine whole).
3. Layer potatoes and carrots on top of corned beef. Pour bottles of beer over vegetables, making sure the beef is completely covered.
4. Cook in crock pot on low setting for 8 hours or on high setting for 4-6 hours. When there is one hour left of cook time, add sauerkraut on top of veggies. Enjoy!