Charcuterie_ The Craft of Salting, Smoking, and Curing - Michael Ruhlman [26]
• Because brines are such powerful tools, you need to use them with care. It’s all too easy to infuse meat with too much salt. The saltiness of the meat is determined by two factors: how salty the brine is and how long the meat stays in the brine. If you leave a 3-pound chicken in our brine for longer than 24 hours, the meat will eventually become too salty. A fat turkey breast, though, needs 24 hours for good brine penetration. As in all seasoning, it’s better to undersalt, because you can always add salt if something is underseasoned. If, however, you leave your meat in the brine too long, or suspect it’s become too salty, there are ways to fix the problem. To check, cut off a piece, rinse and dry it, and then cook it; it should taste a little too salty, having come from the surface (where the salt concentration is highest immediately after brining), but not unpleasantly so. If your meat does taste too salty, then you need only rethink how you’ll handle it. You can immerse it in unsalted water for half the time it was in the brine, and this will reduce its salt content, salt always seeking equilibrium. Or you could braise your meat rather than roast it, cooking it in water or stock with vegetables, and the salt will season the other components.
• We recommend a brine ratio of 1 cup/225 grams of kosher salt per 1 gallon/4 liters of water. (This ratio, incidentally, also happens to be perfect for blanching green vegetables.) If you’re concerned about salt intake, you can reduce the salt and sugar in your brine, but remember that only a small percentage of the salt enters the meat.
• When you remove the meat from the brine, always discard the brine. Never reuse it—it’s not only diluted from the meat juices, it’s also infused with impurities from the meat.
• Pay attention to the recommended brine time. Also see the box on brining times on pages 61–62.
• Allow the meat to rest in the refrigerator after it’s been brined, for a couple hours for small items and up to a day for larger cuts. Resting allows the salt within the meat to disperse more evenly. Immediately after it’s taken out of the brine, the meat closer to the surface will have a higher salt concentration than the interior will. When a turkey, say, is allowed to rest, the salt seeks equilibrium and continues to migrate until the salt concentration in the cells is uniform throughout, which will result in a uniformly seasoned bird. Resting also allows the exterior to dry, which results in crisper skin.
• Always chill the brine thoroughly before adding the meat to it. Chilling a brine can take time. To reduce the time needed for cooling, heat all the other brine ingredients in half the required amount of water. Once the salt and sugar are dissolved, add the remaining water, either cold or as ice water.
• Choose a container that’s taller than it is wide when brining larger items, such as a whole chicken or turkey or a fresh ham, because that will require less liquid to submerge the food.
• Always brine meat in the refrigerator.
THE ALL-PURPOSE BRINE
This is the essential brine and can be used for any meat. Adding optional seasonings, depending on the type of meats, will enhance the flavor of the meat.
1 gallon/4 liters water
1 cup/225 grams kosher salt
1⁄2 cup/125 grams sugar
Optional seasonings as desired; see below
Combine all the ingredients in a large pot and bring to a simmer, stirring to dissolve the salt and sugar. Remove from the heat and allow to cool to room temperature,