Brine Food Safety: Temperature, Time and Reuse
Published
Brine meat, poultry and fish in the refrigerator at 40°F (4°C) or below, keep the food covered and submerged, take it out before the maximum time for that food, and discard the brine afterward. These rules apply to every wet brine in the calculator, and a dry brine has the same cold-storage rule.
This page lists each rule, the source behind it, and what the calculator does not cover. The amounts and times for a specific food are in its guide and in the calculator.
Rules at a glance
| Rule | What it says | Where it comes from |
|---|---|---|
| Cold | 40°F (4°C) or below, never at room temperature | USDA FSIS; University of Wisconsin Extension |
| Brine | Discard it after use, do not reuse | USDA FSIS poultry brining page |
| Time | Stay within the maximum for the food | Each food's sources, listed in its guide |
| Covered | Submerge the food and keep the container covered | USDA FSIS |
| Pre-salted meat | Do not brine basted, enhanced, marinated or kosher meat | Morton Salt; Destination BBQ; America's Test Kitchen (kosher or self-basting turkey, enhanced chops) |
| Fermented vegetables | Keep submerged, do not cut the salt, discard a slimy or spoiled ferment, do not can the result | Extension services; NCHFP |
Keep it cold
The USDA's Food Safety and Inspection Service says that the refrigerator should be at 40°F or below and that meat and poultry are marinated in a covered dish in the refrigerator. It also says perishable food should not sit at room temperature for more than 2 hours, or 1 hour when the temperature is above 90°F. The calculator goes further for brining and does not give a room-temperature option.
Warning
Brine in the refrigerator at 40°F (4°C) or below. Do not brine at room temperature.
Warning
Keep the salted meat in the refrigerator at 40°F (4°C) or below. Do not leave it at room temperature.
AmazingRibs.com's brine recipe says to keep the brine under 40°F (4°C) while the meat is in it, adding ice when necessary, and that visible unmelted ice means the brine is probably below that. If you heat water to dissolve the salt, the University of Wisconsin Extension says to cool it to room temperature before adding a turkey.
Discard the brine
The USDA's poultry page says to discard brine after use.
Warning
Discard the brine after use. Do not reuse brine that held raw meat, poultry or fish.
The USDA states this for poultry. None of the pages the calculator cites state the rule separately for pork, beef or fish, so the calculator applies the poultry guidance to every wet brine. How to make brine covers mixing a fresh batch for each use.
Handle raw meat as raw meat
The USDA's poultry brining page says to totally submerge poultry in the solution and store it covered in the refrigerator. The University of Wisconsin Extension adds that the container should be food-grade plastic, stainless steel or glass, or a brining bag, that fits in the refrigerator, and that sinks and counters the bird or brine touched should be cleaned and sanitized.
The Wisconsin guidance for turkey also says not to wash the bird before brining, because that spreads bacteria. The calculator repeats it for turkey.
Note
The University of Wisconsin Extension says not to wash the turkey before brining, because washing raw poultry can cause cross-contamination. If you rinse the cavity afterward, use cold water and make sure it runs out the other end.
USDA's general advice is to keep raw meat, poultry, fish and their juices away from other food. The USDA's poultry brining page gives 165°F, measured with a food thermometer, as the safe internal temperature for cooking poultry, and its dry brining section repeats it. Other foods have their own safe minimum internal temperatures.
Respect the maximum time
Each food and strength has a maximum in the calculator, taken from that food's sources. Some sources give a reason, such as saltiness or texture, and some give only a time. The list of maximums is in can you over-brine meat. The one general ceiling is for turkey.
Warning
Keep the turkey and brine at 40°F (4°C) or below and do not leave the turkey out at room temperature while it brines. USDA and the University of Wisconsin Extension say not to brine any longer than two days.
For chicken breast, as an example, the maximum at the default strength is 1 hr.
Warning
Do not brine longer than 1 hr. The Kitchn's 5 Smart Tips for Better Brined Meat page says that for pork chops, chicken and other small cuts, the meat can start to become mushy after a couple of hours in a brine. Amazing Ribs reports a test by Greg Blonder in which a half-pound boneless chicken breast held about 1.5% salt inside after 8 hours in a 6% brine, and calls an internal level of 1.5% to 2% much too salty to eat. That test shows meat becomes too salty over hours; it does not set the maximum shown here.
