How to Brine Meats at Home | Brining Basic Recipe and Tips

Brining meats is a technique to inject moisture, aroma and flavor into pieces of meat to increase tenderness and add flavor. In a meat brining solution the cuts of meat are completely submerged in liquid and the consistency of the brine is watery, nowhere near as thick as a marinade recipe. Brining is great for pork chops, beef shanks, lamb shanks, and chicken breast – mostly lean cuts of meat that would otherwise dry out quickly before being cooked over intense heat. However it can also be good for chicken wings or whole chicken to allow the flavor to penetrate the meat.

What is a brine? Brining is a process of preserving, flavoring, and injecting moisture in meats by soaking them in a saltwater solution.

What kitchen tools do I need for brining?

Ingredients Needed for our Brine

Basic Brine Ingredients:

• Water – 4 cups
• Salt – ¼ cup
• Vinegar – 2tbsp
• Brown sugar – ¼ cup (optional)

Fortified Brine Ingredients (add to basic brine):

• Granulated garlic – ½ tsp*
• Bay leaf – 2 leaves
• Crushed chili pepper – 1/2 tsp
• Orange pepper seasoning – 1 teaspoon

*Or 2 cloves of fresh garlic

**Or 1 or 2 sprigs of fresh rosemary

Instructions for How to Brine Meats:

1. Place all the brining ingredients into a pot.
2. Bring the brine to a simmer and whisk all the ingredients together. Once the salt has disappeared the brine is ready to be taken off the burner.
3. Allow the brine to cool in the refrigerator or add ice cubes to speed up the cooling process if you are in a rush. Do not place your meat into warm water as it will start the cooking process.
4. Place your meat (pork chops, beef shank, chicken breast…) in the container completely submerged by the brine solution.
5. Set aside in the refrigerator and allow the fresh meat cuts to soak in the brine solution for 4-8 hours. It is difficult to over-brine an item, but it is easy to under-brine meat, so err on the side of caution.

After your meats are brined they are ready to be cooked and enjoyed.

What Are the Benefits of Brining Meat?

• Brining adds moisture to dry pieces of meat. This results in a more juicy product.

• Brining causes the muscle fibers to break down. This results in a more tender product.

• The salt in the brine acts as a preservative, extending the shelf life of meats.

Video of how to brine meats:

In this video Chef Dan shows you how to make this brine recipe. Chef Dan also covers the do’s and don’ts of making a brine recipe.

Frequently asked questions about brining meats

• What is the role of sugar in a brine? Sugar enables the Maillard reaction which gives the meat a nice, crispy crust.

• Why should the brine be heated? Heating the brine to allows the flavors to dissolve and mix together.

• Why should I allow my brine to cool? Because you would be cooking the meat otherwise. The brine should always be cold or at room temperature before submerging the pieces of meat in the brine solution.

• What is the most important part of the brine? Keeping the correct water to salt ratio for brining. As a rule of thumb it should be 1 part of salt to 4 part of waters.