READY FOR BRINE TIME
Salt and spices put old-fashioned flavor back into modern meats 
Janet Fletcher, Chronicle Staff Writer

Have you had it with tasteless, juiceless pork chops and sawdust
chicken breasts? Many professional cooks have, too, which is
why they're turning to an age-old technique to restore the
flavor and moistness that many meats used to have naturally. 

In a growing number of restaurant and home kitchens, brining
is putting the juice back into pork chops and at least some taste
back into factory-raised chickens. By soaking the meat for hours
or days in a seasoned salt-water solution, cooks find that they
can transform lean pork and poultry with minimal cost and
effort. 

"This brining, it's become an urban legend," says Pam
Anderson, Cook's Illustrated executive editor who has written
about brining for the magazine and jokingly calls herself "the
brine queen." Anderson once roasted more than 30 turkeys to
find the best cooking method, settling on an overnight brine as
an essential first step. "Every time we do a poultry story now,"
says Anderson, "we find that salt is the answer."

With brines, cooks like Anderson are trying to compensate for
the shortcomings of modern animal husbandry. Chickens raised
to market weight quickly on carefully formulated feed don't
have the flavor of those old-time barnyard hunt- and-peckers.
Nor does pork have the taste appeal it used to. Bred for
leanness to accommodate contemporary concerns about fat,
American pigs are 50 to 70 percent leaner than they were 20
years ago, says East Bay sausage maker Bruce Aidells. Fat,
whatever its other failings, contributes moisture and flavor. 

"When they decided to market pork as the new lean white meat,
they completely ruined the product," complains Nancy Oakes,
chef at Boulevard in San Francisco (and Aidells' wife). "If you
cook pork loin at home, you end up with this hard, dry, very
lean white meat."

In response, Oakes began brining pork several years ago at
L'Avenue, her former San Francisco restaurant. At Boulevard,
a spit-roasted pork loin, brined for four days, is a menu fixture,
and brined turkey breast with applesauce is a favorite staff
meal. 

Aidells, too, is a brining convert. His forthcoming book on meat,
due this fall from Chapters Publishing, will include a small
treatise on the practice. "To be honest with you," says the meat
maven, "unless you're really careful, it's damn near impossible
to produce a decent pork chop without brine."

The succulent cider-cured pork chop at San Francisco's 42
Degrees testifies to brining's merits. Chef Jim Moffatt swears by
the technique, not only because it infuses the meat with flavor
but because it gives the kitchen a larger margin of error. A
brined chop will stay moist even if it's cooked a little too long. 

By what mechanism does a little salt water work such magic?
"It's our old friend osmosis," says Harold McGee, the Palo Alto
specialist in the science of cooking. "If there's more of a
diffusable chemical in one place than another, it tries to even
itself out."

Because there's more salt in the brine than in the meat, the
muscle absorbs the salt water. There, the salt denatures the
meat proteins, causing them to unwind and form a matrix that
traps the water. And if the brine includes herbs, garlic, juniper
berries or peppercorns, those flavors are trapped in the meat,
too. Instead of seasoning on the surface only, as most cooks do,
brining carries the seasonings throughout. 

Aidells calls this technique "flavor brining" -- done not for
preservation (which would require a saltier solution and longer
immersion) but for enhancing texture and taste. Even a couple
of hours in a brine will improve bland Cornish game hens, says
Anderson, or give chicken parts a flavor boost before
deep-frying or grilling. 

Brines vary considerably from chef to chef, as do recommended
brining times. But generally speaking, the saltier the brine, the
shorter the required stay. And, logically, the brine will
penetrate a Cornish game hen or duck breast much faster than
it will penetrate a thick muscle like a whole pork loin or turkey
breast. Meat left too long in a brine tastes overseasoned and the
texture is compromised, producing a soggy or mushy quality. 

Most cooks start their brine with hot water, which dissolves the
salt and draws out the flavor in the herbs and spices. But they
caution that the brine should be completely cold before adding
the meat or it will absorb too much salt. 

By playing around with the liquid base and the seasonings,
chefs give their brine personality. Some use apple juice or beer
for some or all of the water. The smoked turkey that Jeff Starr of
Stags' Leap Winery produced for a food editors' conference in
Napa Valley last year was brined in orange juice, rice wine
vinegar and apple cider vinegar; some who tasted it swore they
would never cook a turkey any other way again. 

