Corned Beef and Cabbage - Jamaican Style

This quick and easy Jamaican-style Corned Beef & Cabbage is our go-to recipe for busy weeknights. It's a flavorful and fast take on a traditional dish.

 

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Full Recipe Ingredients/Instructions are available in the 
recipe card at the bottom of the post. 
You can find important tips/tricks in the
blog post.

Corned Beef and Cabbage recipe, just in time for St. Patrick's Day. When I think of St. Patrick's Day, I think of the color green, the movie Leprechaun in the Hood, beer, and, of course, Corned Beef and Cabbage. Growing up in a Jamaican household, this was a frequent dinner option that I loved, and still do. So when anyone talks about corned beef and cabbage, all I can think of is the Jamaican version, also sometimes referred to as "bully beef."

So, what sets Jamaican Corned Beef and Cabbage apart? The use of canned meat, of course!

First, let's do some mise en place (I love that word!) – get all your ingredients ready for cooking, because this is a quick recipe.

Ingredients Needed

Ingredient amounts and full recipe instructions are on the printable recipe card at the bottom of the post.

• Green Cabbage - you will need ½ of a head of green cabbage that has been shredded with a knife.
• Green bell pepper, yellow onion, garlic, Roma tomatoes, thyme.
• Seasonings: Ketchup, ground black pepper, scotch bonnet pepper sauce (or any other hot sauce)

How to make Jamaican Corned Beef and Cabbage

Shred half a medium-sized cabbage into medium-sized shreds, chop 1 green pepper, chop 1 medium-sized onion, mince 2 cloves garlic, and chop 2 roma tomatoes.

Next, you will heat 1 Tablespoon of olive oil over medium-high heat in a skillet. I did this in a "Dutch pot." OMG, how cool is it that I own a Dutch pot?! I got this from my dear mother, and I barely use it, so I get excited every time I whip it out.

Look, how cool 🙂

Once your oil is heated, sauté green peppers and onions for about 3 minutes, or until softened.

Next, add the garlic and stir for about a minute more. After the garlic has cooked, add your shredded cabbage to the skillet (or Dutch pot) and continuously stir for about 3 minutes, allowing the cabbage to soften but not get too mushy. Add your Roma tomatoes and 2 springs of thyme.  

Now comes the fun part: adding your corned beef!

Opening a can of corned beef is an interesting adventure in itself! There's this weird key on the side that you turn to get it open. It has directions, but it definitely took me a while to get the hang of it.

Once you've added your corned beef, break it up in the pot and stir it well with the other ingredients.

Looks delicious, right?! Well, you're not done yet. Add 1 tablespoon of ketchup (yes, ketchup on corned beef!) and stir. An optional but highly recommended ingredient is "hot peppa" sauce, also known as scotch bonnet sauce. It's made from scotch bonnet peppers, which can be hard to find fresh where I live, so the sauce is a great substitute. You can usually find it in any international supermarket. Just a heads up, it's delicious but spicy! I added only ½ teaspoon to this dish to keep it kid-friendly.

Reduce the heat to medium and let everything cook for 3 to 5 minutes, or until the corned beef is heated through. Season with salt and pepper to taste, but go easy on the salt since corned beef is already pretty salty.

And there you have it – corned beef and cabbage, Jamaican style! I like to serve mine over plain white rice or pile it high on bread for a delicious sandwich. Yum!

Looking for more Jamaican recipes? Try these out...

• Jamaican Steamed Cabbage
• Jamaican Rum Punch
• Jamaican Cornmeal Porridge
• Jamaican Jerk Pork (Air Fryer)
• Jamaican Carrot Juice
• Jamaican Jerk Chicken Soup (Instant Pot)
• Jamaican Rice and Peas (Instant Pot)
• Jamaican Oxtails (Instant Pot)
• Curry Chicken

I hope you love this recipe as much as we do. If you have tried this recipe or any other recipe on my blog, please rate it and let me know how it turned out in the comments below! Your feedback is invaluable and helps us grow. Thank you for your support!