Mom's Corned Beef Finally Unveiled

During the month of March we found ourselves in the throws of corned beef mayhem as Mom laboriously turned out batch after batch of her treasured Cream of Corned Beef and Cabbage Soup in celebration of St. Patty's day. No, we are not Irish but rather Hawaiian-Chinese so I have no idea where the staunch loyalty comes from. While Mom's version on Irish chowder is not to be missed, the real winner in the recipe is the corned beef. Perfectly pink and tender on the inside with a sweet and salty crust on the outside, we've been putting this corned beef in and on everything from sandwiches and hash to scratch-made white gravy spooned over roasted potatoes topped with eggs.

The problem is that my mother refuses to follow recipes or to write them. Everything is done by feeling, flavor, and eye. That said, whenever we wanted to feature corned beef on the menu or even eat it for ourselves, we had to ask her to do it for us.


After 27 years of being shrouded in mystery we were ready to remedy this. More importantly, my mother was finally willing to let go of her recipe for corned beef, down to the apricot jam glaze she spreads on the brisket pre-oven. Last Tuesday we were able to convince Mom to allow us to document her making the soup. Evan followed my mom around the kitchen and took notes while I followed the process step-by-step with my camera.


What a pleasure to be able to partake in the timeless tradition of learning a family recipe. We are so thankful of Moo entrusting us with her learned knowledge, and we look forward to being able to share our new found wealth with y'all (the soup, not the recipe...sorry, it's a family secret).