Did I possibly use too much cure?

[checkerfred]

So I hardly ever make cured jerky. Only have a few times. I tried it again and read on here about adding weight of meat and water together and then input into the curing calculator (digdogging farm one) when calculating how much cure. I did that but calculated it based on 156ppm instead of 120ppm. Would this give me too much cure?

 

[pops6927]

No, not at all.

 

[checkerfred]

No, not at all.

Thanks!

 

[checkerfred]

How many grams per pound and does it change when adding in a liquid or water and spices or marinate?

 

[DanMcG]

1.1 grams per pound is what you want for 156ppm.
0.88 grams per pound for 120 ppm

How much liquid are you adding?

 

[BGKYSmoker]

Cure #1 is 6.5g per every 5lbs of meat. How hard is that?

Adding 2-3 g of cure per every pound of meat is just too much.

 

[indaswamp]

One ounce of cure per 25# of meat for 156ppm. Since 1 ounce = 28.35 grams, take 28.35 and divide by 25# and you get 1.134g per pound of meat. Multiply that by however many pounds of sausage meat you have. That's how much cure in grams you need.

 

[checkerfred]

1.1 grams per pound is what you want for 156ppm.
0.88 grams per pound for 120 ppm

How much liquid are you adding?

Usually 1:1

 

[checkerfred]

One ounce of cure per 25# of meat for 156ppm. Since 1 ounce = 28.35 grams, take 28.35 and divide by 25# and you get 1.134g per pound of meat. Multiply that by however many pounds of sausage meat you have. That's how much cure in grams you need.

Yeah I get that and do that for sausages...I wanted to know if the amount changes if you are adding liquid to marinate then meat

 

[checkerfred]

Cure #1 is 6.5g per every 5lbs of meat. How hard is that?

Adding 2-3 g of cure per every pound of meat is just too much.

It’s not hard to figure that out. I guess my last post wasn’t clear. I’m interested in knowing if it changes based on liquid/water being added. I’ve read on here to add the weight of the meat + water/marinade and have also been told to not do that. I’m just a little confused on that is all. I use the exact amount you said when doing sausage or even dry curing.

 

[indaswamp]

It’s not hard to figure that out. I guess my last post wasn’t clear. I’m interested in knowing if it changes based on liquid/water being added. I’ve read on here to add the weight of the meat + water/marinade and have also been told to not do that. I’m just a little confused on that is all. I use the exact amount you said when doing sausage or even dry curing.

If you are doing an equilibrium cure, then yes, you need to add the weight of the meat and liquid together because not all the cure dissolved in the liquid will travel into the meat, it will only travel into the meat so long as the meat and solution are not in equilibrium...i.e. the same cure concentration in the meat and solution. Once that has been achieved, the meat will not take up any more cure.

 

[indaswamp]

With smoke sausages, we do add water, but most of that water will be lost during the smoking process from evaporation and cooking so we do not add the weight of the water when adding cure to sausages....

 

[DanMcG]

Yes add cure for the total weight of the meat and brine.

 

[checkerfred]

If you are doing an equilibrium cure, then yes, you need to add the weight of the meat and liquid together because not all the cure dissolved in the liquid will travel into the meat, it will only travel into the meat so long as the meat and solution are not in equilibrium...i.e. the same cure concentration in the meat and solution. Once that has been achieved, the meat will not take up any more cure.

Does the water need to be exactly 1:1 for this?

 

[checkerfred]

With smoke sausages, we do add water, but most of that water will be lost during the smoking process from evaporation and cooking so we do not add the weight of the water when adding cure to sausages....

So in that regard, if you’re making jerky you’re taking out most of the water too. So would you just add the normal amount in this case?

 

[indaswamp]

No... but the meat needs to be surrounded by the brine/cure. The cure can not travel into the meat if the meat is not in contact with the brine.

 

[indaswamp]

So in that regard, if you’re making jerky you’re taking out most of the water too. So would you just add the normal amount in this case?

Yes.

 

[checkerfred]

Yes.

So just to be clear, for jerky I’d just use the correct amount of cure for the meat weight, and not the weight of the meat/marinade or meat/water/spices?

Then an equilibrium brine would be more for something like brining say pastrami or other meats that are cooked but not dried?

 

[indaswamp]

If you are using a marinate-with the cure IN THE MARINATE, you need to add the weight of the meat and the marinate together to calculate your cure. If you are making ground jerky with a jerky gun for example, you just weigh the meat, add the appropriate amount of cure, and then squeeze out the jerky strips and dry.

 

[indaswamp]

Then an equilibrium brine would be more for something like brining say pastrami or other meats that are cooked but not dried?

They could be dried...
The curing process is just the curing process....either dry brine (no liquid added; only what is extracted from the meat via osmosis) or a wet brine where you use a liquid. Once cured, you can dry it....like jerky for example; or not......like ham.....