Every week, we sell thousands of pounds of Zingerman’s Corned Beef—piled high on sandwiches and sliced for guests to bring home. It’s arguably the ingredient that makes our Reubens so iconic (shhh, don’t tell the other components!). But what makes it so dang special? Join us for a little journey, from the origins of corned beef to its status as a deli staple. We’ll share what makes our corned beef a stand-out staple along with all of the ways you can enjoy it at the Deli.
Serving Up a Slice of History
Corned beef is cured (aka preserved) beef, and while the tradition of salting beef as a way of preserving it has been around for thousands of years, the term “corned beef” is newer (well, relatively speaking anyway, it’s still a few hundred years old). Despite our strong association of corned beef with Irish cuisine, beef didn’t originally play a major role in Irish diets. Cows were considered sacred animals—prized for their milk and seen as a symbol of wealth. That only changed when England seized much of the country, bringing its beef-eating culture along with it and importing Irish cattle herds on the regular. That is, until the Cattle Acts of 1663 and 1667 cramped England’s style, or rather, their ability to get live cows from Ireland. The result was a growing trade in salted Irish beef, dubbed “corned beef” due to the corn kernel-sized salt crystals used to cure the meat.
Fast forward a few hundred years and hop across the pond to the U.S., and you’d find that the largest immigrant populations in New York were the Irish and the Eastern European Jewish people. Journalist Matt Blintz shared the result of these two groups coming together in Food & Wine:
Settling in the same overcrowded urban neighborhoods, the two populations formed a strong bond that encouraged the mixing of cultures. Due to the Jewish religion’s dietary restrictions, an influx of kosher butchers made its way into New York’s Irish/Jewish neighborhoods. So, the Irish often bought their meat from kosher butchers; brisket was an overwhelming favorite at New York City kosher butcher shops, and it is likely that kosher butchers used this particular cut of meat to make the corned beef that their Irish friends loved so much.
Today, corned beef remains a staple of Jewish delis across the country, and is no different here at Zingerman’s in Ann Arbor.
Nice to Meat You: The Story of Zingerman’s Corned Beef
We’ve been getting corned beef from Sy Ginsberg at United Meat & Deli in Detroit since the day we opened. In fact, not only was Sy there to make a delivery on the day that co-founders Paul Saginaw and Ari Weinzweig first opened the doors, Sy timed it so he could help work the first lunch rush! As he elaborates:
I delivered corned beef out of the back of my Volkswagen, and I would stay and work lunch hour with them on the sandwich board, training their staff. And consequently, I was showing them how to make the sandwiches. So I made the first sandwich that ever went out at Zingerman’s.
Sy has been working with delis since he was a teenager, first in other people’s, then owning his own, and then advising other deli owners. After eventually tiring of the restaurant life, he shifted to curing his own meats, to recreate the quality and authentic flavors he remembered from his youth, opening his business in 1982, just like us! His desire to help preserve old-world deli traditions led him to do a couple of things differently than other folks who cure corned beef. All the seasonings he uses are minimally processed. Take garlic, a primary ingredient in corned beef. Most producers use powdered garlic which is typically dehydrated with chemicals and then mixed with emulsifiers to keep it shelf stable. It tastes like a stale bouillon cube. Sy uses freshly squeezed garlic juice, which gives the beef a pure garlic flavor.
We worked with Sy to create our own recipe for Zingerman’s Corned Beef and we’ve been using it for so long that we can finally call it exclusively our own. So while you can find Sy’s products at retailers and restaurants from Anchorage to Miami, you won’t find our exclusive Zingerman’s Corned Beef anywhere else, which is why you really can taste the difference! As Laura Wonch, a former Deli Sandwich Line Manager, once wrote,
“Showing love and care in all our actions” doesn’t just apply to guest service, but also to our great food. And the story of our corned beef, and all the achievement and care for it by staff over the years proves it—want to taste the Zingerman’s difference? Have a reuben!
And, as is the case with every product we sell and serve to guests, we’ve put a lot of effort into making sure we’re serving the same high-quality Zingerman’s Corned Beef every time. We have regular tastings and scorings and created passports (internal training programs) on cooking and slicing corned beef.
Bready or Not: Corned Beef at the Deli
Our original reuben is a classic, so much so that it’s been on the menu since Paul Saginaw and Ari Weinzweig first opened the doors of Zingerman’s Delicatessen on March 15th, 1982. “Our goal,” says Paul, “was to make a sandwich so big you needed two hands to hold it and when you took a bite, Russian dressing would drip down your arms.” Things at the Deli have changed a fair amount since then, but our sandwiches are still as impressive and delicious as ever.
Since then, we’ve only changed our reuben “recipe” twice, and really, those changes were merely ingredient upgrades. The first was in 1992 when the Bakehouse opened; we started using their Jewish Rye bread and we still hand-slice it daily for our sandwiches. The second update came 20 years later when we switched to using locally made sauerkraut from The Brinery. Today, you’ll find a number of different corned beef items on our menu and not to toot our own horn (well okay, just a little bit), but they’re as beloved by folks with names you know (Barack Obama, Oprah, Mindy Kaling) as they are by the ones you don’t, from weekly regulars to first-time guests.
Corned Beef Sandwiches (& More)
#2 Zingerman’s Reuben
It probably won’t come as a surprise to hear that this remains our most popular sandwich! It features Zingerman’s Corned Beef, Swiss Emmental cheese, The Brinery sauerkraut, and our own Russian dressing.
#13 Sherman’s Sure Choice
Another one of our top ten bestsellers and another classic sandwich from when we first opened, the #13 is like the #2, but we swap in coleslaw in place of the sauerkraut.
#1 Who’s Greenberg Anyway?
Named for what was almost the Deli’s moniker, this sandwich features Zingerman’s Corned Beef, chopped liver, leaf lettuce, and our own Russian dressing.
#4 Dinty Moore
The Dinty Moore includes Zingerman’s Corned Beef, lettuce, tomato, and our own Russian dressing.
#81 Oswald’s Mile High
Ari’s favorite keeps it simple with Zingerman’s Corned Beef and yellow mustard.
#81.5 Rick’s 50/50 Mix
One of our top ten bestsellers, this sandwich features a mix of our Zingerman’s Corned Beef and our Pastrami with yellow mustard.
#79 Sparky Get Your Zing On
Created by longtime Deli fans, it’s so darn good that this former Sandwich of the Month earned a permanent spot on the menu. Made with Zingerman’s Corned Beef, all-natural turkey, provolone, spicy fire-roasted New Mexico green chiles, tomatoes, yellow mustard, and our own Russian dressing.
#422 Eddie’s Big Deal
Named for an early manager at the Deli (and our address, 422 Detroit Street), this is a hearty plate of housemade corned beef hash served with buttered Jewish Rye toast and our own spicy ketchup.
Deli Counter Groceries
Want to make a reuben sandwich at home? You can pick up a pound of our Corned Beef from our Deli Counter, or go for a whole Reuben Kit. Our deli meats are all available to order ahead, but if you stop in to see us, you can sample them to help you decide—though fair warning, sampling can result in going home with more items than originally expected! (Psst: Hoping to recreate a #81.5 at home? You’re in luck, you can also get our own Pastrami and Lean Pastrami at our deli counter.)
