Salt Brining Tips

smoketrailsteve · Aug 14, 2017

Hey guys

I decided to try something different after my last successful brine experiment with beef eye of Round so I made a humorous (hopefully) video with some general brining tips. Check out the link below and let me know what you think.

[VIDEO][/VIDEO]

chef jimmyj · Aug 14, 2017

Nicely done and refreshingly accurate!...JJ

Bearcarver · Aug 14, 2017

Great Video!!

Even an 80% deaf old guy like me can understand every word you said---Very Clear!!

I remember when I tried to brine my first Fish with the "Float-an-egg" trick---WAY to Salty for me!!!

Bear

smoketrailsteve · Aug 14, 2017

Bearcarver said:
Great Video!!

Even an 80% deaf old guy like me can understand every word you said---Very Clear!!

I remember when I tried to brine my first Fish with the "Float-an-egg" trick---WAY to Salty for me!!!

Bear

Thanks Bearcarver. To be honest I have not tried the floating egg trick but I think I will give it a shot to see what it's all about. I used to brew my own beer and I used a specific gravity hydrometer that floated in the water. I recon that could give you a better read of salinity than an egg (but its way easier just to go by measuring volume).

big t bbq · Aug 15, 2017

My Grandma and uncles used to use the "float an egg" method, for everything they smoked, but they never had any consistency in final product. different eggs float at different salinity.

browneyesvictim · Aug 15, 2017

Good stuff!

The 1C per gallon ratio is a good one to commit to memory. It should also be noted weather that is kosher salt, pickling salt or table salt etc. or just go by weight. Perhaps its not as important for a relatively short brine time...

zymer · Aug 15, 2017

Ya, giving the weight of salt for a brine is pretty key. Notsomuch for yourself if you always use the same salt and are happy with the results, but when offering up a formula for others you never know what kind of salt they will be using.

Most know there's a big difference in the volume:weight ratio between table salt and kosher salt, but many don't realize the ratio can vary significantly among brands of kosher salt. This has to do with differing manufacturing processes that result in different size/shape flakes that affects how much air is in the volume measure (some pack more tightly than others). Take a look at the chart in the following link. It's shows how big a difference the volume:weight ratio is between the two most popular kosher salts (Morton's & Diamond Crystal): http://www.seriouseats.com/2013/03/ask-the-food-lab-do-i-need-to-use-kosher-salt.html

Thanks for the tip on identifying witches. I always thought the way to tell is if they weighed the same as a duck.

smoketrailsteve · Aug 16, 2017

zymer said:
Ya, giving the weight of salt for a brine is pretty key. Notsomuch for yourself if you always use the same salt and are happy with the results, but when offering up a formula for others you never know what kind of salt they will be using.

Most know there's a big difference in the volume:weight ratio between table salt and kosher salt, but many don't realize the ratio can vary significantly among brands of kosher salt. This has to do with differing manufacturing processes that result in different size/shape flakes that affects how much air is in the volume measure (some pack more tightly than others). Take a look at the chart in the following link. It's shows how big a difference the volume:weight ratio is between the two most popular kosher salts (Morton's & Diamond Crystal): http://www.seriouseats.com/2013/03/ask-the-food-lab-do-i-need-to-use-kosher-salt.html

Thanks for the tip on identifying witches. I always thought the way to tell is if they weighed the same as a duck.

Glad to see another Monty Python fan around here! (I'm sure there's more). Thanks for the tips and the link. I think it would be interesting to test the specific gravity/salinity of kosher vs Krystal vs table vs sea salt. Maybe a future video where I get more scientific.

stovebolt · Aug 16, 2017

Well done. Point for you.

Chuck

ab canuck · Aug 16, 2017

Great video, Chk'd out your site as well, Good job from a fellow Albertan..... Point....

zymer · Aug 22, 2017

Have a question:

I understand the chemistry of brining, and the value of it. Unfortunately, I'm hesitant to try it because I have to restrict salt intake and brines have massive amounts. I know not all the salt in a brine is absorbed into the meat, but is there any way to test how much? Maybe check the salinity of the brine pre then post soak? I'm open to ideas and suggestions.

It's not a huge deal for me since I've never been a big fan of dominant salt flavor anyway, and perfectly content with the Q I cook now. Just curious if I can amp up my game without health consequences.

daveomak · Aug 22, 2017

zymer said:
Have a question:

I understand the chemistry of brining, and the value of it. Unfortunately, I'm hesitant to try it because I have to restrict salt intake and brines have massive amounts. I know not all the salt in a brine is absorbed into the meat, but is there any way to test how much? Maybe check the salinity of the brine pre then post soak? I'm open to ideas and suggestions.

It's not a huge deal for me since I've never been a big fan of dominant salt flavor anyway, and perfectly content with the Q I cook now. Just curious if I can amp up my game without health consequences.

Zymer, afternoon, YES.... weigh the meat and add 1.8-2% salt.... if in a brine, weigh the meat, add 20% of the meats weight in water... add 1.8-2% salt to the weight of the meat AND the water... the meat will not get above 2%... refer for several days... generally 7 days per inch of thickness...

zymer · Aug 28, 2017

zymer said:
Have a question:

I understand the chemistry of brining, and the value of it. Unfortunately, I'm hesitant to try it because I have to restrict salt intake and brines have massive amounts. I know not all the salt in a brine is absorbed into the meat, but is there any way to test how much? Maybe check the salinity of the brine pre then post soak? I'm open to ideas and suggestions.

It's not a huge deal for me since I've never been a big fan of dominant salt flavor anyway, and perfectly content with the Q I cook now. Just curious if I can amp up my game without health consequences.

Some answers here: https://www.cooksillustrated.com/how_tos/8474-how-much-sodium-is-in-brined-food

Search

Search

Salt Brining Tips

smoketrailsteve

Smoke Blower

chef jimmyj

Gone but not forgotten. RIP

Bearcarver

Gone but not forgotten RIP

smoketrailsteve

Smoke Blower

big t bbq

Fire Starter

browneyesvictim

Master of the Pit

zymer

Fire Starter

smoketrailsteve

Smoke Blower

stovebolt

Smoking Fanatic

ab canuck

Master of the Pit

zymer

Fire Starter

daveomak

SMF Hall of Fame Pitmaster

zymer

Fire Starter

Similar threads

Latest posts

Hot Threads

Spammer PMs, Anybody Else?

Lost my dad yesterday

On the Edge of Trying Sausage Making

Took a stroll this afternoon

Don't let your Meatloaf