Add pickling spices up through cardamon pods to a medium frying pan. Toast over medium heat just until fragrant, about 3 minutes (Don’t burn!).
Transfer spices to a mortar or medium bowl. Use a pestle, meat mallet or side of a knife or can to coarsely crush the spices. Stir in the crumbled bay leaves, ground ginger and garlic powder.
Remove 1 ½ tablespoons pickling spices to an airtight container/sandwich bag to store for later (you will use these when roasting). Add remaining pickling spices to a large Dutch oven. Add Kosher salt, brown sugar, pink curing salt, cinnamon and a gallon of water.
Cover to bring to a boil, then remove from heat. Let cool to room temperature then refrigerate until chilled (cooling can take several hours).
Once the brine is chilled, add the brisket. Weigh the brisket down so it's completely submerged in the brine with a bowl filled with pie weights or cans. Cover and brine the brisket in the refrigerator for 5-7 days.
Remove brisket from brine; discard brine. To rinse, add brisket back to the pot and cover with water. Repeat 3-4 times to remove excess salt.
Preheat oven to 350 degrees F.
Transfer brisket to a large roasting pan, fattiest side up. Add 2-3 cups unsalted beef broth to fill 1/4-inch up the sides of the pan. Stir the reserved 1 ½ tablespoons pickling seasonings into the broth.
Whisk the Dijon and honey together (NOT brown sugar) and spread half all over the top of the beef. Add pearl onions if using. Cover the pan tightly with foil and bake at 350 degrees F for 2 ½ hours. If your brisket is closer to 6 pounds, then roast for 3 ½ hours.
After 2 ½ hours (3 ½ hours for 6 lb. brisket), remove the pan from the oven and very carefully remove the foil starting with the opposite end (step away because it will steam a lot). Brush remaining honey mustard over the top of the beef then sprinkle with brown sugar. Arrange the carrots, potatoes and cabbage, in that order, all around the brisket in the pan (you want the potatoes perched on top of the carrots so they’re not swimming in broth).
Tightly cover the pan with foil and bake an additional 2 1/2-3 hours or until the beef registers 185-200 degrees F and vegetables are fork tender. For spicy cabbage, submerge it in the broth the last 10 minutes of cooking.
Optional: Brown the meat.Remove vegetables to a serving platter using a slotted spoon and cover with foil. Broil the brisket on high (550F) for 5-10 minutes until the top is slightly caramelized.
Transfer corned beef to a cutting board and tent with foil. Let rest for 10 minutes before slicing across the grain. Serve with horseradish cream sauce (recipe coming Thursday!) and/or mustard.
Use a Dutch oven/pot just large enough to hold the meat like the one you brined it in. Add the rinsed brisket and 1 ½ tablespoons pickling spices. Add unsalted beef broth until it covers the brisket by 1-inch, meaning there is one-inch of liquid above the top of the brisket. If you don’t have enough broth, you can add water.
Bring to a boil over high heat, then reduce to low, cover, and gently simmer for 4 hours or until the meat is fork tender. You may need to add additional broth or water if it gets too low. Transfer corned beef to a cutting board while you cook the vegetables.
Add the carrots and potatoes to the pot. Add additional water so the vegetables are covered by 1-inch liquid. Simmer for 15 minutes, then add the cabbage and continue to cook until the vegetables are fork tender.
Spray a 6 quart (or larger) slow cooker with non-stick cooking spray. Transfer rinsed brisket to slow cooker. It will be large so you will have to squish it in or slice it in half. Add enough broth so it comes up ¼ inch up the sides of the brisket. Stir 1 ½ tablespoons reserved pickling spices into the broth. Brush brisket with half of the honey mustard sauce. Add carrots and potatoes on top of the brisket.
Cover and cook on LOW for 8-10 hours until brisket is very tender. Add cabbage on top of the carrots and potatoes the last two hours of cooking. If your brisket is tough, it just needs to cook longer.
Optional: Remove brisket to a foil lined baking sheet. Brush brisket with remaining honey mustard sauce and sprinkle with brown sugar. Broil 5-10 minutes, until slightly caramelized.
For the instant pot, you will want to use a 4-pound beef. The brine can stay the same.
Transfer the corned beef to the Instant Pot, and add 6 cups of unsalted beef broth. Stir in 1 ½ tablespoons reserved seasonings.
Seal the lid and select the Meat/Stew or Manual setting on your pressure cooker. Set the cooking time for 55 minutes at high pressure. (The pot will take about 20 minutes to come up to pressure before the cooking program starts.)
When the cooking ends, let the pressure release naturally completely. This will take about 40 minutes. Transfer the beef to a cutting board and tent it with foil.
If adding vegetables: wear heat-resistant oven mitts, and carefully lift out the inner pot and pour out all but 1 cup of the cooking liquid (or 1 ½ cups if using an 8-quart IP) and return the pot.
Place a wire mesh steamer basket inside the pot. Place the carrots and potatoes in the steamer basket, and layer the cabbage on top. It’s okay if the vegetables are slightly above the 2/3 “max fill” marking, but they should not be above the rim of the pot where they could block the pressure valve mechanisms in the pressure cooker lid.
Secure the lid and set the pressure release valve to its sealing position. Cancel the cooking program, then select the Steam program for 4 minutes at high pressure.
The pot will take about 15 minutes to come up to pressure before the cooking program starts. When the cooking program ends, perform a quick pressure release by moving the pressure release valve to its venting position right away, taking care not to get burned by the steam.
