I'm trying to brine a brisket this weekend based on this Ruhlman guideline: http://www.leitesculinaria.com/recipes/cookbook/homemade_corned_beef.html

The amount of brisket I have only needs 3L of water (and by this topic, 2 x 3 = 6 T of table salt). I know how to adjust my salt levels...but how would one adjust the quantities of aromatics when you're going by someone else's recipe?

In this case it would then come down to personal taste. I see that the recipe you are referring to is for Homemade Corned Beef, so I am not sure that you want to or need to use the exact spices. Unless you are also trying to make corned beef?

If you are making 3 lts and their recipe is for 1 gallon (4 lts) you will just need a bit less. I also noticed that there is a convert button on that recipe, so you also use that to help you out.

Hope this helps...basically there are no strict rules when it comes to adding spices etc. this is the fun part of brining. I guess it also comes down to what end result you are looking for, e.g., corned beef.

Hope this helps! Good luck.

Thanks for pointing out the conversion tool, Dawn; didn't see it at first. I am indeed trying to make corned beef so the exact spices for the brine are important in this case.

Hopefully I can report back in 5 days to say it was a success...will try a less ambitious chicken brine while we wait!

Good luck and yes please let me know how it turns out, very curious. Myself I have not made corned beef, but I am sure it would be fun.

Enjoy the chicken...my fave!

Can i use brines again?

No is the answer to this one...as brine is contaminated and also a lot of the salt has been absorbed by the previous product, so the ratios would be off.

I'm an old hand at brining: no turkey cooked in my house for the last couple of decades has escaped brining prior to cooking, for instance.

Brining does indeed yield more juicy results. However, if you are used to dry and stringy white meat on poultry, or dry pork, you are overcooking. Brining will help, but it will not cure this problem. If, for instance, you brine a turkey, then cook it until the temperature thingie pops up, it will be a bit juicier than it would be if you hadn't brined. The problem is that the thingie pops up about twenty degrees too late. Cook your bird to 165 degrees, instead of 185 degrees, and the difference will astonish you, brined or not.

If you brine, then cook to temperature, as opposed to time, you will be amazed at the results you will achieve.

The same goes for pork. Pork only needs to be cooked to 150 degrees, but most people cook it WAY over that, and then wonder why it is dry. Sure, a pork roast that is brined and then cooked to 190 will be juicier than one that is not brined and cooked to the same temperature, but one that is brined, cooked to 150, then allowed to rest will be heavenly.

And that is another problem a lot of people have. They cook a turkey, or a pork roast, scramble to make sure everything else is done when the main meat comes out of the oven, and then immediately plunk it down on the table and begin carving. And everyone exclaims "Look how juicy it is!" as they watch the juice that should stay in the meat run onto the carving board, or plate, or whatever.

But, I don't wish to belittle the effects of brining. By all means, brine your turkey, your pork, your chicken. It is very easy to do, and has amazing benefits. Shellfish, shrimp especially, also benefit from brining. If you wish to turn out plump, juicy, and tender shrimp, brine it for a half-hour or so before you cook it.

But if brining has suddenly rescued you from dry, chewy and stringy white meat, you should try brining and then cooking to temperature. As I said, you'll be amazed at the results.

The cooking degrees you mention for pork for example (150 degrees) - can we use it in Spain? or we have to look for the equivalent. Thks a lot for your help.

Hi Montse,

Well, if I am not mistaken, you use Celsius there, I was using Fahrenheit. On the Celsius scale, pork would need to be cooked to about 66 degrees, and poultry to about 74.

A roast is by definition not covered when it goes in the oven. Covering it turns the dry heat method of roasting into the wet heat method of braising. The item basically steams in its own moisture, and this yields completely different results.

Is that safe? How much longer do I have to brine? Could save a lot of time.

The method of brining opens up the pores of meat to allow seasoning and moisture to penetrate into it. This will not work as well (or at all) with frozen meat. Placing frozen meat in a brining solution will help the meat thaw quicker; however as it thaws, some brining will occur on the outer parts of the meat and then eventually through to the center as the meat fully thaws, but the brining will not be very even. Meaning that the outside of the meat can over-brine by the time the inside is properly brined.

I suggest thawing the chicken first and then brining for the best results.

