Canadian bacon too salty

[smokinski]

Hey everybody!!
 I just broke in the Bradley yesterday with a 3.5 lb., center cut,cured pork loin, (canadian bacon). The recipe called for a  4lb./2 kilogram loin
1 gal./4 liters water
1 1/2 cups/350 grams kosher salt
1 1/2 ounces/42 grams pink salt
1 cup/ 225 grams sugar
various fresh herbs
I only had 1 ounce of pink salt,(its hard to find locally. I just ordered 2 lbs. online) so I added a little extra kosher salt (about 3 tablespoons?) Was this my mistake? Cure time was 48 hours w/ 24 hours of air drying. I hot smoked at 200 F / 93 C to an internal temp of 150 F / 65 C. Texture and appearance were perfect, but the meat was way too salty. I used Morton coarse kosher salt. Does the coarse grain make a difference?? Should I cut down on the amount of salt or cure time, or both?? Also, if I want to do two loins at once, do I need to adjust the brine recipe??
Thank you for your help. All replies are welcome.

                                       R/S,
                                           Ski

[jaeger]

ski,
I would take a look at your brining recipe first. I have never heard of or used "pink salt".
The only thing pink that I have used is like modern cure or insta cure used for mixing with ground meats. I would suggest ordering a premixed cure for brining loins. You can find a brown sugar based cure or maple based etc...Many here also have had good luck with High Mountain Buckboard Bacon cure.
The other thing you didn't mention, when you were done with brining the meat you need to rinse very well with cold water and then soak the meat in fresh cold water for at least 1-2 hours. Some even change out this water at the halfway mark. It is very important to rinse off the meat before smoking,<font color="blue"><font size="2"> but if your cure was to strong to begin with, your finished product will be salty!!!</font id="size2"></font id="blue">
That is why I say, look at you recipe. Where did you get it etc....




<font size="4"><b>Doug</b></font id="size4">

[smokinski]

Hey Doug,
  Pink salt goes by various brand names, and I believe "Insta cure" is one of them. It consists of 93.75% salt, and 6.25% nitrite. Its dyed pink to avoid confusion.
I rinsed the meat thourghly after brining, but I did not soak it. Is this an imperitive step?, and if so, what does it do.
I double checked the recipe, and all was correct. I obtained the recipe from a newly released book on salting,curing,and smoking.

                                Thanks for your help!!!
                                             Ski

[iceman]

Hey Smokinski; just read your brine ratio and it seems a bit high for the amount of water. Your right about the "pink salt". Be careful though, there are 2 types. Insta Cure or Prague Powder No. 1 is a basic cure for all meats that require smoking, cooking or canning. Basically 1 ounce of sodium nitrite to a 1 pound of salt carrier. It usually only takes about 4 ounces of Prague Powder No 1 to cure 100 pounds of sausage. This comes out to about 2 level teaspoons to cure 10 pounds of meat. Prague Powder No2 is also on a salt carrier and contains 1 ounce of sodium nitrite along with .64 ounces of sodium nitrate to 1 pound of salt. In this case the sodium nitrate keeps breaking down into the sodium nitrite then turning to nitric oxide to cure the meat over extended periods of time. Dried sausages need this and only retain less than 1/4 of this when finished.Jaegar is right about refreshing the meat "rinsing thourghly". For 4 pounds of meat at the ratio you used you reach total saturation in less than 8 hrs. so I guess thats why the salt factor came in. I'd rethink the ratio of salt/suger/water thing and cut back a bit and try it again.  Just make sure the meat stays under 45F the whole time it's brining. I sure want to hear how the next batch turns out. Hope this helps.

Big or small you can smoke'm all!!!

[jaeger]

ski,
The soaking in fresh water just helps to remove the salt from the outside of the meat. I wish I could locate my "sausage bible". Here is a link from the great Rytek Kutas.http://www.sausagemaker.com/index.asp?PageAction=VIEWPROD&ProdID=413
The info in this book would answer the main question, "does this recipe contain to much salt"
If you are planning on making a lot of smoked and cured items, I would recommend this book.
Here is another link that I found online. This I found just doing a quick search, but if it is correct, your recipe is strong on salt. Also, I think he is wrong on his time for brining a pork butt. I would brine for at least a week unless it was pumped/injected.
I would check into your recipe before using it again. http://www.kickassbbq.com/brine_recipe.htm




<font size="4"><b>Doug</b></font id="size4">

[JJC]

Welcome to the Forum, Smokinski!  As you can see, there's lots of expert advice here.  I don't cure pork loins, but your recipe looks to be very high on pink salt for the amount of weight/time you used.  The added kosher salt was not a factor, IMHO.  Let us know how the next batch turns out!

John
Newton MA

[whitetailfan]

smokinski,
I brine pork loin for 40 hours (somewhere more than 36, but not 48).  My method is Morton Tenderquik brine solution.  Tenderquik will not be as concentrated as straight praugue powder or pink salt from what I remember on the package.  I went as far as e-mailing Morton to verify the concentration of their brine instruction.  Directions call for little tenderquik if you apply dry direct to flesh, but the brine ratio is one cup per gallon of water, which is lots.  I don't think you have a bad brine (it's close anyway), I would repeat your process with a water bath for 1 to 2 hours before setting out to dry.

I have made at least half a dozen loins for "smoked chops" and it took a few attempts to get the salt flavour down to what I wanted.  I too made some very salty batches, and each time, I attribute it to not rinsing or soaking.  Each try where I added more "water time" to the meat, the salt taste went down, but your curing is complete, so you cannot wash away the cure flavour or colour.

In fact, please give my <font color="red">smoked pork chops</font id="red"> thread a read.  It's two pages, but pay attention to second page, and more of the results are there.

Good luck, nothing like a well prepared loin.[:p]


<font color="green">whitetailfan</font id="green">
"Nice Rack"
Lethbridge, AB

[MallardWacker]

I see another GREAT Pollock has entered the fray....

Just a suggestion, have tried to dry rub instead of brining?  Though I have never brined my loins come out great without the salt effect.

I will tell you this, White does put out some good Mo-Jo when it comes to this.


SmokeOn,

mski
Perryville, Arkansas
Wooo-Pig-Soooie

If a man says he knows anything at all, he knows nothing what he aught to know.  But...

[JJC]

Hi Smokinski--how did things turn out?

John
Newton MA