Slow Cooker Corned Beef and Sauerkraut
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Slow Cooker Corned Beef and Sauerkraut is cooked low and slow in a beer bath that yields impossibly tender, flavorful beef. You’ll want to make this all year long!
Easy Slow Cooker Corned Beef and Sauerkraut
Table of Contents
I am forever grateful I married a man who loves Reuben sandwiches. If not for that, I may never have given corned beef a second glance. I’ve never been a big fan of cabbage and therefore was also suspicious of sauerkraut. It was my husband who finally convinced me to try a Reuben (the melty Swiss cheese surely helped), and it only took a few bites for me to see why he loved it so much.
There’s nothing else quite like tender corned beef and sauerkraut. Tangy, sweet, sour, and peppery, it’s a flavor combo that I find myself craving often, especially in the cold winter months.
Slow Cooker Corned Beef and Sauerkraut is my favorite way to prepare this classic dish. This recipe is:
- Easy– It only takes 15 minutes to prep everything and get it in the crock pot.
- A one pot meal– You’ve got your veggies and meat all in one pot, which means less dishes to wash and more time to enjoy the incredible smells wafting through your house.
- Flavorful– Cooking corned beef in a crock pot with beer makes it ultra tender and flavorful. Add the fresh, piquant flavor of sauerkraut and you’ve got an irresistible meal!
Crock Pot Corned Beef with beer is the perfect dinner for St. Patrick’s Day, but it’s so good and so easy, I think you’ll find yourself making it all year long.
Key Ingredients
- Corned Beef Brisket– You’ll want to look for a brisket that’s between 3 and 4 pounds. They are found in most grocery stores around St. Patrick’s Day, but can be trickier to find year round. If you want to enjoy this meal another time of year, I recommend buying a few and freezing them.
- Carrots– You can either chop carrots into equal sized sticks or use baby carrots.
- Potatoes– I used red potatoes, but yellow or yukon potatoes would also work.
- Spices– Most store-bought corned beef comes with its own seasoning packet, but I prefer the flavor of my own seasoning blend, a mix of ground pepper, garlic powder, and celery salt.
- Beer– I used a lager and loved the lighter flavor it added to the corned beef and kraut.
- Sauerkraut– I used Boar’s Head brand, but any brand you enjoy will work.
How to Make Corned Beef and Sauerkraut in the Crock Pot
- Unpack and rinse the brisket. Remove the corned beef brisket from the packaging and rinse thoroughly under cold running water. Place it on a plate, and pat dry with a paper towel. Set aside.
- Add vegetables. Put your carrots and the diced potatoes in the bottom of your slow cooker.
- Add the brisket. Place the corned beef brisket on top of the vegetables with the fat side up.
- Season. Sprinkle the top of the corned beef with the ground pepper, garlic powder, and celery salt.
- Add beer. Pour the beer into the slow cooker, covering the veggies and meat.
- Cook. Cover and cook on low for 8 hours or high for 6 hours.
- Add sauerkraut. One hour before it is ready, (if cooking on High at 5 hours or on low at 7 hours), add the sauerkraut). Gently place it in the slow cooker around the corned beef and submerge in the broth/liquid.
- Cook for the remaining time.
- Serve and Enjoy!
Tips for the Best Corned Beef and Kraut
- You don’t have to include the vegetables, but it makes for a nice one-pot meal.
- Waiting to add the sauerkraut until the end adds just the right amount of tangy flavor without being overpowering. It also allows the kraut to soak in the flavor of the beer—delicious!
- Choose a beer that you like to drink. I like the lighter flavor of lager, but other good options are a red ale or a stout beer, like Guinness. Stout beers will have the strongest, darkest flavor, so only choose them if that’s your go-to beer of choice.
- Low and slow cooking is the key to tender corned beef! Plan on at least 8 hours for this to cook on low. If you have 10 hours, that’s even better!
FAQS
What goes good with corned beef and sauerkraut?
You can serve this with an easy garden salad or sautéed spinach and onions if you’re looking for a green veggie. We also love serving corned beef with easy drop biscuits or Amish white bread for sopping up the yummy juices.
What do you do with leftover corned beef?
The leftovers are (arguably) the best part of this dish! First, I highly recommend making this Reuben pull apart bread. It’s an amazing appetizer or main dish that kids and adults both love!
Of course, you can also make a classic Reuben sandwich or corned beef hash.
For a twist, try these corned beef tacos or slow cooker Reuben dip.
Do you rinse corned beef before cooking it?
Corned beef is a cured meat that’s kept in a salty brine solution. I always recommend rinsing the meat before cooking it to avoid an overly salty meal.
What can I substitute for beer in corned beef?
If you prefer not to cook with beer, you can substitute a dry, less sweet ginger ale, similar to my recommendations for this Slow Cooker Beer Pot Roast, or substitute equal amounts of beef broth.
Does beer tenderize corned beef?
Yes! That’s exactly why we’re using it here. Beer contains acids and tannins, which help break down meat and tenderize it.
Do you drain the sauerkraut?
Yes, I recommending draining the sauerkraut. You do not need to rinse it.
Leftovers, Storage, and Freezing
- Storage– Cool and leftovers and then store them in the fridge in an airtight container for up to 5 days.
- Freezing– This corned beef freezes very well. After allowing it to cool, pack it in a freezer safe bag or container and freeze for up to 6 months. Thaw overnight in the fridge.
- Reheating– Leftovers can be reheated in the microwave (individual portions), stove top (recommend for things like corned beef hash), or oven (for larger portions).