Seasonings can run the gamut from thyme, rosemary, bay leaf
and garlic to cinnamon stick, star anise or vanilla. Many cooks
put some sugar in their brine to sweeten the meat and make it
brown better when cooked. Others avoid sugar, arguing that it
makes everything taste like ham. 

Whatever their recipe, brining advocates keep looking for other
uses for their favorite technique. Anderson says some people
brine shrimp for half an hour; she herself has begun soaking
chicken parts in salted buttermilk before frying to get the
benefits of brine with the tenderizing effect of the buttermilk. If
cooks like Anderson and Aidells continue to preach the gospel of
brining, diners can kiss sawdust chicken goodbye. 

WHAT THE PROS KNOW 

Here are some tips to start you in the brining business: 

--A heavy-duty plastic tub, earthenware crock, stainless-steel
bowl or even a re-sealable plastic bag can work as a brining
container as long as the meat is fully submerged. Weight with a
plate if necessary to keep the meat fully covered by brine. 

--To determine how much brine you'll need, place the meat to be
brined in your chosen container. Add water to cover. Remove
the meat and measure the water. 

--Start your brine with hot water to dissolve the salt (and sugar
if using) and to draw the flavor out of any herbs and spices.
Chill brine completely in the refrigerator before adding meat. 

--Although some cooks prefer lighter or heavier brines, 1 cup of
salt per gallon of water is a happy medium. Use kosher salt that
has no additives. 

--Experiment with seasonings. Salt is essential, but everything
else is optional. Consider garlic, ginger, fresh herbs, juniper
berries, clove, cinnamon stick, vanilla bean, mustard seed,
coriander seed, star anise, hot pepper flakes or Sichuan
peppercorns. To give pork a sweet edge and encourage
browning, add 1/2 cup sugar to each 2 quarts of water. 

--You don't need to rinse meat after you remove it from the
brine unless the brine is highly salted (more than 1 cup salt per
gallon). 

--Don't salt brined meat before cooking; it is already salted
throughout. 

--Don't reuse brine. 

HOW LONG TO BRINE 

The thickness of the muscle, the strength of the brine and your
own taste determine how long to brine an item. For a
moderately strong brine (1 cup salt to 1 gallon water), the
following brining times are rough guidelines. If you aren't
ready to cook at the end of the brining time, remove the meat
from the brine, but keep the meat refrigerated. 

--Shrimp: 30 minutes 
-- Whole chicken (4 pounds): 8 to 12 hours 
-- Chicken parts: 1 1/2 hours 
-- Cornish game hens: 2 hours 
-- Turkey (12 to 14 pounds): 24 hours 
-- Pork chops (1 1/4 to 1 1/2 inch thick): 1 to 2 days 
-- Whole pork tenderloin: 12 hours 
-- Whole pork loin: 2 to 4 days 

SUPER-JUICY ROAST CHICKEN WITH GARLIC & THYME

Even the breast meat is moist in this simple roast chicken,
which spends half a day in brine. If desired, brine it overnight,
then remove it from the brine in the morning but keep
refrigerated until dinner time. 

INGREDIENTS: 

-- 1 chicken, 3 1/2 to 4 pounds 
-- 1 lemon, halved Brine 
-- 1 gallon boiling water 
-- 1 cup kosher salt 
-- 1/2 bunch fresh thyme 
-- 4 garlic cloves, peeled and halved 
-- 1 tablespoon coarsely cracked peppercorns 

INSTRUCTIONS: To make the brine: Combine all brine
ingredients in a bowl, small crock or heavy-duty plastic
container just large enough to hold the chicken. Stir to dissolve
the salt. Cool, then refrigerate until completely cold. Place the
chicken breast-side down in the brine. Weight with a plate if
necessary to keep the chicken completely submerged.
Refrigerate for 12 hours. 

Preheat the oven to 425 degrees. 

Remove chicken from brine and allow to air-dry at room
temperature. 

Squeeze 1 of the lemon halves in the cavity, squeeze the other
over the skin, then put both halves in the cavity. Truss the bird
with string. 

Place breast-side down on a rack in a roasting pan; roast for 30
minutes. Turn breast-side up and continue roasting until the
juices run clear, about 30 minutes longer. Transfer the chicken
breast-side down to a platter and let cool for 30 minutes.
Remove the string and discard the lemons. Carve the chicken
into serving pieces and spoon any collected juices over them. 

