Meatheads recipe for Corned beef has the cure for 5-7 days. If I use the calculator its for 9-12 days. (Im at work and trying to remember the thickness. 2.5 inches is close to 9 days and 3 inches is 12 days.
Is it because of the other ingredients like the brown sugar and pickling spices that the cure time is shorter. Which time should I go with?
Not sure if it matters but I'm using a 3.2 pound chuck roast.
Remember Meathead's recipe is for brisket which is relatively thin and flat compared to arm and chuck. When curing cuts other than brisket, it's likely the cure calc will produce different answers.
I did a 3.2 pound arm roast and the cure time was about 8.5 days per the cure calculator. The meat was uniformly pink all the way through to the center, so I'd say the cure time was about right for this cut. Based on my experience with that arm roast, I'd say your numbers sound about right for a chuck roast.
Remember you're using an excess of salt if you're following the method given in the cure calc. Measure the smallest dimension, enter the shape, and then stick with the plan created by the cure calc. If you cure longer than necessary, your meat will continue to get saltier.
The timing is all about the rate at which the nitrite penetrates through the meat and the final nitrite concentration in the meat at the end of the cure. It has nothing to do with sugar, spices, etc. Those ingredients only flavor the outside of the meat -- they do not penetrate into the meat very far if at all.
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Always use the calculator, it is the precise authority. Make sure you enter in the thickest part, the correct weight, and the liquid it takes to cover said piece of meat. If all of these details are accurate, trust the calculator. You can go longer on the cure time, 25% or so, w/o worry.
One follow up question, if the cure is done before you are ready to cook it, is there a best way to store it for a day or three or should you just cook it.
You can leave it in the cure for 20% longer than the prescribed curing time by the calculator. Don't go longer than that. You can leave it out in the fridge for a few days with the rub on. Remember, you have to desalinate as well and that can take a day. I generally leave the rub on the corned beef for three days after curing and desalinating. Then smoke to pastrami perfection.
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