Meat that is already salted
Warning
Do not brine meat that is labeled basted, enhanced, marinated or kosher. Morton Salt advises against it. Destination BBQ says enhanced, self-basting and kosher meat has already been salt-treated and is essentially pre-brined, and that you might dry-brine it very lightly or not brine it at all. America's Test Kitchen's roasted brined turkey recipe says not to brine a kosher or self-basting turkey because it already contains a good amount of sodium. America's Test Kitchen's 30-Minute Brine page says not to brine enhanced chops injected with a salt solution.
Check the package before you start. The chicken breast brine guide and the whole turkey brine guide both repeat this warning, and the brining mistakes guide covers other errors.
Fermented vegetables
Vegetables fermented in salt have their own rules. The National Center for Home Food Preservation says not to ferment pickles or sauerkraut by cutting back on the salt, because salt is vital to their safety and texture. A sauerkraut publication from the UCCE Master Food Preservers of El Dorado County adds that cabbage with too little salt spoils instead of ferments. The calculator carries the rule against cutting the salt, along with these:
Warning
Do not reduce the salt below the amount shown. The National Center for Home Food Preservation says salt is vital to the safety and texture of fermented vegetables and not to cut back on the salt required, and the Inyo-Mono Master Food Preserver Program (UC Cooperative Extension) says it is unsafe to reduce salt in lactofermented vegetables.
Warning
Keep the vegetables under the brine for the whole ferment. Vegetables that stick out of the liquid are exposed to air, which lets mold and yeast grow.
Warning
Discard the ferment if it is slimy or smells spoiled or rotten (Illinois Extension). NCHFP's Dill Pickles page says to discard fermented pickles that become soft, slimy or develop a disagreeable odor.
Warning
Fermenting is not canning. This calculator gives no canning instructions. Do not can the fermented result unless you follow a tested canning procedure from the National Center for Home Food Preservation or a university extension service.
Published salt ranges differ by source and by vegetable, and the fermented vegetable guides give the range each source states. The Inyo-Mono Master Food Preserver Program, a University of California program, says tested recipes fall between 2% and 10% brine concentrations. The fermentation salt percentage chart lists the amounts for each vegetable, and how to ferment vegetables covers the process.
What this calculator does not cover
- Curing with nitrite or curing salt. Cured bacon uses a cure that contains sodium nitrite, and Oregon State University Extension says that nitrite and nitrate salts have a relatively high toxicity and must be used in the quantities established in researched recipes. A brine for cooking is not a cure. This calculator gives no curing salt amounts.
- Canning. Canning is a separate process that needs a tested procedure, and fermenting is not canning. The calculator gives no canning amounts or times.
- Vinegar pickling. The NCHFP's general information on pickling says not to alter vinegar, food or water proportions in a recipe and not to use a vinegar with unknown acidity. This calculator does not include vinegar pickles.
- Cheese and olive brines. These are outside the calculator.
Sodium
Brined food contains added salt, and the calculator does not give medical advice. The FDA's sodium page gives the guideline the calculator quotes.
Note
The Dietary Guidelines for Americans recommend that adults limit sodium to less than 2,300 mg per day. Brined and fermented food contains added salt.
For the basics of what a brine does and how the two methods differ, read what is brining and wet versus dry brine.
Frequently asked questions
Can you brine meat at room temperature?
No. Brine in the refrigerator at 40°F (4°C) or below. USDA says to marinate meat and poultry in the refrigerator, and the calculator does not give a room-temperature option.
Can you reuse brine?
No. USDA says to discard brine after use, and the calculator applies that to any brine that held raw meat, poultry or fish.
How long can you leave meat in brine?
Each wet brine has its own maximum in the calculator, from 10 min for some fish brines to 12 hr for a whole turkey in the default brine. For any turkey, USDA and the University of Wisconsin Extension say not to brine longer than two days.
Do I need curing salt for a brine?
No. A brine for cooking uses plain salt and water. Curing salt contains sodium nitrite and is used for curing meats such as bacon, which is a different process that this calculator does not cover.
Is fermenting vegetables the same as canning them?
No. Fermenting is not canning, and this calculator gives no canning instructions. Do not can the fermented result unless you follow a tested canning procedure from the National Center for Home Food Preservation or a university extension service.
Is brined meat high in sodium?
Brined and fermented food contains added salt. The Dietary Guidelines for Americans recommend that adults limit sodium to less than 2,300 mg per day.
Sources
- Keep Food Safe! Food Safety Basics (USDA FSIS)
- Poultry: Basting, Brining, and Marinating (USDA FSIS)
- Brining Tips (University of Wisconsin Extension, Dunn County)
- General Information on Fermenting (National Center for Home Food Preservation)
- Making Cured Bacon at Home (Oregon State University Extension)
- Sodium in Your Diet (FDA)