Corned Beef

I picked up a 5 lb brisket, yesterday, and started brining it for corned beef.  This is my first attempt at corning a brisket.  I used a combination of the recipe from Cook's Illustrated and Alton Brown's, but without saltpeter.  I didn't think it was necessary to have bright red meat, at the expense of nitrosamines.

Brine:

2 C water

1/2 C coarse Kosher salt

1/4 C brown sugar

2 bay leaves, crushed

1 t black peppercorns

1 cinnamon stick, broken into small pieces

1 t mustard seeds

1/2 t ground Jamaican allspice

1/2 t ground cloves

1/2 t ground thyme

1 t paprika

1 t crushed red peppers (couldn't help it)

Simmer brine over low heat, until salt and sugar have dissolved.  Remove from heat and let cool.

Poke a bunch of holes on each side with a meat fork and place in a large ziplock bag.  Pour cooled brine into bag, over brisket.  Close bag, removing as much air as possible.  Place bag in a container and allow to marinate in fridge.

Turn bag once a day and we'll see how it turns out in 5 days.