If you've come to Trader Joe's for your Corned Beef, you are in luck for St. Patrick's Day. Even if you don't celebrate that holiday, Trader Joe's Corned Beef is something worth celebrating. Best of all there are two varieties: uncooked and precooked. This review focuses just on the corned beef you'll be cooking for yourself. If you find that you are enjoying it, be prepared for this to disappear over the rainbow when the corned beef season ends.
Update for 2019 review
On this blog, I try things. And then if I like them, I sometimes revisit certain products. Especially if there has been a product change or at the very least a packaging change. This product has changed compared to when this post was first published.
So here is what the newest corned beef looks like:
Unlike previous years, there has been both a price change and a change in the cut. Previous years were not brisket. It was round flat. This year's corned beef is also only 21% brine, while last year was 29%. Big difference. This has also gone up to $6.49 per pound, instead of last year's $5.99 per pound.
So you are paying for less salty water and getting what is in my opinion a better cut of meat.
I still recommend giving this a good rinse. This year I've used my Instant Pot every time making this. Why? It cuts down on cooking time. On high pressure, I cook it for 90 minutes. It will be fall apart tender. If you are going to use a pressure cooker of sorts, then keep the fattier side up. I also used 2 beers as cooking liquid. When it was done it was delicious. I've bought this now 3 times this season and I do wish this were something they would keep on shelves all year long.
But if you need to compare the ingredients and nutritional information against previous years here you go. And yes, it is different than in past years. Brisket is a bit fattier than other cuts:
Overall
I still enjoy and recommend this product. My tasting notes are not much different from previous years.
This portion of the review was written in 2017 and refers to the images below.
For $18.15 for this slab of Trader Joe's Corned Beef or $5.99 per pound this was tender, well seasoned, and tasty. Trader Joe's also sells a fully cooked variety of this product for $9.99 per pound. For almost double the price, I personally think you too are capable of boiling water and saving half the cost here. I haven't tried the fully cooked one yet, so I can't tell you how it tastes.
This uncooked variety requires time and minimal cooking skills. I would recommend that when you first dump the contents of the bag into water (obviously from the cold tap water) to get more of the seasoning off of the beef. The excess can stay in the pot, you just don't want all those spices stuck to your finished product. Those were not tasty bites. I think at least half of the spices stuck to my beef and weren't tasty by the mouthful. Scraping them off after the fact gave me the tasty meat I desired. In past years, other grocery stores were selling corned beef without any seasoning at all. This was all in one.
This was one of the better-corned beef I've had in a very long time. There was a good amount of salt and spice which worked its way through the entire product. All that is required on your part is literally dumping the contents of the bag in water and bringing it up to a boil and then simmering this for hours. After 3.5 hours of simmering, mine was as tender as if it had come out of the slow cooker. The meat had some nice layers of fat to it. In the refrigerator, the leftovers when cooled showed nice marbling. It was tasty both hot and cold and in a hash.
I've repurchased this as I know some things are only around for so long. I didn't ask if this was seasonal, but it only recently appeared on the shelves. If you are celebrating St. Patrick's Day or not, this is a tasty dinner (lunch or breakfast for that matter) that is super easy to prepare. As easy as bringing a pot of water to a boil and letting it simmer. I bought a second bag the other night. I recommend this.
Product photos
The bag of Trader Joe's Uncured Corned Beef Round Flat:
The nutritional information, the ingredients and how to prepare:
After being cooked you get (I didn't take any pictures when I dumped this into the pot. It reminded me of Stephen King novel):
In corned beef hash. For the record, while this is not pretty, it is far nicer looking that the corned beef hash that comes from a can:
Would I buy this again? Yes, Trader Joe's Corned Beef is perfect for St. Patrick's Day or any other time you feel like corned beef. I just hope this isn't a seasonal item (but it likely is). One of the better pre-seasoned corned beef I've had in a while.
Want to see more items I've reviewed from Trader Joe's? Click on Thoughts & Reviews of Trader Joe's for a searchable list.
Did you try it? Let me know what you think in the comments section!
Trader Joe's Uncured Corned Beef Brisket
Product Name: Trader Joe's Uncured Corned Beef Brisket
Product Description: Trader Joe's Uncured Corned Beef Brisket is a seasonal offering. So grab one while you can. Priced per pound.
Price: $8.49
Currency: USD
Availability: LimitedAvailability
Summary
This corned beef is a seasonal item. It has been changed for 2019.
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Taste
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Value
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Worthy of Repurchasing
Pros
- Trader Joe's Corned Beef is a very tasty already seasoned corned beef that just requires hours of boiling.
Cons
- None come to mine other than this might be seasonal and my seasoning really stuck to my corned beef.
- Next time, I would rise the meat in the pot of water before putting it on the stove as a lot of the spices really stuck to the meat.
calahan says
What is your recipe for the hash? Are those hashed browns I see? Looks good. 🙂
becomebetty says
1 bag of Trader Joe's shredded potato, 2 tbsp bacon fat, 5 slices of corned beef in a cast iron skillet. Cook until brown and crispy. My husband loves the stuff in a can that looks like Pet food. He likes this much better 🙂
calahan says
Thanks! Glad to hear you weaned your husband off dog food. Persistence pays off. 😉
becomebetty says
He think chef boyardee is fine dining. It's a start.
calahan says
The Boyardee crime family is notorious and are vindictive towards critics. Be careful. I've already said too much.
becomebetty says
I'm no snitch
Victor says
I just bought this corn beef hash. They were giving free samples at trader Joe's. When cooking, do i leave the roast inside the plastic bag, when cooking it in the water?
becomebetty says
Hey Victor! Take it out of the bag and give it a good rinse. It's super seasoned. I rinse most of the seasoning off. You can cook it in water or beer. If you have an instant pot it will need about 15 minutes per pound. Otherwise boiling should work. Let me know if you have any more questions!
Dagmar says
Oh my gosh I definitely want to get this product and make corned beef hash or better yet corned beef hash burritos with cheese and then take for either breakfast or work lunch!
Kenmorehess says
We tried this for the first time and absolutely loved it! We agree on everything you said. We didn't have any issues with the seasoning getting stuck to our meat though. We used a slow cooker, 4 hours on high, then added carrots and added an additional 2 hours on low. The corned beef came out perfectly tender and so well-seasoned! We so agree that it should be available year-round...
becomebetty says
Hey Kenmorehess! Thanks for stopping by and sharing! Also, thanks for adding in how you made it.
Mark Silverman says
For a minute I wasn't sure if this was some kind of "boil in the bag" thing, but I am glad you said to take it out of the bag and put it in the pot. I will take your advice and rub some of that spice off the thing.
becomebetty says
Hey Mark! Funny you mention that, you might be able to get away with the boil in bag if you were cooking this sous vide, but for instant pot or crock pot it isn't recommended. I would love to hear what you think of this when you get to try it.
Glenda Real says
Best corned beef I've had forever - boiled it! I bought another one at Costco and did it in the crock pot and the salt was so strong I tossed it....even after I boiled it first to get the salt out - don't know if that technique really works. I'd by another CB at Trader Joe's in a minute even though the price was $3.00/lb more. Just couldn't believe the flavor!
becomebetty says
Hey Glenda! I couldn't agree with you more. The price wasn't the best compared to Costco. But thanks for the comparison and for sharing your thoughts on this!
Susan says
Should this be rinsed before throwing in a pot to boil?
becomebetty says
Yes! It's quite salty. So a good rinse will help.