My friend Janet grew up in a Nebraska farming community. She told me her grandmother always brought her corned beef casserole to potlucks, and it was immediately devoured. They came home with an empty casserole dish every time!
Of course, I asked her if she'd share her grandma's recipe, and she did!! Yay!! I love corned beef any way you serve it, and I had never heard of this dish!
I was surprised to know it is made with Libby's canned corned beef, a product I had never tried. In fact, I did not know it existed! I researched and found it is used in many recipes on popular food blogs!
Canned corned beef is processed meat made from beef that has been cured and cooked, then sealed in a can along with some of the cooking juices or broth. It's something handy to have on the shelf.
The beef used is brisket or a similar cut, and it's cured with salt and spices like coriander and peppercorns, which produce its distinctive corned beef flavor. It's then cooked under pressure until tender and preserved by vacuum sealing it in a can.
Canned corned beef is a convenient and shelf-stable product with a long shelf life. Canned corned beef can be made into sandwiches, hash, stews, and pasta dishes. It's popular in many cuisines worldwide, particularly in dishes with roots in Irish, British, and Caribbean cooking.
This cozy dish is made with very basic ingredients, all packed with flavor! The only ingredient not pictured is onion, and you can use instant minced onion or, better still, saute some onion in a little olive oil or butter before combining it with the other ingredients.
It's easy, it's pretty quick to make, and it makes a generous corned beef casserole that should serve six. I have had excellent results reheating it in the microwave for Papa and me. You can easily cut the recipe in half or double it for a big family.
One twelve-ounce can of corned beef is all you need for this hearty dish when you combine it with cheese and elbow macaroni. I'm sure you could make this casserole using leftover corned beef from St. Patrick's Day, too!!
Cook the macaroni in salted water until al dente, then drain it and set it aside while you make the sauce.
In a saucepan over medium heat, combine the Velveeta cheese, milk, onions, and one 10.5-ounce can of cream of chicken soup. Stir until it's all nice and melty.
Add the cooked macaroni and stir the mixture until it's well blended. As you can see, I added parsley for color because I can't help myself; I have to. You don't unless you want to. 😉
Open the corned beef (so cute, you open it old-style with the key attached to the can.) Break it up with a fork, stir it into the creamy sauce, and put it in a greased casserole dish. I used a ceramic baking dish that measures 8.5 by 10.5 inches.
One of the best parts of this dish is the crispy buttered crumb topping. It's so easy to make in a food processor. Tear four to six pieces of day-old bread or buns into pieces. (I put the heels, odds, and ends of bread in a freezer bag and freeze it until I need it.)
Pulse it in a food processor until it's all reduced to crumbs, then add about four tablespoons of soft butter and pulse again until the butter is absorbed. While you're at it and have the food processor out, make a bunch of buttered crumbs, then freeze them to top mac and cheese or the next casserole!
Put a generous topping of buttered crumbs on top of the corned beef casserole and bake it at 350 degrees for 25 to 30 minutes, or until the crumbs are a light golden brown.
We're very simple and old school, and I served green beans and a jello salad (yes, JEll-O!!) with this corned beef casserole, and we thought it was great! We also love my Old-Fashioned American Goulash and Runza Casserole, so I'm sharing the recipes with you!
A cozy old-fashioned casserole of pasta, corned beef, and Velveeta that made one Nebraska woman famous at every potluck!!
You can also use leftover corned beef cut into small pieces.
If you liked this recipe, you are my people! So please share this post on your social media accounts like Facebook, Instagram, Twitter, and Pinterest if you enjoyed this recipe today. It would really tickle me, and I'd be ever so grateful; thank you!
Love, GB (Betty Streff)
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