From: boron_elgar@hotmail.com   
      
   On Wed, 17 Mar 2021 23:32:03 +0000 (UTC), Howard    
   wrote:   
      
   >Do those spice packets that come with corned beef actually make any   
   >difference? Corned beef has such a strong taste already it's hard for me to   
   >see it, and the volume of stuff in the packet looks like it's less than   
   >what you find in a teabag. I imagine that emptying into the pot that little   
   >bit of seeds and leaves in a couple of quarts of water would barely   
   >register on its own, and  I'm struggling to see how such diluted flavor   
   >would affect corned beef in any noticable way.   
   >   
   >Maybe cooking corned beef in a heavily spiced liquid, with a ton of   
   >peppercorns and bay leaves and mustard seeds and whatever else would make a   
   >difference, but is there any real reason for those tiny packets?   
      
      
   Mostly the meat is salty from its brining and that is what you'd taste   
   without the spices, but the spices add a nice aromatic flavor to it   
   all- honestly. I think even one packet would add some decent flavor.   
   The size of the packets varies by brand, too.   
      
   I usually cook more than one slab o' beef because we like leftovers to   
   vac pac, so I have more of the pickling spice to go into the water. I   
   prepare the beef by full immersion simmering, but some like it braised   
   or moist-roasted, and then the spices get sprinkled on the fatty part   
   of the meat, rather than into liquid. If I did not think there were   
   enough spices, I'd add a spoon of so from a jar of prepared pickling   
   spices I have in the cupboard.   
      
   I have a really good recipe for wholly untraditional soda bread, if   
   you need one.   
      
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