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Hi,


I have tried to read through the posts but could not find any definite answer to the following question (perhaps a definitive answer is not available):

I have a 2Kg piece of pork loin complete with skin that is tied up so that the meat looks roughly cyclindrical. I plan to use the 2:1 immersion brine cure and so have 1 litre of brine prepared. According to what I have read, this should take 2(kg) x 10 days to reach 85% of equilibrium.

If I cut the meat in half so as to have 2 x 1kg cyclinders of meat and place them in the same bucket of brine, how long should I leave each1 kg of meat in the brine before I reach the same stage of cure penetration?

Again, apologies oif this has been covered, but I couldn't find any straight answer in previous posts.

I wouldn't worry so much about the length of the pork loin. A much bigger effect will be that the loin has the skin still on. The skin will be a barrier to the brining, are you sure you want it? If you decide you really want the skin covering, I would lengthen the brining time to probably double (assuming the skin covers half the loin). After brining, allow the meat to sit in the refrig a few days for the salt and cure level out through the meat before smoking. Good luck.

May I ask: Is there a special reason why you want to cure it in a brine? Personally, I would untie it, spread salt and cure over the flesh, and tie it up again. Dry curing, that is.

NCPaul and grisell,

Thank you for your quick reponses. grisell, I want to produce a wet cured ham that will be boiled and made into cheese and ham sandwiches and such like. I don't feel a dry cure is therefore suitable as I want plenty of moisture to remain in the meat.

NCPaul, I can dispense with the skin (and leave the fat on it) without any loss. However, my original question still remains - If I cut the meat in half and place both halves in the same container along with 1 Kg of brine, will the fact that the meat is halved (each half is now 1 kg) mean that the ham is cured in 10 days or will it still require 20 days?

I hope I am being clear on this. If not, I will gladly try to c;arify.

I make a 60 Lt brine up, if I drop one boneless loin (7kg) rind off in it will take 4 days to cure, if I drop 14 boneless loins (7kg) rind off in it will take 4 days to cure. If I cut the 14 boneless loins in half and drop them into the brine it will still only take 4 days to cure.

The only thing I have to watch is that I do not over crowed the brine

HTH

BriCan,

Thanks very much for the answer to my question. It's vey clear now.

EdwinT wrote:NCPaul and grisell,

Thank you for your quick reponses. grisell, I want to produce a wet cured ham that will be boiled and made into cheese and ham sandwiches and such like. I don't feel a dry cure is therefore suitable as I want plenty of moisture to remain in the meat.

So my next question is ---- how are you cooking it -- and yes I know you want to boil it but the question still remains

I use the recipe for brining loins found in Wedliny Domowe:

http://www.wedlinydomowe.com/hams-other ... n-canadian

I would brine your loin 5 to 7 days.

EdwinT wrote:Hi,

I have tried to read through the posts but could not find any definite answer to the following question (perhaps a definitive answer is not available):

I have a 2Kg piece of pork loin complete with skin that is tied up so that the meat looks roughly cyclindrical. I plan to use the 2:1 immersion brine cure and so have 1 litre of brine prepared. According to what I have read, this should take 2(kg) x 10 days to reach 85% of equilibrium.

If I cut the meat in half so as to have 2 x 1kg cyclinders of meat and place them in the same bucket of brine, how long should I leave each1 kg of meat in the brine before I reach the same stage of cure penetration?

Again, apologies oif this has been covered, but I couldn't find any straight answer in previous posts.

Judging by the fact that you say you are using a 2:1 immersion brine - that's usually a term that's specific to equilibrium brine recipes used on this site.

If it is, the fact that you cut the meat into two halves should (in theory) have no effect. If you have 2 kg in there and the brine has been calculated for 10 days per kg, then it should be cured for 20 days. Even if it's 2 x 1kg pieces.

Well, that's what the US scientists tell us in Method 2 in the PROCESSING INSPECTORS' CALCULATIONS HANDBOOK - see p27 of the .pdf - p22 of the document.

