“a brine injector applies the proficient concept of meat hydration and marination which creates a premium quality product and adds the benefits of efficiency”
Have you ever noticed that after cooking any meat product such as chicken, pork, or beef, it loses some of its moisture and becomes more dry? Brining has become a common technique to counter this effect and leave you with meat that is tender and flavorful. Furthermore, a brine injector applies the proficient concept of meat hydration and marination which creates a premium quality product and adds the benefits of efficiency and ease of use. This makes a brine injector machine the perfect solution for producing commercial-grade meat products in bulk.
The Purpose Of Brining
When food is cooked, heat is applied turning the water within the food into steam leaving it more dry and less flavorful. Brining is a technique specifically for meat and poultry that counteracts this result by exposing the meat to salt water (saline), and pre-hydrating it while simultaneously adding flavor. The main goal of a brine is to eliminate the effects of this water loss which would include dryness, toughness, and loss of the original taste.
How The Brine Process Works
To brine meat is essentially exposing it to salt water. Different methods are available including placing the meat in a bowl of the mixture or injecting the mixture directly into the cut and letting the law of osmosis go into effect. The meat will soak up the salt in the saline in an attempt to equalize the amount of salt between the meat and the saline. As a result, the meat now requires more water to dissolve the rise in salt it just experienced.
Since the saline now has water to spare, the water diffuses into the meat so that the salt-to-water ratio in the brine equals that in the meat.
The same rule applies when you add seasonings into the liquid leaving you the option to flavor the meat. Your customers will experience the satisfaction of a tasty, tender bite.
Different Brine Injection Methods
Perhaps the most commonly used method for home use is soaking the food in a bowl of brine and then letting the process take place over time. Although this is effective and provides exceptional results, this method could take up to 24 hours! As alternatives, hand pumps and brine injectors are efficient methods for those who want to brine food in bulk. These are both forms of brine injection which is a method where the solution is injected directly into the meat.
Hand Pump Brine Injector
Hand pumps are human-operated and come in the form of either a single or quad needle that use the same injection head. Essentially, needle injectors are like giving a shot, pumping the brine directly into the meat. This method makes for an efficient process and allows the meat to be packaged immediately for storage.
Pros And Cons Of A Hand Pump
While the hand pump is more efficient and contains few components making it a cheap option, the results will vary. Because it is a hand-operated injector, no one injection will be the same as the pressure, brine amount in the needle, and amount of injections throughout are guaranteed to be inconsistent. Additionally, the quad needle is manufactured for all needles to retract even if only one hits bone making these difficult to use for bone-in meat cuts.
Brine Injectors
A brine injector machine is the most efficient brine injection method in addition to easy operation! It functions as a conveyor that advances the meat forward through the injection stage which injects the brine with every advance. All the operator has to do is adjust the desired advancement speed and injection pressure and then place the meat on the conveyor. The injection stage is equipped with individual banks of spring-loaded or air-pressurized retractable injector needles that descend with every advance. After the meat leaves the injection stage, the conveyor continues to advance the meat to the end where usually a large bin is placed for the meat to fall into before packaging.
Refer to this video for visual reference.
Meat Products That Can Be Put Through A Brine Injector
A brine injector will produce the same results for any meat product whether boneless, containing bone, large, round turkeys, or small pork chops. Conveniently, if a needle happens to reach bone or begins to create a bubble, that specific needle will remove itself by retracting to prevent product damage.
Brine Injector Variabilities
Two variables affect the brine vs meat ratio and depend on your desired outcome as well as the toughness of the meat. First, the advance speed of the conveyor can be increased or decreased. The number of times the stripper plate descends is constant, so the more time between conveyor advances, the more brine injections the meat will receive. Secondly, the pressure at which the brine is injected can be adjusted. So the higher the pressure, the more brine is injected into the meat.
As an example, if the meat is tough or dense, you would likely want to decrease the time between advances as well as increase the pressure of brine leaving the needle to ensure more brine in the meat.
Brine Injector Benefits
Efficient: The brine injector is the most efficient of the brine injection methods taking only minutes to move multiples of the product through!
Tenderizing: These units simultaneously tenderize the meat adding to the quality and creating a juicier bite.
Flavoring: The variation of brines that can be created is unlimited! Seasonings are optional as the salt from the saline alone enhances the taste, but who wouldn’t want to add some lemon and ginger to poultry?
Consistent brine: Due to the set number of injections and consistent pressure, the brine injector delivers consistency throughout.
More cooking options: The direct injection of the brine into the meat maintains the opportunity to make the skin crispy if desired as opposed to if the meat is soaked in the brine.
Products able to be sold at a premium price: Adding water increases the pre-cooked weight, therefore allowing you to sell the meat at a higher price. The method, efficiency, and consistency of the brine injector all add up to ensure top-quality products that allow you to sell each item at a premium price!
Looking To Order A Brine Injector?
Check out the brine injectors that JVR Industries distributes through our partners Promarks. Various options are available just for you!
Questions?
If you have any follow-up questions about what a brine injector is or what options JVR Industries has available for you, feel free to give us a call during our business hours or send us an email any time that is convenient for you! We look forward to helping you out!
