Rookie Questions

[Boardtowndawg]

I have been doing some reading and seen a lot of people talk about brining. My questions relate to that. What exactly is a brine and what does it do? I did a search and found Pops curing brine (I think its called that), so are there different types of brines? Sorry for so many questions just trying to learn ha.

 

[JC in GB]

Brining is used to infuse flavor and moistness to meats. Meat brines vary in ingredients and strenght depending on your final product expectation. Brines are usually mixed with equal amounts of sugar and salt in a quantity of water. I usually brine meats for a maximum of 18 hours so as not to affect the texture of the meat. Some cooks leave meat brining much longer. Say like a delicatessen corned beef which can stay in brine for weeks. My best advice is to start with a very simple brine and get a feel for how it affects taste and texture then branch out with more complex seasonings. Hope this was helpful.

 

[banderson7474]

I have been doing some reading and seen a lot of people talk about brining. My questions relate to that. What exactly is a brine and what does it do? I did a search and found Pops curing brine (I think its called that), so are there different types of brines? Sorry for so many questions just trying to learn ha.

I normally only brine poultry and there are tons of brine recipes on the net. I've never done a cure but to me that's a diff type which there are a lot of people here that are into it but I believe it changes the meat significantly like making sausage or pastrami etc.

I started off brining turkeys but now try to brine any chicken I have and sometimes I will be lazy and just put salt and water in it and let it sit in that for a few hours. However, you can do a search in here and get tons of recipes I'm sure as well.

 

[Boardtowndawg]

So would there necessarily be anytime you wouldn’t want to use a brine? I know it’s another step to take but are there meats that you wouldn’t want to brine?

 

[banderson7474]

I don't think it would ever hurt. The only possible problem is if there's too much salt in the brine and you brine it too long. Just try some stuff out and see what you would like. I think when it comes to beef a dry brine or seasoning and wrapping for 24hrs is a lot better than wet brine but that's just me. Really the only time I really hear to brine is with turkey and chicken and I second that vote.

 

[Boardtowndawg]

Gotcha, thank y’all for the help!

 

[6GRILLZNTN]

Everyone is going to have an opinion on this subject, but the only thing I tend to brine is poultry. I have found chicken breasts really benefit from brining. As stated above, several good brines can be found on this forum. If I'm grilling poultry I brine using the Slaughterhouse brine overnight, rinse, and let it dry a bit before hitting the grill.. If I am frying poultry, I brine with buttermilk and some hot sauce and dredge in seasoned AP flour before hitting the oil.

 

[Bearcarver]

I agree with the guys who only Brine Turkey (If it's not already injected before you bought it), and Chicken Breasts.
IMHO nothing else needs it.
That said, I've been known do do a little Marinating here & there.

Bear

 

[chilerelleno]

Brining via wet,dry or injection is a great way to do three things,
1) Retain moisture
2) Tenderize
3) Enhance flavor
And these are accomplished very simply with either salt or a saline solution due to the process of osmosis
We can add sugars, herbs, spices and more to make a simple wet or injectable brine into a flavor marinade.

I've come to prefer dry and injection brining, and injection marinading.

If I wet brine it is in combination with a heavy marinade for tenderizing and flavor.

Dry and injection often get combined use on pork and poultry.

 

[Boardtowndawg]

I guess I was thinking a brine had to be one specific thing to accomplish the tenderizing, flavor enhancing, etc. sounds like it can be any mixture of spices you want really? What’s the difference in a dry brine and a rub? You just let it sit longer before you cook it?

 

[chilerelleno]

https://www.smoking-meat.com/brining-meat

 

[chilerelleno]

Salt that is all that is needed for a brine be it wet or dry.
Everything else you add to it is either a tenderizer are flavor enhancer.

Any rub or seasoning mix with salt in it can act as a dry brine.
It's effectiveness will vary due to how much salt is in it how much salt actually contact them eat and how much time is given for brining (osmosis) to occur.

Put rub on meat and in awhile it gets to looking wet, it is the salt in the rub creating a brine with the meat's juices.
Yes, give it time to re-absorb and it's brined to some degree.

 

[TomKnollRFV]

I just will put this out so there is no confusion:

Do not mistake the brine used in curing for brine used for overnight flavour and moisture enhancement. You need to be very certain of what you are doing when it comes to curing products like bacon etc.

I just wanted to put that out with out links to articles etc. I've seen a few FB posts where people confused one for the other etc with bad results.

 

[Boardtowndawg]

https://www.smoking-meat.com/brining-meat

Thanks for this. I appreciate it.

 

[Boardtowndawg]

I just will put this out so there is no confusion:

Do not mistake the brine used in curing for brine used for overnight flavour and moisture enhancement. You need to be very certain of what you are doing when it comes to curing products like bacon etc.

I just wanted to put that out with out links to articles etc. I've seen a few FB posts where people confused one for the other etc with bad results.

Yea I just realized that. I wasn’t trying to cure anything just maybe try an overnight brine or something like that.

 

[TomKnollRFV]

Yea I just realized that. I wasn’t trying to cure anything just maybe try an overnight brine or something like that.

Oh I figured as much, but I felt putting it out there in plain terms was a good idea in case other new fellas are reading too :)

 

[GaryHibbert]

I agree with brining chicken and turkey, but I ALWAYS brine pork chops too.
Gary

 

[chilerelleno]

I agree with brining chicken and turkey, but I ALWAYS brine pork chops too.
Gary

Amen!
Pork benefits immensely from brining, especially loin cuts.

 

[Boardtowndawg]

I agree with brining chicken and turkey, but I ALWAYS brine pork chops too.
Gary

See that’s wild to me cause I would think, in my limited knowledge, that pork would be salty enough that you wouldn’t want to brine it. Much to learn.

 

[chilerelleno]

See that’s wild to me cause I would think, in my limited knowledge, that pork would be salty enough that you wouldn’t want to brine it. Much to learn.

Why would raw and or uncured pork be salty?
Not like we're talking about salt cured ham and bacon, which of coarse you don't want to brine.