Do other ingredients in brines penetrate the meat?
I always thought, that only salt is able to penetrate deep into the meat.
However, there are many brine recipes, calling for additional falvors to be added.
How can they penetrate the meat, if only salt can penetrate the meat?
I also recently found the following question: How deeply will the flavors in a brine penetrate chicken?
The answer argues, that some flavours can indeed penetrate the meat, however food color can not.
So which one is it, is marinade a surface treatment only, or do other ingredients apart from salt also penetrate the meat, and if yes which ones?
Best Answer
Good Eats describes what happens in a brine very well
Essentially, the thing that penetrates the meat is water. Because water is a solvent it can carry things with it into the meat. Salt and sugar are the two most common ingredients in a brine. Salt is required and sugar dissolves really easily in water and adds complexity to the flavor profile. But you can add anything that will be carried by the water into the meat. If your brine isn't penetrating your meat past the surface you aren't doing it right.
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Does dry brine penetrate meat?
Dry-brining cuts out the unnecessary added water by using the natural moisture content of the meat to create a concentrated brine that, when given enough time, is naturally absorbed back into the meat before cooking.What do brines do to meat?
Brining is the process of submerging a cut of meat into a solution of salt and water. It adds flavor, seasoning from the inside out, but it also changes the meat's physical nature. The salt in brine denatures the meat's proteins to allow the cells to retain more moisture.Does sugar penetrate meat in brine?
So sugar is barely absorbed by meat, even after a full day's brining. The diffusion rate is at least 5-10 times slower than salt1, .What are brines made of?
Brine is a high-concentration solution of salt (NaCl) in water (H2O).How to Brine Meat and the Science Behind it (Dry and wet Brining)
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Answer 2
I have tried many different marinates, and found that they do not penetrate the meat, it's only surface treatment. The only thing that really penetrates the meat is salt. So after that, I only dry brine meat in salt and pepper (typically 1 teaspoon per 500g of meat.), let sit overnight to let the brine do it's work.
When I cook the meat, if it's a roast, I apply marinade to the meat towards the end of the cooking, to add to it's flavour. I find that, meats taste much better, flavour and texture wise, if it is dry brined a day ahead.
Here is a link to an article that explains this in great detail.
Sources: Stack Exchange - This article follows the attribution requirements of Stack Exchange and is licensed under CC BY-SA 3.0.
Images: Kristya Nugraha, Edward Eyer, Cats Coming, Pixabay