Basics Of Brining

Brining meats before you cook them adds flavor, tenderness, and reduces cooking times. 

The chemistry behind brining is actually pretty simple. Meat already contains salt water. By immersing meats into a liquid with a higher concentration of salt, the brine is absorbed into the meat. Because the meat is now loaded with extra moisture it will stay moist while it cooks.

Simply put, a brine is nothing more than a salt and water mixture. The typical brine consists of 1 cup of salt for each gallon of cold water (or other liquids).  It is important that you have enough brine to completely submerge the meat without any part being left out of the liquid, weigh it down to stay under, if necessary. Brine the meat for about an hour per pound in the refrigerator or at least keep adding ice so as to keep the temperature about 40 °F.

Once the meat is properly brined remove it. You do not need to rinse unless you were using a high salt concentration in the brine or if there is a layer of visible salt on the surface. Otherwise you can take cuts of meat straight to the smoker or grill. However, whole poultry is the exception. To get a crispy, brown skin, whole birds should be removed from the brine, wrapped in foil or plastic and allowed to sit in the refrigerator overnight or for at least 12 hours to allow the meat to soak up the excess moisture from the skin.

Keep in mind that any flavoring added to the brine will be carried into the meat with the saltwater mixture. Therefore, more flavor can be added by substituting some or all of the water with wine, beer, fruit juices or vinegars as the liquid base for your brine. Apple juice and apple cider vinegar are very popular in many pork and chicken brine recipes.  Also, adding spices, herbs and fruit to the brine will add plenty of flavor throughout the meat.