I hope that this helps.

Phil

BriCan wrote:if I drop one boneless loin (7kg) rind off in it will take 4 days to cure, if I drop 14 boneless loins (7kg) rind off in it will take 4 days to cure. If I cut the 14 boneless loins in half and drop them into the brine it will still only take 4 days to cure.
HTH

And

"I don't know half of you half as well as I should like; and I like less than half of you half as well as you deserve."
-- J.R.R. Tolkien

wheels wrote:
Judging by the fact that you say you are using a 2:1 immersion brine - that's usually a term that's specific to equilibrium brine recipes used on this site.

If it is, the fact that you cut the meat into two halves should (in theory) have no effect. If you have 2 kg in there and the brine has been calculated for 10 days per kg, then it should be cured for 20 days. Even if it's 2 x 1kg pieces.

Well, that's what the US scientists tell us in Method 2 in the PROCESSING INSPECTORS' CALCULATIONS HANDBOOK - see p27 of the .pdf - p22 of the document.

Ok -- if I use your calculator and place in a boneless ham that weighs 5.255 kg press calculate it tells me it has to be in cure for 53 days -- I only do 21 days --- comments??

Well only the obvious - you use a different cure, and for that matter, a completely different system of curing.

Your system is great but not always good for home curer.

Mine, or should I say our's, as it was developed by a number of forum members, adapts it so that people can cure smaller amounts of meat more easily - I've known members who are on limited incomes cure 1lb of supermarket 'Promo' meat into bacon or ham that is better than they could buy.

To be fair, in reference to the cider ham, I should have put the same warning on the Cider Ham as the Black one: "This cure is not recommended for meat above 3.5kg in weight, without adaption."

For our UK members cure #1/cure#2 is not a cheap commodity so these types of cures, albeit longer, have a significant cost saving.

I guess that it's all down to "Horses for Courses", No one system is better than another, you choose what works for you.

Phil

wheels wrote:[---]
If it is, the fact that you cut the meat into two halves should (in theory) have no effect. If you have 2 kg in there and the brine has been calculated for 10 days per kg, then it should be cured for 20 days. Even if it's 2 x 1kg pieces.
[---]
Phil

That is impossible. In that case I could treat the two 1 kg pieces as two separate pieces and put them in two containers. That would make two containers with 10 days of curing time. Both 10 days and 20 days can't be true. If it takes five minutes to boil one egg, how long does it take to boil six eggs?

wheels wrote:Well only the obvious - you use a different cure, and for that matter, a completely different system of curing.

Your system is great but not always good for home curer.

I am not sure I understand as I do know curing salt can be had in the UK as I have bought it for a friend, the cure that I use can be broken down to a 1 litre unit.

That being said, I still stand behind what I said if one was to put a 1 kg piece of meat (boneless) into a measured brine made for the 1 kg unit to cure for 10 days --- if you cut it in half and put it in the same measured brine made for the 1 kg unit it will still take 10 days to cure.

That all being said I will apologises for anything said out of line and will take time away and concentrate getting my health back to where it should be which will put my mind where it should be

Again; sorry to have upset.

Mine, or should I say our's, as it was developed by a number of forum members, adapts it so that people can cure smaller amounts of meat more easily - I've known members who are on limited incomes cure 1lb of supermarket 'Promo' meat into bacon or ham that is better than they could buy.

To be fair, in reference to the cider ham, I should have put the same warning on the Cider Ham as the Black one: "This cure is not recommended for meat above 3.5kg in weight, without adaption."

For our UK members cure #1/cure#2 is not a cheap commodity so these types of cures, albeit longer, have a significant cost saving.

I guess that it's all down to "Horses for Courses", No one system is better than another, you choose what works for you.

Phil

Hi Brican just one question
How much nitrite and salt are in your 60 litres of brine

Jim.