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Inject Maximum Flavor Into Your Meat With A Trio Of Brines

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Meat injector

While most marinades fall short when it comes to delivering flavor deep inside beef, pork, and poultry, these injection recipes really get the job done.

First of all, mix your injection in a non-reactive container.

When I inject I shoot for a brine that is about 2 to 4% salt by weight. I use Morton Coarse Kosher Salt. Remember, it is a different salinity than table salt or most other salts, even other kosher salts. It will diffuse to a lower concentration within the meat, enough to enhance flavor and bind water, but not enough to give the meat a cured flavor. Here is the math: Morton Coarse Kosher Salt weighs 15 grams/Tablespoon. The recipes below call for 2 Tablespoons Morton Coarse Kosher Salt or 30 grams total. 1 quart of water weighs 944 grams. 30/944 = 3.2%. Note that the Worcestershire has salt in it, so the final injection is probably closer to 3.5%. 

If I add flavor, I try not to go crazy. You can add oils, herbs, spices, sweeteners, syrups, sauces, stocks, broths, colorings, pretty much anything. Fresh papaya or pineapple juice (not canned or bottled) have enzymes that tenderize. But be thoughtful. Do you really want your turkey to taste like Dr. Pepper? If you use herbs or spices, grind them fine. Don’t use dark liquids like soy sauce or Worcestershire on light colored meats like chicken or turkey. Don’t go crazy with sweeteners. Here are the recipes I use. To inject, we like heavy duty reusable injectors such as this Spitjack 2-ounce Injector Gun.

Basic Brine Recipe For Injectors


Meat Injection needle
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Here are several quick injectable brine recipes customized for different types of meat.

Course:
Sauces and Condiments
Cuisine:
American
difficulty scale

Makes:

Servings: 1 quart

Takes:

Prep Time: 10 minutes

Ingredients

Pork Brine Injection

  • 2 tablespoons Morton Coarse Kosher Salt
  • 1 tablespoon sugar
  • 1 tablespoon Worcestershire
  • 2 tablespoons rice vinegar
  • 1 cup apple juice or low sodium pork, chicken, or beef stock
  • 3 cups water

Red Meat Brine Injection

  • 2 tablespoons Morton Coarse Kosher Salt
  • 1 tablespoon sugar
  • 2 teaspoons Worcestershire
  • 4 cups water or low sodium beef stock, or a mix of both

Poultry Brine Injection

  • 2 tablespoons Morton Coarse Kosher Salt
  • 1 tablespoon sugar
  • 4 cups water or low sodium chicken stock, or a mix of both
Notes:
About the salt. Remember, kosher salt is half the concentration of table salt so if you use table salt, use half as much. Click here to read more about salt and how it works.
Add umami. You can add 1/2 teaspoon of MSG such as Ac’cent.
Add herbs and spices. You can add herbs and spices such as garlic and pepper, but they can overwhelm the meat’s natural flavor.
Add oil. After you have used a brine injection, if you want you can go back and inject a small amount of oil. You can’t mix the oil with the brine since it floats to the top. If you don’t have canola you can use another neutral flavored oil like corn oil. Olive oil can be strong flavored. You can try warm butter, but it tends to clog the needle when and form blobs in the bird when it hits the cold meat. The blobs disperse somewhat during cooking, however.
Metric conversion:

These recipes were created in US Customary measurements and the conversion to metric is being done by calculations. They should be accurate, but it is possible there could be an error. If you find one, please let us know in the comments at the bottom of the page

Method

  • Prep. Mix all the ingredients in a bottle and shake vigorously before injecting. Pour into a narrow container so you can suck fluid in through the needle. In a wide bowl it is hard to get the holes below the water line and you then need to unscrew the top, pour it into the syringes, spill it everywhere, screw on the top, inject, and repeat. I bought a V-shaped flower vase for the job.
  • Inject. Insert the needle and go all the way to the center. Press the plunger slowly and ease the needle out. Insert the needle about every 1.5" (38.1 mm) apart and leave behind about 1 ounce (30 mL) per pound (453.6 grams). A little liquid will follow the needle out of the hole, but if it comes spurting out, use less pressure. We want to avoid pockets of liquid.
  • Cook. You can cook right away, but if you let the meat rest for an hour or more, even overnight, the injection will disperse more evenly through the meat. Then dry the surface with a paper towel and apply your rub and cook.

Related articles

Published On: 8/11/2013 Last Modified: 2/13/2024

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  • Meathead, BBQ Hall of Famer - Founder and publisher of AmazingRibs.com, Meathead is known as the site's Hedonism Evangelist and BBQ Whisperer. He is also the author of the New York Times Best Seller "Meathead, The Science of Great Barbecue and Grilling", named one of the "100 Best Cookbooks of All Time" by Southern Living.

 

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