Complete your St. Patrick’s Day Menu
If you’re making this corned beef and kraut for a St. Patty’s feast, finish the meal with a side of Irish Soda Bread and some Lucky Charms Cereal Treats for dessert.
Cap off the night with a Bailey’s Irish Coffee, which you can prepare decaf for those of us who can’t sleep if we have caffeine after noon. It’s the perfect cozy drink to end the day.
Slow Cooker Corned Beef and Sauerkraut
Ingredients
- 1 lb. carrots (peeled and chopped into 3 inch sticks (or about 1/2 bag baby carrots))
- 2 – 3 lbs. baby red potatoes (halved)
- 2 1/2 – 3 1/2 lbs. corned beef brisket
- 1 teaspoon ground pepper
- 1 teaspoon garlic powder
- ½ teaspoon celery salt
- 12 oz. beer (lager, ale, or stout)
- 16 oz. sauerkraut (drained)
Instructions
- Remove the corned beef brisket from the packaging and rinse thoroughly under cold running water. Place it on a plate, and pat dry with a paper towel. Set aside.
- Put your carrots and the diced potatoes in the bottom of your slow cooker. Place the corned beef brisket on top of the vegetables with the fat side up.
- Sprinkle the top of the corned beef with the ground pepper, garlic powder, and celery salt.
- Pour the beer into the slow cooker, covering the veggies and meat.
- Cover and cook on low for 8-10 hours or on high for 6 hours.
- One hour before the crock pot finishes, add the sauerkraut. Gently place it in the slow cooker around the corned beef and submerge in the broth/liquid. Cook for the remaining time.
- Remove the corned beef to a plate, slice, and enjoy with the veggies and kraut from the slow cooker.
Notes
- I like the refrigerated bag of kraut at the store but the canned type works as well.
- It’s ok if the corned beef isn’t completely submerged in the beer, but it should at least be covering the bottom half. If you don’t have enough liquid, add additional beer or beef broth until the beef is at least partially submerged.
- Leftover corned beef keeps well sealed in an airtight container in the fridge for up to 5 days.
If I’m going to put sauerkraut in the crockpot, do I still need to put cabbage in as well?
This recipe uses sauerkraut instead of cabbage.
Is it generally a good idea to have your slow cooker pre-heated and up to temperature before adding the ingredients?
i forgot one question the size of my corned beef is 2.5 pounds how long do i cook?? thanks again!!!
help my first time using a crock pot or making corned beef. do i use the little steamer thingy that comes with the crockpot? and i added the bottle of beer (i only have light) and it doesnt cover the meat or the veggies is that ok? and i rinsed the meat thoroughly under cold water but i didn’t over rinse now do i need to worried about it being to salty? please help!!! tytytyty
I’m not familiar with any slow cookers that have a steamer. Could it be an instant pot? Either way, you don’t need to use a steamer.
I would recommend cooking on low for eight hours. You can add more beer—the liquid should at least be touching the corned beef but it doesn’t need to be fully submerged. Don’t worry about the rinsing. I’m sure you did great! Good luck!
3/17/24 – Cooked a Costco 6.73 pound Corned Beef Brisket in the 7 quart slow cooker for a family dinner. It came out Excellent!. Rinsed the brisket throughly. I did not cook potatoes & carrots as the large brisket filled the crockpot almost to capacity. Used a bottle of Ale. I did use half the seasoning packet that came with the brisket as well as the spices in the recipe. Slow cooked on low for 8 hours then added 2 pounds of fresh sauerkraut and cooked an additional hour. Brisket done perfect. Super tender & flavorful. The sauerkraut was superb as well.
Will definitely use this method again. May become my favorite recipe for Corned beef.
When you add the saurkraut, do you just put in the liquid too, or drain it?
I drain it.
What can I replace the beer with?
Did anyone drain or rinse their sauerkraut?
I drain it, but don’t rinse it.
I made this on New Years day and it was absolutely delicious. I used Guinness extra stout which made the meat so tender.
So glad to hear you enjoyed the Corned Beef recipe! Thanks for coming back to let me know. It makes our day! If you have a second, we would really appreciate if you could leave a star rating on the recipe!
I am making this today for New Year’s Eve. Recipe states beer to cover vegetables and meat…. 1- 12oz. beer only covers the carrots in the bottom of my crockpot. To cover the meat…. Do I use more beer?
Apologize for the delay! I hope you loved the corned beef. You can always add more beer, but it doesn’t need to completely cover the meat. As long as it’s touching the bottom part of the meat, you should be good!
What kind of lager did you use?
Hi!! I’m new at cooking with beer, but I was wondering, will the alcohol cook out? I’ll be making this for my husband, but I also got a 3 year old that would be eating too, so I just want to be safe!! Thanks!!
Some of the alcohol will definitely cook out. I would feel comfortable giving this to me my 2.5 year old, as the amount he would actually consume would be very minimal, but definitely use your own judgment!
Ok sweet thanks for your quick response!! I will be making a salad to go with it too and he loves salad, actually askes for it daily, so I’d be happy with him just having the salad, but he also likes to eat what my husband and I are eating, so he will probably have a few bites. I just wanted safe rather than have a drunk 3 year old lol… Thanks again!!
What size crockpot do you use for this?
It’s fairly large. I think a 5-6 quart.
I don’t think it really matters, but light beer probably wouldn’t deliver as rich a flavor as a darker ale. The original recipe called for Guinness but we just used some leftover Scotch Ale we had on hand and it worked out fine!
This sounds SO TASTY! Does it matter what kind of beer you use? We have some beer left from a St. Patty’s party Nick went to, and as neither of us are big beer drinkers, it sounds like a good way to use up the leftovers!
Once again, you are making my tummy rumble!
-Christina