If salt dehydrates the meat, then why would brining make it more juicy as a whole?
As the title says, why does brining work?
If salting, by osmosis, pulls the water out of the meat, then why is meat considered more juicy after it's cooked?
Best Answer
Actually, it's a popular misconception that brining works because of osmosis. If it was really osmosis at work, plain water would work better than salted water. Kenji over at The Food Lab went into this a few months ago: http://www.seriouseats.com/2012/11/the-food-lab-the-truth-about-brining-turkey-thanksgiving.html
Here's the relevant bit:
To understand what's really happening, you have to look at the structure of turkey muscles. Muscles are made up of long, bundled fibers, each one housed in a tough protein sheath. As the turkey heats, the proteins that make up this sheath will contract. Just like a squeezing a tube of toothpaste, this causes juices to be forced out of the bird. Heat them to much above 150°F or so, and you end up with dry, stringy meat.
Salt helps mitigate this shrinkage by dissolving some of the muscle proteins (mainly myosin). The muscle fibers loosen up, allowing them to absorb more moisture, and more importantly, they don't contract as much when they cook, making sure that more of that moisture stays in-place as the turkey cooks.
In the article he discusses the downsides (flavor dilution) and alternatives to brining (salting). I'd check it out, it's a good read.
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Quick Answer about "If salt dehydrates the meat, then why would brining make it more juicy as a whole?"
Soaking these types of leaner meats in a brine: a solution of salt and water will help ensure moister, juicier results. Brining enhances the juiciness of muscle fibers which simply absorb liquid during the brining period.Why does brining make meat moist?
Brining makes cooked meat moister by hydrating the cells of its muscle tissue before cooking and by allowing the cells to hold on to the water while they are cooked, The brine surrounding the muscle fiber cell has a higher concentration of salt than the fluid within the cells.Does dry brining make meat juicy?
Dry-brining is our preferred method for seasoning both large and small pieces of meat, poultry, and sometimes even seafood. Along with producing juicy, flavorful results, dry-brining also helps us get better Maillard browning and crispy skin.Does salt make meat more juicy?
Wolke explained, when salt encounters protein, the protein changes shape on a molecular level. In its new form, it can absorb more water than normal and softens. So a salted piece of meat can taste juicier and more tender than an unsalted one.Does salt dehydrate meat?
Salt, after all, is how meat used to be preserved sans refrigeration, and it's still a big component of making jerky today. But the effect of salt on meat varies with time. Loading meat with heavier doses of salt and allowing it to sit for long periods will cure the meat and indeed draw out its moisture.Why you should (almost) always brine your chicken
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Answer 2
To further add to this. Here's an explanation from the Chefsteps site on brining
The Effects of Brining Charged chloride ions from the dissolved salt in a brine will repel, destabilize, and unravel various proteins within the muscle fibers of meats and seafood. This is not altogether different than what cooking with heat also does to these proteins.
The combination of dissolved salt and heat combine to increase the juiciness of flesh by drawing water in during brining and squeezing less of it out during cooking.
Brined foods that are cooked have a telltale texture because the combination of salt and heat creates a firmer, more elastic gel than heating does alone. But avoid overdoing it, otherwise the flesh can become too firm and chewy, as well as too salty.
Sources: Stack Exchange - This article follows the attribution requirements of Stack Exchange and is licensed under CC BY-SA 3.0.
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