Serves 3 or 4. 

42 DEGREES' CIDER-CURED PORK CHOPS 

INGREDIENTS: 

-- 4 center-cut pork loin chops, 1 1/4 to 1 1/2 inches thick 
-- Olive oil Brine 
-- 4 cups water 
-- 2 cups hard cider 
-- 1/2 cup salt 
-- 1/2 cup light brown sugar 
-- 10 whole peppercorns 
-- 4 bay leaves 
-- 1/2 bunch fresh thyme 
-- 1 onion, chopped 
-- 1 carrot, peeled and chopped 
-- 1 celery rib, chopped 
-- 1 apple, peeled and chopped 

INSTRUCTIONS: To make the brine: Combine all brine
ingredients in a saucepan. Bring to a boil over high heat, then
remove from heat and let cool. When cool, refrigerate until cold. 

Add the pork chops to the cold brine. Weight with a plate if
necessary to keep the chops completely submerged. Refrigerate
for at least 1 day or up to 2 days. 

To cook: Remove the chops from the brine and pat them dry.
Heat 2 skillets over moderately high heat. Add just enough oil
to coat the bottom of each skillet. When the skillets are hot, add
the chops and reduce heat to moderately low. Cook for 10
minutes, then turn and cook until the chops are no longer pink
at the bone, about 10 minutes longer. 

Serves 4. The calories and other nutrients absorbed from brines
vary and are difficult to estimate. Variables include the type of
food, brining time and amount of surface area. Therefore, these
recipes contain no analysis. 

NANCY OAKES' VANILLA BRINE 

This recipe makes enough brine for a 4- to 6-pound boneless
pork loin, or six 1 3/8- to 1 1/2-inch-thick center-cut pork loin
chops, or 4 pork tenderloins, 1 to 1 1/4 pounds each. The recipe
is from a forthcoming cookbook on meat by Bruce Aidells. 

INGREDIENTS: 

-- 9 cups boiling water 
-- 1/2 cup sugar 
-- 1/2 cup kosher salt 
-- 2 tablespoons coarsely cracked black pepper 
-- 2 1/2 teaspoons pure vanilla 

INSTRUCTIONS: Combine all brine ingredients in a bowl,
small crock or heavy-duty plastic container; stir to dissolve the
salt and sugar. Let cool, then chill thoroughly in the
refrigerator. 

Add pork of choice (see headnote). Weight with a plate if
necessary to keep the meat completely submerged. 

Refrigerate 3 days for pork loin, 1 to 2 days for chops and 12
hours for tenderloin. Stir the brine each day and turn the pork
occasionally. 

Roast or grill pork loin or tenderloins. Grill chops or pan-fry
according to directions in Cider-Cured Pork Chops. 

BOULEVARD'S STAFF TURKEY 

If you're feeling flush, says Boulevard chef Nancy Oakes,
substitute apple juice or cider for the water, and reduce the
honey to 1/2 cup. 

INGREDIENTS: 

-- 1 bone-in turkey breast half, 3 to 3 1/2 pounds 
-- 1 tablespoon olive oil Honey Brine 
-- 2 quarts water 
-- 3/4 cup honey 
-- 1/2 cup kosher salt 
-- 2 tablespoons Dijon mustard 
-- 1 1/2 teaspoons hot red pepper flakes 
-- 1 rosemary sprig, about 4 inches long 

INSTRUCTIONS: To make the brine: Bring water to a boil,
then pour into a container just large enough to hold the turkey
breast; cool for 5 minutes. Add honey, salt, mustard and pepper;
whisk until honey dissolves. Add rosemary. Refrigerate until
well chilled. 

Add turkey breast to the chilled brine. Weight with a plate if
necessary to keep it completely submerged. Refrigerate for 1 to
2 days. 

Remove the turkey breast from the brine, place in a roasting
pan and bring to room temperature. Preheat the oven to 350
degrees. 

Roast the turkey for 30 minutes, then brush with the olive oil.
Continue roasting until the internal temperature reaches 150
degrees on an instant-read thermometer, about 30 minutes
longer, basting occasionally with the drippings. Remove from
the oven and let rest for 30 minutes before carving. 

Serves 6.

