Brining pork/chicken

[J F]

You made a comment about your thermometer not being accurate. You can check it by putting a large pot of water on the stove and bring it to a full boil, the thermometer should read exactly 100C or 212F if it is accurate. You can do the same with ice water on the low end for 0C or 32F. Put lots of ice in a bowl with some water and let it sit and then measure the temp. If these two are on track then the thermometer is most likely accurate enough. This does not address the need to buy a new thermometer, if this is the ultimate goal, then go and get the new toy, but maybe one of those neat digital infrared types. Very impressive and you can still use the old one for anything that can't be measured with the infrared. I agree with the other comments buy the way, don't overcook the pork, pink is good. good eats. This probably too late for dinner tonight. Sorry.

Thanks Charlie, I will do just that. (that's one of those "why didn't I think of that...slap" moments :laughing Swmbo slept through dinner last night (she had just finished four 12 hour shifts in a row), so the chops are still soaking away, I'll cook them for our dinner tonight. :licking:

 

[J F]

I tried something close to this the other day. I put the chops in Italian dressing for a couple of hours. I also added a goody amount of Dijon mustard as well. I cut up three potatoes really thin. When I took the chops out of the dressing/mustard mix, I poured what was left over the potatoes, then put them in the oven @ 350. I let them cook for about fifteen minutes while I added Smoky Mesquite, salt and pepper to the chops. I had looked at four different recipes online, and I picked the parts of each I liked. Instead of one or two eggs for a bath, I used four. And because of the potatoes, I didn't add bread crumbs. I took the potatoes out of the oven and laid out the chops on top of them, pouring the eggs over them, letting it run down over the potatoes. I added a good layer of Parmesan. Covered and baked for twenty minutes. Turned the chops, added more Parmesan, cooked for twenty more minutes. It looked kind of messy, but tasted fine.

:drool: Dammmn Larro...swmbo has a training class in downtown Atlanta today...she may have to pick up more chops on the way home now...I'm not sure if ours will make it through today, after your post. :laughing:

 

[2LaneCruzer]

That definitely helps. :cool2:

Not really. :laughing:

Sorry if you consider my post unresponsive; let me take another approach: I have found that the two most important things affecting how juicy a piece of meat is after it is cooked are (a) the cut, quality and thickness of the meat; and (2) the cooking method, including time and temperature. Most of the preparation techniques that I have used, in my opinion, manifest themselves in the flavor. One exception is using a spice rub that contains sugar for grilled/smoked meat. The sugar forms a thin barrier that retains moisture...and it seems to work. If you don't like your chops or ribs to taste sweet, which I don't, you may have to make your own rub, which I do.

I'm sure others opinions may differ. There are lots of good articles out there on brining, and what I have read indicates that brining is most helpful in maintaining moisture when you are cooking a turkey.

 

[J F]

No big deal. :drink: What's funny is, that since using the meat thermo, I've dried out more chops on the grill in the last few months than I ever did before. :laughing:

I've done some web reading on brining, but thought I'd ask here too.

 

[J F]

I'm sure others opinions may differ. There are lots of good articles out there on brining, and what I have read indicates that brining is most helpful in maintaining moisture when you are cooking a turkey.

Speaking of turkey...I still haven't deep fried one yet (or ever eaten any cooked that way)...hopefully this Thanksgiving, I'll break my cherry. :licking:

 

[2LaneCruzer]

No big deal. :drink: What's funny is, that since using the meat thermo, I've dried out more chops on the grill in the last few months than I ever did before. :laughing:

I've done some web reading on brining, but thought I'd ask here too.

It works for me when I cook the bone-in Iowa chops (porterhouse pork chops, about 2" thick) on the Big Green Egg. I cook at 250 degrees for about an hour to an hour and 1/2; and as I recall (I'll have to check my chart) take them off at about 160 degrees.

 

[J F]

I definitely have Big Green Egg envy...the closest I've gotten was building a table for a buddy that bought one, though.

2" chops...:drool:

 

[jeffinsgf]

J F (my initials, too, btw),

I brine quite a bit...mostly pork chops and chicken. Without repeating a lot of chemistry explanation that I barely understood when I read it, it works. Now, there are trade-offs, as usual. Brining will make meat moister, no matter what meat or how you cook it. The trade off is, if you leave it in the brine too long you end up with moist mush (the texture goes "off")

Chops are like T-bone beef steak. Cook it hot and fast, not low and slow. As a rule of thumb, the lean, tender cuts (loin and tenderloin) of any animal need hot/fast.

If you're into cooking (and from this thread it appears you are) check out a book called "Charcuterie" by Michael Ruhlman. It's not so much a recipe book as a project guide. Charcuterie is the art and science of curing meat. Brine is one technique that is covered extensively in the book. From it I've learned to make better chops and chicken, but even better, I've learned to cure ham and bacon and how to make fresh and smoked sausage.

Oh, and another vote for ThermaPen. You won't regret it. One of the best investments I've made in the kitchen.

 

[J F]

Thanks Jeff, I'm looking at the book on amazon right now. :thumbsup:

 

[GGB]

My father was a meat cutter back when I was in grade school, and here are a couple of things I picked up from him, and from the competition BBQ team I was on.

First, ask your meat cutter to cut some pork steaks for you at 1 1/4 to 1 1/2" thick. Then pull the pork steaks out of the fridge before you go to light the fire on your grill. You want the meat to be at room temperature when you put them on the grill. Use whatever rub or seasoning you like, and throw some wood clips on the coals or in a foil packet if you are using a gas grill. Make sure the grill is as hot as you can get it , then put the meat on when the chips begin to smoke. Turn the meat when you can pick up the meat without it sticking to the grill. Then pull off when you get an internal temperature of 135 degrees (see the notes about thermometers reading low-if it shows 135 it's probably already 140, and you can always finish in the microwave if you do find it's a little under done) and wrap the meat until you're ready to eat to keep it from drying out. The meat will continue to cook even after it's pulled from the grill using this method.

I also like to cook a few strips of bacon at the same time, especially if the the pork is very lean. Normally if you use the top rack of your grill or away from the heat on a charcoal grill, the bacon will be ready a little
before the pork, but the bacon drippings will add a nice flavor to your pork.

Some one already mentioned the America's Test Kitchen (Cook's Magazine and Cook's Country Magazine) brine recipe which is great for chicken-3/4 cup of sugar, 6 tablespoons of salt and enough water to cover the 4 pound whole chicken for 3 hours before smoking-just use lower heat by cooking away from the coals or br turning down the heat on a gas grill.

On our BBQ team, we found that when you are smoking ribs or pork butts/shoulders low and slow for 6-14
hours depending on the fire (ideally 225 degrees), most meats won't take much more smoke after the first couple of hours.

Good luck grilling and smoking!