When you brine meat , it is to make the meat juicier, rather than imparting flavor to it. That means its ideal for meat that might otherwise dry out, like turkey or chicken. The way you brine something is by soaking it in a solution of salt water. You can add other things in there too, like spices or sugar, but its the salt that's doing all the work.
Basically, the process of osmosis helps the liquid be absorbed into the meat, making for juicier bites. The downfall of brining is that it can also dilute the natural tase of the meat—the water in there replaces the juices that might be in the turkey or chicken, and so some chefs prefer not to use it.
But it's a great trick to have when you're faced with something that's in danger of drying out in the oven, which is why it's popular in preparing turkey for Thanksgiving. While brining is for moisture, marinating is for flavor. Marinades typically contain acid, which helps break down the protein and helps infuse the meat with the flavors that you have going in your marinade, whether that's herbs or spices or some other source.
For most at-home applications, marinades are a great way to infuse flavor into meat. But be careful not to leave the meat for too long, or the acid in the marinade will start to break down the protein further than you want, and you'll end up with some not-so-texturally-pleasant mushiness. Be mindful of the time your food will spend in this stronger saline solution to avoid disappointments see time guidelines listed below. NOTE: Use only kosher salt as it dissolves much faster. There is a difference between the two main brands, Morton and Diamond.
Morton is dense and therefore a bit less of it is needed to achieve the same salinity. Whole chicken in flavored brine peppercorns, bay leaf, garlic in bouquet garnie. Marinating is to soak a food in a flavorful mixture of ingredients in order to impart desirable flavors to its surface. Certain ingredients like enzymes found in fruit and yogurt can also tenderize the food to a certain extent if part of the marinade.
This being said, its principal purpose is to flavor, not tenderize. A marinade is first and foremost a mixture of an oil with an acidic ingredient, along with spices, herbs and various other flavoring agents. Our basic marinade formula is 3 parts fat : 1 part acid : all other ingredients to taste.
The parts acid can be increased when the acidic ingredient is not too strong — for example beer, wine, cider, mustard, Worcestershire, mild vinegars such as apple cider or rice vinegar. When very acidic ingredients are used such as citrus juice, plain yogurt, or strong vinegars it is best to observe the ratio given above too much acid turns the surface of meat mushy because it denatures the proteins. Yes, you can! If you brine then marinate you can reap the benefits of each technique and cook juicy and flavorful proteins.
Just be sure to not use salt in the marinade since the food would already absorb it from the brine. For example if you are planning on grilling pork tenderloin first soak it in a basic brine. Because it is one of the leanest pork cuts grilling heat can leave it extremely dry — the brine will prevent this from happening. Then to flavor it mix a pork marinade , remove the tenderloin from the brine, and let it bathe in the marinade for a few hours before you cook it. Bring 2 cups of water to a boil, add the salt and sugar and stir to dissolve.
This keeps your long-cooking meats juicy and moist. This episode of Good Eats gives a great basic explanation of brines and how they work. You can brine meat simply by soaking your large cut of meat in a salty solution from a few hours to overnight.
The meat should stay refrigerated during the brining. I use a large drink cooler like this one to keep everything chilled and to save on refrigerator space. If you have space in your refrigerator, large containers like these are perfect for brining. Marinades are sauces with an acidic base like vinegar, citrus, or wine. The acid in a marinade breaks up the structure of the proteins in the meat. Water from the marinade gets caught between the proteins and makes the meat seem more tender.
Not a lot of liquid will get into the meat, but a lot of flavor will be absorbed into the meat. Marinades are good for smaller, more tender pieces of meat like chicken breasts, steaks, and pork chops. Soaking meats too long in marinades can backfire on you — the meat can actually start to dry out and get very tough. To marinate, you need to soak a smaller cut of meat in a marinade for as short as an hour or two for fish or chicken , up to hours.
The key with a marinade is to make sure that as much of the surface of the meat is in contact with the marinade as possible. Large Ziploc bags are perfect for marinating. Keep the sealed bag inside a container in your refrigerator in case of any leaks. This post has even more tips on marinating. I love brining larger pieces of meat before I cook them. And I have really started to embrace the marinade!
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