I did a boneless Rib-eye 1.5 inch thick, via Alton Brown. He called for 2 teaspoons kosher salt, (rack & pan) rest uncovered, 6 - 24 hrs. in fridge. I did six hours, then onto GMG pellet smoker, apple pellets, to 120F. Rest 10 min. Cast Iron skillet 600F. 45 second per side. I did 1min 20 sec per side.
Results: I thought a smidge too salty, great flavor, better than alternative steak prep. Will longer fridge time, result in, saltier taste than less time? Any advantage, to longer time salted in fridge. Next i might try 'mesquite' 200F till 120F
AB, and lots of TV chefs use Diamond which is less salty than Morton, by a fair margin. Crystal size. I kind of think it’s irresponsible of TV chefs to say "kosher salt" by volume and not mention the brand.
Rather than salt by volume, I would salt by weight. Weigh the steak. Grams is probably best, but whatever. 3-6% of that number is the weight of the salt you should use.
More time in the fridge will pull it a bit deeper, but not much. I think the solution is just less salt.
Last edited by Potkettleblack; January 28, 2019, 11:50 AM.
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Another foolproof way to dry brine is to use Morton coarse Kosher salt and use exactly 1/2tsp per pound of meat, spread 360* all around. (Use HALF that, 1/4tsp/lb, if you're using regular table salt). This works for steak, prim rib, turkeys, brisket, you name it. Of course if you dry brine don't use a salted rub. Or if you're using a salted rub, use *it* as the dry brine.
The longer meat sits being dry brined will not make it more salty, you're only adding so much to it so time is irrelevant in that regard. Wet brine, sure, the longer it sits the more salt it pulls out of the solution. The longer you dry brine the better, since salt travels inward with time and help the meat retain moisture during the cook. With steak & ribs, an hour minimum, but I like to do mine the night before. Briskets I like to dry brine at least 24hrs, preferably 48 hrs in advance if circumstances permit.
I find salting weight to weight eliminates error on larger cuts, so have come to use it for most processes. Also, I’ve taken to using my version APL’s four seasons for nearly all my dry brine needs, so weight is imperative, as it’s basically fine dust.
If you can find "salt parrilla" try that. It is medium grain salt and I find it perfect for using on meat. Maybe it is my crapppy vision, but much easier to judge the amount of salt on a piece of meat than fine or coarse granules.
I dry brine all over with Diamond Crystal per the advice "as much salt as you would at table." Diamond's grind is very similar to table salt's, which makes it easy to follow my guideline. I'm intrigued with Potkettleblack's per-gram advice above which I'm going to try to compare with my method, but large cut or small, I've been pleased with the "table" advice.
I dry brine for 2 hrs minimum, as I understand it takes 1 hour for the brine to pull the juices out and another hour for them to reabsorb and start tenderizing. More than 2 hours improves the result (taste and tenderness), less does more harm than good.
I believe the meat matters. I dry brined a supermarket-quality boneless pork loin recently for 10 hours and it was tender, juicy, and flavorful. I dry brined a prime beef tenderloin for 6 hours once and I thought it I made it mushy. At the risk of stating the obvious, don't brine ground anything.
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