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Is It Better to Brine Meat Longer?

Brining longer doesn’t necessarily mean juicier meat.
By Published Jan. 30, 2019

Brining meat helps it cook up juicy and well seasoned. When brining larger cuts that require a long soak, such as roasts and whole poultry, we typically suggest a time range. But while it’s important to brine the meat for at least the minimum amount of time, don’t brine longer than the suggested range. The far end of the range is built in for the cook’s convenience, not because the meat will be significantly juicier or taste more seasoned. To prove it, we tracked how fast salt moves into a roast over time.

Experiment

We made three batches of our standard brine and soaked pork loin roasts for 2, 4, and 24 hours. Then we cut each roast into 1-inch-thick slices and tested the slices for salt penetration by applying first potassium chromate and then silver nitrate, which turned orange at first and then clear again where the salt penetrated; we then measured the width of the rings of unstained meat.

We painted chemicals onto brined pork to determine salt penetration after 2, 4, and 24 hours.

Results

The rate at which salt moved into the meat slowed significantly after 2 hours. After 2 hours, salt had penetrated ⅓ inch; after 4 hours, it had penetrated ½ inch; and after 24 hours, ¾ inch.

Explanation

Salt naturally moves from areas of high concentration to those of low concentration. And the larger the difference in concentration, the more quickly the sodium ions travel into the meat. At the beginning of the brining time, there’s a huge difference in concentration: The interior of the meat has none of the salt, and the surface of the meat has a lot. As the salt travels through the meat, the difference becomes smaller: The concentration on the outside is lowered, and almost all areas inside the meat have at least some sodium ions, so the rate of diffusion drops. Furthermore, while sodium ions in the brine continue to penetrate the exterior of the pork, that reaction slows as well because the outer layer of pork already contains some sodium.

(The upshot: In the first 4 hours, salt traveled farther than it did in the next 20 hours.)

Takeaway

Because the returns for brining diminish over time, the first few hours of brining a large roast (or the first 30 minutes or so for smaller cuts) are critical, but soaking the meat until the end of a recommended time range—or even a few hours longer—won’t produce an appreciable difference in salt penetration.

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JC
JOHN C.
16 days

Absolutely the best chicken ever, even the breast meat was moist! It's the only way I'll cook a whole chicken again. Simple, easy, quick, no mess - perfect every time. I've used both stainless steel and cast iron pans. great and easy technique for “roasted” chicken. I will say there were no pan juices, just fat in the skillet. Will add to the recipe rotation. Good for family and company dinners too. I've done this using a rimmed sheet pan instead of a skillet and put veggies and potatoes around the chicken for a one-pan meal. Broccoli gets nicely browned and yummy!

Absolutely the best chicken ever, even the breast meat was moist! It's the only way I'll cook a whole chicken again. Simple, easy, quick, no mess - perfect every time. I've used both stainless steel and cast iron pans. great and easy technique for “roasted” chicken. I will say there were no pan juices, just fat in the skillet. Will add to the recipe rotation. Good for family and company dinners too.

MD
MILES D.
JOHN C.
9 days

Amazed this recipe works out as well as it does. Would not have thought that the amount of time under the broiler would have produced a very juicy and favorable chicken with a very crispy crust. Used my 12" Lodge Cast Iron skillet (which can withstand 1000 degree temps to respond to those who wondered if it would work) and it turned out great. A "make again" as my family rates things. This is a great recipe, and I will definitely make it again. My butcher gladly butterflied the chicken for me, therefore I found it to be a fast and easy prep. I used my cast iron skillet- marvellous!

CM
CHARLES M.
11 days

John, wasn't it just amazing chicken? So much better than your typical oven baked chicken and on par if not better than gas or even charcoal grilled. It gets that smokey charcoal tasted and overnight koshering definitely helps, something I do when time permits. First-time I've pierced a whole chicken minus the times I make jerk chicken on the grill. Yup, the cast iron was not an issue.