Salt beef | River Cottage Reunited

Ingredients

• A 2-3kg piece of beef (brisket, silverside, foreflank, shin or a whole tongue)
• 1 bouquet garni
• 1 carrot, chopped
• 1 onion, chopped
• 1 celery stick, chopped
• 1 leek, chopped
• 1 garlic bulb, cut in half
• 5 litres water
• 500g demerara or light brown sugar
• 1kg coarse sea salt
• 1 tsp black peppercorns
• 1 tsp juniper berries
• 5 cloves
• 2 bay leaves
• A sprig of thyme
• A bunch of parsley stalks
• 150g saltpetre (optional)