Curing with Pop's Brine

[pc farmer]

Agree. I would inject also.

 

[hondabbq]

So if I am able to add 10 lbs of pork loin to 1 gallon of brine it will cure the same if I had only put 5 lbs of meat in the brine?

 

[hondabbq]

The cure doesn't get diluted because the cure is mixed per gallon of water. The more meat you put in, the more gallons of mixed solution is needed, but the strength of the mixture stays the same.

Bear

See my last post.

 

[Bearcarver]

So if I am able to add 10 lbs of pork loin to 1 gallon of brine it will cure the same if I had only put 5 lbs of meat in the brine?

I don't Brine cure, but I doubt if you could get a full 22" long 10 pound pork loin in one gallon of brine, completely submersed.
However you should double check with Pops---This is his specialty, and I would trust anything he says on the issue.

Bear

 

[ghostguy6]

I'm also a little confused about this as I have found conflicting information. I found one post that said 14 lbs was the maximum and another that says 5 lbs per gallon. Another thread indicates you need to calculate the total weight of meat and brine solution then add cure at a rate of 1 tablespoon per 5 lbs. For example 1 gal of brine plus 5 lbs of meat weighs approximately 13.64 pounds so you would need just under 3 tablespoons of cure.

So I all ask Pop's, what would you say is the maximum amount of meat you can safely use per gallon of brine?

Here is the reply Pop's gave me via a PM. Hopefully this helps.

All the calculations and kerfuffle does not matter. You can toss one pork chop in 55 gallons of brine, or 300 lbs. of bellies in 20 gallons of brine. As long as the CONCENTRATION of the brine does not change, the curing does not change. You increase the amount of CURING SALT per gallon, your curing time shortens. You REDUCE the amount, your curing time lengthens. It is that simple. No weighing, no ratios, nothing. Just make sure the meat(s) are in the brine completely and weighted down so they don't float out of the brine, you are GOOD! Please pass this on to any and every forum wondering about this! Thanks!! My concentration of curing salt per gallon of water is over a third LESS than the maximum allowed (I use 1 oz., a heaping tablespoon, per gallon of water. The maximum is 3.84 oz. per gallon, roughly 4 tablespoons). That is why my estimation of 'a heaping tablespoon' does not have to be critical, it is WELL within the limits of safety.

 

[Bearcarver]

Here is the reply Pop's gave me via a PM. Hopefully this helps.

All the calculations and kerfuffle does not matter. You can toss one pork chop in 55 gallons of brine, or 300 lbs. of bellies in 20 gallons of brine. As long as the CONCENTRATION of the brine does not change, the curing does not change. You increase the amount of CURING SALT per gallon, your curing time shortens. You REDUCE the amount, your curing time lengthens. It is that simple. No weighing, no ratios, nothing. Just make sure the meat(s) are in the brine completely and weighted down so they don't float out of the brine, you are GOOD! Please pass this on to any and every forum wondering about this! Thanks!! My concentration of curing salt per gallon of water is over a third LESS than the maximum allowed (I use 1 oz., a heaping tablespoon, per gallon of water. The maximum is 3.84 oz. per gallon, roughly 4 tablespoons). That is why my estimation of 'a heaping tablespoon' does not have to be critical, it is WELL within the limits of safety.

Exactly what I thought, but I'm no Authority on this method, like Pops is.

Thanks to Pops, From Bear.

 

[gary s]

Good Recipe and advice

Gary

 

[chopsaw]

I had the same questions at first ,,, it really is to easy .

 

[ab canuck]

Great to know, Thx. for posting it

 

[mneeley490]

I have had great success using Pop' cure for some years now. I would only add that when in doubt, leave it in the brine for a longer time. You cannot over-cure using this mixture. I had some bellies in brine for 3 weeks one time, as life got in the way, and they were just as good as if I pulled them at the normal time.

 

[pops6927]

I have had great success using Pop' cure for some years now. I would only add that when in doubt, leave it in the brine for a longer time. You cannot over-cure using this mixture. I had some bellies in brine for 3 weeks one time, as life got in the way, and they were just as good as if I pulled them at the normal time.

Yes, you can safely cure for 30 days. If necessary you may leave it in the cure for up to 45 days without much breakdown, but after that the meat can degrade; get mushy and fall apart.

We would get overloaded during the winter season with multiple hog kills and have a fully-loaded brine cooler of 100 55 gallon drums and the smokehouses were working 24/7 to get the product cured, smoked and out of the store as quickly as possible (this was the custom processing, not commercial product for retail, that was kept entirely separate). So occasionally we'd have to extend timelines to 35, 40 days, but not too often. All barrels were on caster'd dollies to move them easily, sometimes like that little puzzle with one empty square and you'd have to move 12 things to get an A before an E or something like that; it was a challenge. But, we loved it!