Looking forward ("Charcuterie" isn't up yet... :) ), I've been wondering about brining vs. wet curing. I've happily brined chickens (10:1 salt to water, by weight) with great success. I've also just finished curing my first pork belly in a mix of salt, sugar, and pink curing salt (sodium nitrite).

What I'm considering now is a wet cure, sometimes called a "wiltshire cure", on pork loin. The result should be something like English back bacon, not far from your Canadian bacon and different from our regular (streaky) bacon.

So, aside from adding a cure like pink salt to the mix, is there a fundamental difference between brining and curing?

A Wiltshire cure is basically a long brine. Wet curing and brining are term that can be used interchangeably, meaning their salt solutions can be identical, but curing entails the protein will undergo some form of charcuterie rather than a simple cooking process (something that can be stored and aged vs. something cooked and eaten immediately).

Let's be patient and wait till the fundamentals of the lesson come out. By the way, pink salt or nitrites are optional in cures, and again, this will eventually be covered.

Does it make sense to brine duck breast?

Absolutely. I usually brine with some red wine,orange juice, herbs and spices (especially pepper and coriander) added to the mix. I use a moderate brine (3T salt for every liter/quart of combined liquid). For the rest, follow the instructions in the lesson on brining times. You can also air dry the meat for a few hours in the refrigerator before cooking.

I was wondering if it is ok to use the brining solution next day? Let's say I make the brining liquid in the evening let it cool down and then store it in the refrigerator. Next day before cooking using it with the meat e.g. chicken breasts.

So basically, do I have to use the brining liquid right after when it is made (of course properly cooling it down) or later usage will be just as fine?

Good thinking. You sure can make a brine beforehand and store it in the refrigerator. This will give any aromatics or spices even more time to infuse into the liquid.

Once the meat has been added and brined, make sure to discard the brine - never reuse brine as the liquid will be contaminated from the raw meat.

Can you recommend brine solution for a veal tenderloin and how long to brine?

I would go for a simple brine with a veal tenderloin, maybe just some thyme, garlic and onion. But you can play around with this to suit your taste. For more information watch "How to Brine" lesson, in particular Topic 6 which is called How to Flavor Brines.

As for brining times, as a general rule, it is 1 hour for every pound of meat. I suggest starting with a low-salt solution, brine, cook the meat (with a bit of topical seasoning as well) and then see if that is salty enough for you. If not, you can leave it a bit longer next time or use a medium or high-salt solution brine the next time. Just be careful when using a higher salt solution, as this is often used when you are trying to cut down on the brining time.

Brining does take some practice and adjusting to find the salt solution that you prefer. Again for more information check out the lesson (same link as above), for brining times be sure to watch Topic 7.

Hope this helps!

Thanks for the brining lesson.Brining is very simple, and gives excellent results. 40grs. per liter appears the best solution for me.
Regards,
Gaby

It seems that two camps are setting up when it comes to dry brining. Cooks Illustrated (CI) is pre-salting “under the skin” while Russ Parsons of the LA Times has found this completely unnecessary. CI is “brining” for 24 to 48 hours. Meanwhile, Parsons states it will take 3 days for the turkey to reabsorb the moisture pulled by the salt. Would you please provide your insights on this debate: over the skin vs. under the skin and for how long?

Round 2: Judy Rogers, in her Zuni Café Cookbook, suggests a weak wet brine for 5 to 6 days with 1 additional day of refrigeration “so the brine can diffuse evenly.” But, both the US and Canadian Food Inspection Agencies indicate fresh or thawed poultry should be used within one to two days. I have called the USDA and they said restaurants operate under different rules.

I know that government suggestions can get carried to extremes in an attempt to protect even the most frail, but how do you recommend we balance the quest for excellence in food vs. the potential of poisoning our dinner guests?

Thanks, Bob

I think this just comes down to "everyone has their own opinion". Your best bet is to test a few of these suggestions/options out and see which ones works for you.

We brine, we also sometimes season under the skin...it's really just depends on time and what we feel like at the time.

As for the wet brine over 5 or 6 days it seems long to me and personally I would not feel comfortable leaving my poultry uncooked for that long. It may be great though, I have just never tried it, nor am I likely to. Besides life is busy, I am not sure that I could remember to think 5 days in advance :-) when it comes to brining my chicken.

Cheers!

Can you brine two different kinds of meat (chicken and baby back ribs)at the same time in the same brine?

I suppose you could. Just be sure to brine them each for the appropriate amount of time. Cheers!