Injecting brine into ingredients expedites the process. When we use a syringe we are able to ensure that the brine gets inside and choose where to put it. This means we can target flavor. We started with a beef tongue. We injected it with a 3% salt, 3% sugar, 0.5% curing salt to water brine. We vacuum sealed the tongue after we injected the brine for ease of storage and to get quicker, more uniform seasoning. We drained the tongue and pressure cooked it for 1 hour in beef broth. When we sliced the tongue we saw the brine had penetrated the meat almost fully. If we had been a bit more focused in where we placed the injections it could have been perfect seasoning. Something to strive for next time.
Years Past
April 27, 2005