23 Easy Leftover Corned Beef Recipes

After creating a delicious corned beef meal, you don’t want to ruin the mouth-watering flavors by chucking the leftovers into a sandwich without a second thought.

Don’t waste the succulent meat! Instead, use one of our 23 recipes below to make the leftovers feel like a planned main.

23 Easy Leftover Corned Beef Recipes

What Is Corned Beef?

Corned beef is also known as salt beef in areas such as the Commonwealth. It’s a type of beef brisket that has been cured with salt to create a rich flavor.

The name “corned” comes from the large stones of rock salt needed to cure the beef. These large grains often look like corn, hence the name.

A Simplified Recipe For Homemade Corned Beef

Most people buy their corned beef, but making it yourself isn’t as hard as it seems.

These instructions by Simply Recipe go into detail about the measurements and timescales for each part of the curing process, but we will give you a simplified version.

For the pickling process, you’ll need:

  • Allspice berries
  • Mustard seed
  • Coriander seeds
  • Red pepper flakes
  • Black peppers (whole)
  • Cloves (whole)
  • Cardamom pods
  • Bay leaves
  • Ginger (ground)
  • Cinnamon (stick)

Dry fry everything but the bay leaves, and then crush them in a pestle and mortar.

To make the brine, you’ll need:

  • Water
  • Salt
  • Curing salt
  • Your spices from before
  • Brown sugar.

Put all the ingredients into a large pot and boil it. Then let it chill. Once it’s chilled you can dunk the brisket into the brine for 5 to 7 days, flipping it over occasionally.

Once the curing is done, pop the brisket into another pot of water and add some more pickling spices. Then boil the beef for around 4 hours. 

And that’s it, you’ve created your own homemade corned beef!

23 Leftover Corned Beef Recipes

Regardless of if you made the corned beef yourself, or if you bought it from your butchers. Either way, you want to keep the leftover cuts for a secondary delicious meal. Here are 23 recipes that do just that.

1. Corned Beef Hash

If you only have a little bit of corned beef leftover (see also ‘21 Leftover Roast Beef Recipes You Need To Know‘), then one of the best ways to utilize the small amount is to add it to a hash.

Using Simple Recipes recipes, you can serve up to 6 people using 3 cups of cooked corned beef. If you only have 1 cup remaining that still means that 2 meals can be made – perfect for a romantic breakfast treat. 

2. Corned Beef Cottage Pie

This recipe calls for 2 and a half cups of cooked corned beef. However, this large leftover amount only serves 2 people.

Still, the flavor of this cottage pie is rich and mouthwatering. If you served this recipe to your friends, they wouldn’t even realize they were eating last night’s leftovers. 

The recipe takes an hour to create and works well with any type of corned beef leftover. From canned to homemade.

3. Easy Leftover Corned Beef Soup

This delicious corned beef soup uses a cup and a half worth of cooked corned beef to create 4 servings.

You’ll end up with a creamy, thick, and beefy chowder that will become an instant hit in your winter recipe collection. 

It only takes 13 minutes to make and can be served with rolls to make the servings stretch further. 

4. Corned Beef Frittata

In this breakfast meal, 2 cups of leftover corned beef will create enough frittatas to serve 8 people.

There are only 9 ingredients you’ll need, and they are all cupboard or fridge fillers apart from the corned beef and sweet potato.

This means you can create this healthy and tasty meal without having to head back to the grocery store. 

5. Creamy Potato And Corned Beef Chowder

We have already mentioned corned beef chowder in our list before, but if you wanted something a little less obvious as a leftover meal, then attempt this recipe instead. 

3 cups of leftover corned beef will serve 10 people with Mantitlement’s recipe. The added celery salt, garlic powder, and heavy cream create a decadent taste that you would be happy to serve to your friends.

6. Reuben Stromboli

The Reuben Stromboli is a type of pastry. To create it you will need half a pound of thinly sliced corned beef, which means that beef cut into chunks won’t be suitable for this recipe.

