Best slow cooker corned beef cooked low and slow all day in a tasty broth results in a very tender and juicy corned beef brisket. An easy corned beef and cabbage with carrots, onions, and a tasty creamy dijon mustard sauce!
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🎥 Watch Video
You'll ❤️ Cooking Corned Beef in Crock Pot
"Whenever I think of cabbage, I think of corned beef! I just happened to have a corned beef brisket in the freezer, as well as a bag of frozen pearl onions that I really needed to cook, and cabbage! Voila, slow cooker corned beef!"
Easy
You will love corned beef! It's delicious and there's only five ingredients! It's an easy cooking process to make corned beef in crock pot! You really just have to layer the ingredients, turn it on low, and forget about it for 8 to 8 hours. Nice!
Low Carb and Keto Friendly
Crock pot corned beef and cabbage is a gluten free, low-carb and keto-friendly recipe with no sugar added.
Having a flexible recipe that can serve everyone in your house, or any of your guests is the best kind of recipe. It makes life much easier that way!
Instant Pot or Slow Cooker
You can make this corned beef recipe in a slow cooker or in your instant pot. Both are easy, but I will be honest and say that the crockpot method is the easiest. It is hands-off and has fewer steps. I have included instructions for both methods below.
Make-Ahead
I often will make this recipe ahead of time by placing everything in the slow cooker and getting it ready to cook (but don't actually cook). I then cover and refrigerate until I am ready to make it during the week.
This slow cooker corned beef makes it super easy to have a delicious dinner on the table during a busy week. Just pull it out of the fridge and turn it on Low. Yay!
🥘 What You'll Need
Here are the ingredients you will need to make the BEST crock pot corned beef! 😉
Corned Beef
- Frozen Pearl Onions - you can use chopped onions but the frozen pearl onions are easy (no prep) and they add great flavor!
- Carrots - you can slice carrots or use baby carrots.
- Corned Beef Brisket
- Green Cabbage
- Worcestershire
- Water or Beer - feel free to substitute water, Guinness beer, or another stout beer. You could also use beef broth.
- Ground Black Pepper
- Optional Baby Potatoes - you can certainly use baby potatoes if you have the room in your slow cooker. Red or yellow potatoes would be perfect.
Creamy Dijon Mustard Sauce
- Mayonnaise
- Sour Cream
- Lemon Juice
- Grainy Dijon Mustard
- Paprika
- Salt
- Pepper
For exact ingredient quantities, please see the recipe card below!
🔪 How To Make Slow Cooker Corned Beef
Instructions for making corned beef in crock pot and an Instant Pot are below. Happy cooking!
Make Sauce (Optional)
Mix all the creamy sauce ingredients in a small bowl and refrigerate until ready to serve.
Add Vegetables
Rinse corned beef and throw the pickling spice packet away.
Add carrots and onions to the bottom of the crockpot that has been sprayed with nonstick spray or coated with oil or butter.
Add Corned Beef Roast to Pot
Place corned beef on top of vegetables. Place cabbage around the brisket.
Add Seasoning
Mix water and Worcestershire and pour on top of the roast. Sprinkle with pepper.
Slow Cook
Slow cook corned beef and vegetables on low for 8 to 10 hours until the brisket and veggies are tender.
Serve
Serve sliced corned beef over vegetables and top with warmed dijon mustard sauce (see recipe card) if desired.
How To Make Instant Pot Corned Beef
Here's how to make the Instant Pot corned beef version. Don't miss the video below!
Place Corned Beef in Instant Pot
Rinse the whole brisket and throw the pickling spice packet away. Place corned beef brisket in the pressure cooker.
Add Liquid
Pour 1 cup of water and Worcestershire, (or you could use 1 bottle of beer - any kind) over brisket. Sprinkle with pepper.
Pressure Cook
Secure lid and cook on high pressure for 25 minutes per pound. (A 3 lb roast would be 75 min, a 4 lb roast 100 min.)
Once the pressure cooking cycle is complete allow pressure to release naturally.
Remove roast, leaving juices in pot, and set aside.
Add Vegetables
Add cabbage, carrots, and onions to the pot. Pressure cook on high for 4 minutes.
Manually release pressure after 10 minutes.
🥗 How To Serve It
- Serve with the creamy dijon mustard sauce (recipe below). You won't regret it - it's delicious!
- Garnish with fresh parsley or chives.
- If you're going Irish, serve with soda bread or other crusty bread. Biscuits, breadsticks, and beer bread go well with this recipe.
- Slow cooker corned beef and cabbage go well with potatoes, mashed potatoes, and rice. Low carb keto followers use riced cauliflower or mashed cauliflower.
- A fresh side salad with a favorite salad dressing is always a nice addition. If you want a make-ahead solution try my Layered Salad - it can serve a crowd or make great lunch leftovers.
- Got leftovers? Make corned beef hash by dicing the corned beef, some potatoes, and onion. Brown the potatoes and onions in a skillet then add diced corned beef until warmed through. Serve with eggs over the top!
📖 Variations
There are several ways you can vary or make substitutions to this slow cooker corned beef recipe. Here are some ideas:
- Use water, beef broth, or a stout beer such as Guinness for your liquid - or any combination thereof.
- Add herbs such as rosemary, thyme, or parsley.
- Use garlic if desired. I like to add whole cloves - they are delicious!
- If you have enough room in your slow cooker add potatoes. You can certainly add any favorite potato if you still have room in your slow cooker or pressure cooker. My favorite are the tiny baby potatoes.
