Corned Beef In A Clay Cooker - cooking recipe

Ingredients

1 (4 -5 lb) corned beef brisket
2 cups water
1 lemon
1/2 cup packed brown sugar
1/4 cup fine dry breadcrumb
1 teaspoon dijon-style mustard
whole cloves
1/2 cup dry sherry

Preparation

Soak the top and bottom of clay pot (brand I use is Romertopf, size is # 111) in cold water for 15 minutes. Drain.
Rinse corned beef with cold water. Place meat in deep kettle; add water to cover. Heat to boiling; drain. Place meat, fat side up, in clay pot, add 2 cups water.
Place covered clay pot in cold oven. Set oven to 425\u00b0F Bake until corned beef is tender, about 2 hours. Pour off and discard cooking liquid.
Grate lemon rind; squeeze and reserve lemon juice. Mix brown sugar, bread crumbs, mustard and lemon rind. Stud top of corned beef with cloves. Pat brown sugar mixture over top of brisket. Mix lemon juice and sherry. Drizzle half the mixture over corned beef.
Bake covered 30 minutes. Drizzle with remaining sherry mixture. Bake uncovered until topping is browned, 10--15 minutes. Cut corned beef into thin slices. Spoon cooking liquid over slices.