Cure amounts ?

TQ is like pokel salt like the Europeans use if i am not mistaking are 0.6% nitrate ((Tender Quick[emoji]174[/emoji] contains salt, sugar (also a preservative), an anti-caking agent, and one-half percent each of sodium nitrite and sodium nitrate.))

 and Cure#1 contains 6.25 percent sodium nitrite and 92 percent sodium chloride as well as an anti-caking agent and a very small amount of FD&C Red No. 3 to dye it cotton candy pink 

 The Sausage Maker recommends using one level teaspoon per five pounds of ground meat.I weighed it on a scale and it was 5 grams of cure one per 1 lbs 453.592 grams of meat weight. Remember all sea salt contain trace amounts of natural Nitrites

This is the ratio i use when i make my sausage but i use the amount of salt that  the recipe calls for  - the amount of cure 1 weight, then when i add in the cure one then i have to correct amount of salt.  

If your making fresh sausage to eat right away  and don't plan on smoking it you don't need cure 1

If I am doing a ham then, i  approach it the same way at least 3 days in cure per lbs its better to error on  leaving in cure longer than not long enough..

you can rub it down flip it every day and put in container with a lid or you can use a vac bag no flipping needed,

If you want to brine it it follow the label it will tell you the amount i do this also and rule i use is 3 days per lbs in brine longer is better  esp if you don't inject the meat with a brine injector.  I hope this has helped  

I do a lot of Cold Smoking and Dry curing sausages and hams and happy to help 

A guess here....   I think TQ was designed for "old world" curing where refrigeration was not readily available for whole muscle meats...   When added per directions, the salt content will be about 6.5% to make the meat safe when stored in a "root cellar" for the duration after smoking and drying in the smokehouse..  Meats were generally cold smoked for up to 30 days, which also dehydrates the meats...  The nitrite was the "quick acting" portion of the cure while the nitrate was the long term protection for the meat..   Nitrate needs the meat to be at ~50ish deg. F so bacteria can grow and "activate" and change the nitrate to nitrite...  Nitrate has no curing activity on meat until it is converted to nitrite... 

Anywho, that's my 2 cents.... 

mosparky said:

 
I'll keep it short. Can any one explain why TQ has one ratio for whole muscle meats and anouther for ground meats, yet Cure #1 has no such differentiation that I can find ? Did I overlook it somewhere ?

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I've often wondered that same thing, but nobody seems to have the answer, so I just keep following the TQ prescribed amounts.

I would however imagine if you put the suggested amount of TQ for Whole Meat into Ground Meat, you'd have too much salt in the Ground Meat.

However if you use the Suggested amount for Whole Meat to Dry Cure Whole meat properly, it won't be too salty, unless you Dry Cure it much too long.

Bear