This is corned beef the easy way, straight into the slow cooker and left to do its thing. A little brown sugar, vinegar and spices in the water, and hours later you have tender, flavourful corned beef that slices beautifully.
There is no watching a pot on the stove. You load it up in a few minutes and come back to a melt in the mouth dinner. It is a proper set-and-forget classic.
Serve it hot with veg and white sauce, or save it for the best corned beef sandwiches the next day.
Why You’ll Love It
It is genuinely set and forget, a few minutes to load the slow cooker and then it cooks itself. The brown sugar, vinegar and spices give it lovely flavour, the slow cook makes it beautifully tender, and it is versatile, hot for dinner or cold for sandwiches. A big piece feeds six with leftovers, so it is great value and great for getting ahead.
The Shortcut That Makes It Work
The slow cooker is the shortcut. Instead of watching a simmering pot on the stove for hours, you put the beef and everything else in the slow cooker, cover it with water, and walk away. It cooks low and slow to tender all on its own, no minding required.
Handy Tips
Make sure there is enough water to cover the beef so it cooks evenly and stays moist. Low and slow gives the most tender result, so give it the full time on low if you can. Let the beef rest a few minutes before slicing, and always slice across the grain for tender pieces rather than stringy ones. Keep some of the cooking liquid to store leftovers in so they stay moist.
What To Serve With It
Classic with steamed veg and a white or mustard sauce. It is also brilliant cold, sliced into sandwiches with mustard or pickles, or diced into a hash the next day.
Leftovers / How to Store It
Keep leftovers in an airtight container in the fridge for up to 4 days, ideally in a little of the cooking liquid so they stay moist. It slices well cold for sandwiches and reheats gently in its liquid.
Other Recipes You’ll Love
If you enjoyed this Corned Beef, here are a few more ideas to add to your rotation:
Corned Beef
Prep Time 10 minutes 
Cook Time
8 hours 
Total Time 8 hours 10 minutes 
Ingredients
Equipment
Method
- Place your beef in your slow cooker.
- Pour in enough water to cover the beef and add the rest of your ingredients – bay leaves, brown sugar, vinegar, cloves, and peppercorns.
- Cook on high for 4 hours or low for 8 hours, depending on how much time you’ve got.
Nutrition
Video
Tried this recipe?
Let us know how it was!
Don’t Forget to Share
Tried my Corned Beef recipe? I’d love to see how you used it. Snap a pic and tag me on Instagram @steph_cooks_stuff, I love seeing your creations.
FAQs
Can I cook it faster on high?
Yes. It takes about 4 hours on high or 8 hours on low. Low and slow gives the most tender result, so use it if you have the time.
Why slice across the grain?
Cutting across the grain shortens the muscle fibres, which gives you tender slices. Cutting with the grain can leave it stringy and chewy.
What do I serve corned beef with?
Classic with steamed veg and a white or mustard sauce, or cold in sandwiches with mustard and pickles. Leftovers are also great in a hash.
How do I keep leftovers moist?
Store them in an airtight container with a little of the cooking liquid. It stops the beef drying out and keeps it lovely for sandwiches.
Best slow cooker recipe for flavour and ease of cooking. No others come near, almost perfection.
Thank you so much xx
Can i do this in a pressure cooker steph?
My mum use to make a lovely white sauce with the corn beef…I know she used the water of the beef cooking but I’ve never been able to duplicate it.. Any ideas?
You can try melting butter, stirring in flour, cooking it a minute, then whisking in the cooking liquid till it thickens. Taste the liquid first though, it can be quite salty from the corned beef. Haven’t tested this myself, let me know how it goes.
Have made this now twice and both times it has come out absolutely fantastic, that the whole family loves. Thanks Steph 👍🍻
Always a winner when the whole family loves it 🙂
My mother’s recipe for a sauce with silverside is:
Half cup vinegar (white or brown), half cup sugar, half cup of meat juices, half tsp dry mustard, few shakes of white pepper, and 1 egg. All beaten together. Either in pot on stove or in jug for microwave. Needs stirring regularly till egg cooks or you end up with lots of egg white in mix. It thickens with using the egg. Doesn’t take long. Like a sweet and sour sauce. I make it all the time. Love it. Visitors have been surprised how good it is. Would love you to try it.
That sounds lovely Kay, the egg to thicken it is a clever touch. Definitely one to try, thank you very much for sharing your mum’s recipe xx
Looks delicious. Cant wait to try. Is it ok to use garlic and onions uncut?
You can pop them in whole if you like, but I haven’t tried that one myself. Let me know how it goes.