The thin texture is needed to help roll the filling into a swirl. If you happen to have uncut or previously sliced corned beef at the ready, then turning it into this delicious puff pastry will be easy.

7. Corned Beef Quesadillas

This recipe from Betty Crocker only requires a cup of leftover corned beef. It serves up to 4 people as a tasty lunch or snack.

You can use their branded Old El Paso flour tortillas to create the quesadillas (see also our favorite easy quesadilla recipes), or you can buy whichever brand you prefer.

The method is simple, and the finished product is moreish.

8. Creamy Reuben Casserole

The Reuben casserole is a traditional recipe for St. Patrick’s Day. It only needs 1 and a quarter cups of cooked corned beef to serve 4 people.

In Taste of Home’s recipe, they also use slices of rye bread and shredded swiss cheese to create a crunchy yet smooth texture.

9. Leftover Corned Beef Soup

In this corned beef soup, you need 12 oz of corned beef, which is a tiny amount to serve 8 people.

In this soup, you can expect Worcestershire sauce, thyme, garlic, tomatoes, and back pepper. With these ingredients, you can already tell that the flavors will be explosive.

10. Corned Beef And Egg Fried Rice

This recipe suggests using canned corned beef, which means it hasn’t been explicitly designed for leftovers (see more canned beef recipes here). However, don’t let this hold you back.

Instead, you simply need to be aware of the liquid in the frying element. You don’t want to dry out your corned beef through double frying.

Instead, pour in a drop of water or two every now and then, to keep your corned beef moist.

11. Corned Beef And Cabbage Egg Roll Appetizer

These egg rolls will be the star of any potluck and the conversation piece at any dinner party (see also ‘33 Dinner Party Recipes‘). They are deliciously crispy, mouthwateringly tasty, and look extremely impressive.

You only need 4 oz of corned beef to serve 8 portions.

12. Slow Cooked Reuben Spread

Although this recipe will take over 4 hours to create, the method isn’t difficult. You simply need to add all of the ingredients together into your slow cooker and cook it for the time noted. 

When the timer is up, blend the ingredients into a spread and you can serve it straight away.

With ingredients such as cream cheese, swiss cheese, and sauerkraut, you know you’ll have a rich and moreish side.

13. Quick And Easy Corned Beef Omelet

This recipe only serves one person, but it is super simple to scale. Seeing as you need just ¼ cup of corned beef, it is a simple recipe to use up those last scratches of beef from your meal the night before.

The other ingredients are cupboard favorites like milk, cheese, eggs, and potatoes.

14. Corned Beef Cabbage Rolls

We’ve already seen one version of a corned beef cabbage roll, but this time instead of creating a batter and deep fat frying it, Curious Cuisiniere is following a different idea. 

The beef is wrapped in cabbage leaves, meaning no flour is used in this roll. Gluten-free foodies can still enjoy the wonderful taste of a cabbage roll without harming themselves. 

15. Corned Beef Hash Rustic Pie

This pie is absolutely beautiful. The end creation could be put into the Great British Bake Off, but you’d be surprised to learn that one of the main ingredients is beer.

It has around 3 tablespoons of beer added to the flavor, which enhances the corned beef filling.

The amount of rich flavors you get from this pie is enough to make you sleep for a week.

16. Corned Beef Sandwich

Although we said that putting your corned beef into a sandwich is wasting its potential, we weren’t exactly telling the truth.

Sure wrapping the beef around buttered bread is a waste, but knowing how to fill the sandwich to turn it into an experience rather than an “on-to-go” filler can make all the difference.

Using The Recipe Critic’s Recipe, you can make 4 sandwiches in just 10 minutes and they will taste divine. 

17. Reuben Egg Rolls 

Another version of the Reuben Egg Roll comes from Will Cook For Smiles. This recipe serves 10 people but needs half a pound of corned beef.

It’s quite hard to scale this recipe, so if you didn’t finish your corned beef main with much left over, then you may need to look elsewhere.

