If you’re a fan of cooked cabbage, you could add some green cabbage wedges along with the potatoes and carrots to the bouillon. And although not traditional where I come from, there’s no reason why you can’t sneak some other root vegetables in the broth, such as turnips or rutabagas, like they do in French Pot-au-feu. Just make sure to cut them about the same size as the other vegetables so they cook for the same time.
The pink curing salt is not required but does give corned beef its traditional red color. You can omit it, if you’d like, being aware that the corned beef will be brown, rather than pink. There is a link in the post to someone who used beet juice to color the meat. If you want to use the curing salt (sometimes called Prague Salt), you can find it at
Amazon,
Butcher Packer or at stores that sell spices and seasonings. Note that Pink Himalayan salt is not the same thing, nor is
Morton Tender Quick.
Mustard is obligatory to serve with this dish. Here in France, I served it with Dijon, but spicy brown mustard in America is good, or you can make
homemade mustard. (For a brown version, use dark mustard seeds.) Other options for condiments include horseradish, cornichons and very coarse salt.