❓FAQs
Corned beef should be cooked in a slow cooker on low for 8 to 10 hours or until it is fork tender. According to the USDA, corned beef is done when its internal temperature reaches 145 degrees F when checked with a thermometer.
Absolutely. You can add 1 to 2 lbs of potatoes that have been cut into 1 or 2" pieces. Add to the bottom of the slow cooker with your carrots and onions.
By adding potatoes you will have less room for cabbage, however.
I found my 6 qt slow cooker too small for potatoes and cabbage, however.
To control the salt level, you should rinse the corned beef. In this recipe, we recommend that you rinse the corned beef brine before adding to the pot.
Corned beef brisket and beef brisket are not the same things. Corned beef brisket is made with a beef brisket but has been brined with special seasoning. Beef brisket has not been seasoned or brined.
Actually, there is some debate about this. Most people say that corned beef and cabbage is an Irish American recipe, and the tradition of having it on St. Patrick's Day also developed here in the U.S. Corned beef and cabbage is not as frequently served in Ireland. Sorry!
When visiting Ireland a few years ago, we specifically asked what was traditionally served on St. Patrick's Day and were told they serve a variety of dishes such as steak and Guinness pie, shepherd's pie, lamb roast, fish, and other delicious recipes!
✔️ More Recipes
Slow Cooker Recipes with Beef
Here are some of my favorite crockpot recipes that use beef:
- Beef Stroganoff
- Crock Pot Cube Steak
- No Bean Chili Recipe
- Slow Cooker Sloppy Joes
- Italian Beef Roast Crock Pot Recipe
Irish Recipes
If you're looking for delicious Irish-inspired recipes give one of these a try:
- Irish Stew (Slow Cooker) - use beef or lamb. Guinness is the key to the flavor in this easy slow cooker recipe.
- Lamb Mince Shepherd's Pie - use ground lamb or beef. So delicious!
- Lamb Roast
- Irish Mule Cocktail Recipe (Skinny Keto Low Carb)
- Irish Cream Recipe (Sugar Free Keto Cocktail) - a healthier sugar free version so you can enjoy Irish Cream!
- Cauliflower Cheese
📋 Recipe
Corned Beef in Crock Pot (and Instant Pot)
Ingredients
Corned Beef
- 1 cup frozen pearl onions
- 2 cup carrots (peeled and cut into 1 to 2" pieces)
- 3 to 4 pound corned beef brisket (discard the spice packet)
- ½ to 1 cabbage sliced into wedges (depending upon the size of your crock pot)
- 1 tablespoon Worcestershire
- Water ½ cup slow cooker or 1 cup Instant Pot (you can also use beer or beef broth!)
- ½ teaspoon pepper
Creamy Dijon Mustard Sauce (Optional)
- ¼ cup mayonnaise
- ¼ cup sour cream
- 1 teaspoon lemon juice
- 2 tablespoons grainy dijon mustard
- ⅛ teaspoon paprika
- Salt and pepper to taste
Instructions
Corned Beef in Crock Pot
- Rinse corned beef in water and throw the seasoning packet away. Add carrots and onions to the bottom of a slow cooker that has been sprayed with nonstick spray or coated with oil/butter. Place roast on top of vegetables. Place cabbage around the corned beef brisket.
- Mix water and worcestershire and pour of top of the roast. Sprinkle with pepper. Cook on low for 8 to 10 hours until the brisket and vegetables are tender. Serve with optional creamy dijon mustard sauce for a tasty twist.
Corned Beef in Instant Pot
- Rinse the beef brisket and place in the pressure cooker. Pour 1 cup of water and worcestershire, (or you could use 1 bottle of beer - any kind) over brisket. Sprinkle with pepper. Secure lid and cook on high pressure for 25 minutes per pound. a 3 lb roast would be 75 min, a 4 lb roast 100 min. Once complete release pressure naturally.
- Remove roast, leaving juices in pot, and set aside. Add cabbage, carrots, onions to the pot. Pressure cook on high for 4 minutes. Manually release pressure after 10 minutes.
Creamy Dijon Mustard Sauce
- Mix all ingredients in a microwave-safe bowl. When ready to serve over corned beef and cabbage, warm on 50% power in your microwave. If you prefer runnier sauce add additional sour cream. Season with salt and pepper to taste.
Notes
- Don't miss all of our helpful hints, substitution ideas, cooking tips, and other delicious recipes that can be found in our post. Check it out!
- The creamy dijon mustard sauce can be made well in advance. The sauce is great over chicken, pork, fish, and works as an easy hollandaise sauce too!
Nutrition
© 2023 Seeking Good Eats™
The best slow cooker corned beef recipe! Corned beef is an easy crockpot recipe that is a family-friendly dinner! Cooked low and slow all day results in a very tender & juicy corned beef brisket. A low carb and keto recipe that can be customized and enjoyed by everyone at your table. Serve this as an easy weeknight dinner or for St. Patrick's Day. Yum!! #seekinggoodeats #cornedbeef #brisket #crockpot #slowcooker #lowcarb #stpatricksday #holidayrecipes #keto #instantpot
Carly says
This is hands down the BEST corned beef and cabbage recipe!! It’s super easy and I’ve made it in the slow cooker and my pressure cooker both turned out perfect! The creamy Dijon mustard sauce is so delicious too! Thank you!!! 😍
Kori says
Awww! Thank YOU so much. I'm super happy you love this recipe!! The sauce is a bit addicting, right? lol 🙂