If you are lucky enough to have enough left over, then follow this recipe. It’s simple to make and doesn’t have many ingredients, which means the beef really shines through.

18. Corned Beef Pizza Swirls

Imagine corned beef but on pizza. We’ve sold it haven’t we.

Taste Of Home has created an easy-to-follow recipe that makes 12 pull-away swirls that have the iconic red sauce taste of a pizza but with corned beef mixed in too.

These would be great for a casual gathering or a kid’s party.

19. Reuben Calzones

From pizza to calzones, the same website has created a beautiful recipe for you to try. The method creates 4 small calzones using ½ pound of corned beef.

The recipe is easy to scale, you can adjust these snacks accordingly. 

The two-step process could really have been separated into 3 or 4, but that doesn’t stop it from being easy to follow.

20. Reuben Casserole With Crumb Topping

This recipe serves a whopping 8 people and only takes an hour to create, which is short for a casserole. 

You’re going to need just 2 cups of leftover corned beef to create the mouthwatering main, but be ready for your dinner guests to swoon over the crumb topping above everything else.

21. Spicy Corned Beef Tacos

To give your tacos an extra punch of flavor all you need to do is add in some shavings of corned beef.

Taste Of Home’s recipe suggests using 3 cups of to create 6 servings, but in reality, this recipe can easily be chopped and changed to fit what’s in your pantry.

22. Easy Cheese Corned Beef & Noodle Casserole

This recipe feels like a “cook what’s in the cupboard” kind of day, using noodles, cream of chicken soup, and milk as the main ingredients.

Chucking in cheddar cheese and corned beef allows you to elevate the dish while still being kid friendly.

23. Reuben Stuffed Baked Potatoes

Our last recipe for you today is a potato stuffed with cheese, cream, and the all-important corned beef.

It takes 2 hours to make, but that is simply to bake the potato. In An Affair From The Heart’s recipe, they have chosen to cook the potato in the oven.

This gives the skin the best texture, however, if you don’t like potato skin you can always microwave the potato for a quicker cook time and a weaker skin texture. 

Summary

Corned beef is a tasty ingredient that can be added to almost everything.

From potatoes to tacos, from pies to egg rolls, knowing how to pair this ingredient with other common foods can help you use up the leftovers and avoid waste.

Corned beef is surprisingly versatile, so let your cooking creativity go wild and expand your culinary skills further than you’d normally go. Make leftovers the dish the family is excited for.

Frequently Asked Questions

Have more questions about corned beef? We have more answers!

Is Corned Beef Healthy?

Generally speaking, no. Corned beef isn’t healthy as it’s a processed red meat that has been brined in salt.

However, it is a source of protein, iron, vitamin B12, fat, and sodium. These are ingredients you need to digest, but shouldn’t be overloading on.

We suggest eating this delicious ingredient as a special treat instead of as a daily sandwich filler.

What Is Corned Beef?

There are two types of corned beef. The heavily processed version is made from beef, salt, and spices to create a packed and almost spreadable pate.

The other is just beef brisket (see also ‘19 Savory Side Dishes To Serve With Brisket‘) marinated in brine and slowly cooked. It’s hard like a ham slice.

The non-processed and non-spreadable version is the healthiest.

Why Do We Eat Corned Beef On St Patrick’s Day?

In the middle ages, all the way up to the 19th Century, the Irish’s biggest products were beef and potatoes. However, both of these ingredients were seen as a luxury, as they had to sell their products to the English. 

When a portion of the Irish moved to the US in the 19th Century, they could eat the luxurious meat without being heavily taxed. This created a surge in corned beef among the Irish community.

That social connection is still with us today through the corned beef expectation on St Patrick’s Day (see also ‘28 Of The Best Recipes For St. Patrick’s Day‘).

23 Easy Leftover Corned Beef Recipes

23 Easy Leftover Corned Beef Recipes

Recipe by Jenna

Don’t throw away your leftover corned beef! Your St Patrick’s Day’s Treat can be used in so many ways. Check out our 23 recipes to find out how!

Course: Dinner
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