Corned beef and Brining

Jackie - I didn't know I was doing Craig Claiborne's recipe BUT that's exactly how I do mine - long slow cooking is the secret for corned beef, and once it's done, I remove it, set it aside covered with foil, and add all the veggies into the cooking water - I especially love rutabagas. Then I return the corned beef to the water for a final warmup before slicing/serving.

Re: do you think it meant a horseradish-mustard pickle or two items - horseradish and mustard pickles - cause there is such a thing as mustard pickles and they're delicious. Matter of fact, one of the best was from a friend of mine from Ludlow! She would bring some to Cape Cod and pass them around to everyone. Yummy.

Gina - I printed off your mother's pork chop recipe to try, but have had too much company to get at it - but it's a definite try-out very soon - I thought it sounded great, too.

Re: tough pork chops - about the only way I have found to do them is almost like a pot roast method of cooking - I brown them on both sides with whatever seasonings, usually includes garlic, then add liquid (water with beef base added), onions and cover in a Corning Casserole dish and cook for at least a couple of hours - during the last half hour, I add sliced mushrooms, and then when finished, make a gravy from the juice and serve with mashed potatoes - THEN, they're really fork tender.

Now to the brining part - could you give the proportions of salt to water and length of time for pork chops or chicken? I have an article re: brining, but it's about big quanities, like a turkey. This fascinates me, since one would thing that salt would draw every bit of moisture OUT of the meats! More info, please if anyone does this.

Thanks - June