On March 17, everyone will be wearing green, but at Real Food you can eat green as well. After all, what’s greener than 100% grass-fed organic corned beef? At Real Food, we brine our own corned beef right here in our meat department with 100% organic ingredients—no MSG, no nitrites, no artificial preservatives whatsoever.

We start with the basics: apple cider vinegar, salt, and reverse-osmosis filtered water. Together, these ingredients act as natural preservatives and tenderizers, creating that classic corned beef color and texture. Next, we add garlic cloves, mustard powder, whole black peppercorns, cloves, bay leaves, and a little cane sugar to create the succulent corned beef flavor you’ve been waiting for all year.

Finally, we refrigerate organic beef brisket (grown in Big Timber, MT) in the brine for 7-10 days until it’s ready to cook on St. Patrick’s Day.

If you’ve never cooked corned beef on your own before, fear not! Since we’ve already spiced the beef to perfection, all you need to do is follow the directions for “Corned Beef & Cabbage Dinner” below.

The basic idea is to throw everything together in a crockpot, set it to low, and forget it for about 6-12 hours. Not only is our organic corned beef healthful, traditional, and delicious, but it also fits into even the busiest St. Patrick’s Day schedule.

Corned Beef and Cabbage Dinner
2-5 lb organic corned beef
1 yellow onion
1 head green cabbage
5 carrots
1 lb red potatoes
1 carton beef broth or beef bouillon
2 Tbsp black peppercorns

Chop up onion, carrot, and cabbage into 1-inch chunks. Put in crockpot (or pot on stove set to “low”), with beef broth, corned beef, and peppercorns. Add water until all ingredients are barely submerged. Set to low and cook for 6-12 hours. Add potatoes one hour before serving. Plan on 1/2 pound of corned beef per person.

We'll be featuring this once-a-year delicacy on our hot bar for lunch and dinner. So if you don't have time to do your own, stop by our deli, I guarantee you won’t be disappointed.

Ryan Hazen, Meat Dept.