I absolutely *love* corned beef. Since I recently made one (thanks to
Janet Wilder and everyone's help) I still have the taste in my mouth.
It beckons me.

The problem with corned beef for people prone to hypertension is of
course the sodium content (nm the fat, we'll worry about that later).
Suppose I were to get a brisket and brine it myself, but use no
saltpeter and maybe half the salt? All other (pickling) spices will
remain the usual ratio.

Would it be safe to marinate a brisket in the fridge for 10 days to 2
weeks with half as much salt? Would it matter if it will eventually
spend 10-12 hours in the slow cooker?

thx

-J

phaeton wrote:
> I absolutely *love* corned beef. Since I recently made one (thanks to
> Janet Wilder and everyone's help) I still have the taste in my mouth. It
> beckons me.
>
> The problem with corned beef for people prone to hypertension is of
> course the sodium content (nm the fat, we'll worry about that later).
> Suppose I were to get a brisket and brine it myself, but use no
> saltpeter and maybe half the salt? All other (pickling) spices will
> remain the usual ratio.
>
> Would it be safe to marinate a brisket in the fridge for 10 days to 2
> weeks with half as much salt? Would it matter if it will eventually
> spend 10-12 hours in the slow cooker?
>

I have no experience in brining a corned beef with less salt, but I can
give you my late mother's remedy for a purchased corned beef. She would
soak it in cold water overnight changing the water a couple of times, to
get out excess salt. You might give that a try before you experiment.

Just a thought.


--
Janet Wilder
Way-the-heck-south-Texas

"phaeton" > wrote in message
...
>I absolutely *love* corned beef. Since I recently made one (thanks to
>Janet Wilder and everyone's help) I still have the taste in my mouth. It
>beckons me.
>
> The problem with corned beef for people prone to hypertension is of course
> the sodium content (nm the fat, we'll worry about that later). Suppose I
> were to get a brisket and brine it myself, but use no saltpeter and maybe
> half the salt? All other (pickling) spices will remain the usual ratio.
>
> Would it be safe to marinate a brisket in the fridge for 10 days to 2
> weeks with half as much salt? Would it matter if it will eventually spend
> 10-12 hours in the slow cooker?

Risky.

Use the proper cure first. After cured, rinse the meat, soak it in water
overnight and change the water at least once or twice. The meat will only
absorb a given amount of sodium so if you use half the amount it will just
take longer to cure at the risk of going bad in the meantime. If the meat
goes rancid, no matter how long it is in the crockpot it will still be
rancid.

If you intend to cure your own meats, read up on it first. Use the proper
cures in the proper amounts. Use InstaCure or Modern cure instead of
saltpeter as it is easier and saver to get the right quantity.

"phaeton" > wrote in message
...
>I absolutely *love* corned beef. Since I recently made one (thanks to
>Janet Wilder and everyone's help) I still have the taste in my mouth. It
>beckons me.
>
> The problem with corned beef for people prone to hypertension is of course
> the sodium content (nm the fat, we'll worry about that later). Suppose I
> were to get a brisket and brine it myself, but use no saltpeter and maybe
> half the salt? All other (pickling) spices will remain the usual ratio.
>
> Would it be safe to marinate a brisket in the fridge for 10 days to 2
> weeks with half as much salt? Would it matter if it will eventually spend
> 10-12 hours in the slow cooker?
>
> thx
>
> -J
Rather than going to the effort of making your own corned beef consider
trying the following.
1. Soak the corned beef in the cooking pan with water for 1-2 hours;
rinse and replace water several times before you start.
2. When you braise it, change cooking liquid twice more during the
cooking period.
This should dilute out a lot more salt than the usual one step procedure
does. You can see how you're doing by tasting the
cooking liquid.
If you try this let us know.

Ed

phaeton wrote:
> I absolutely *love* corned beef. Since I recently made one (thanks to
> Janet Wilder and everyone's help) I still have the taste in my mouth. It
> beckons me.
>
> The problem with corned beef for people prone to hypertension is of
> course the sodium content (nm the fat, we'll worry about that later).
> Suppose I were to get a brisket and brine it myself, but use no
> saltpeter and maybe half the salt? All other (pickling) spices will
> remain the usual ratio.
>
> Would it be safe to marinate a brisket in the fridge for 10 days to 2
> weeks with half as much salt? Would it matter if it will eventually
> spend 10-12 hours in the slow cooker?
>
> thx
>
> -J


Would be more interesting to use the saltpeter and spices without the
salt. (Prague powder #1 would be much more appropriate than saltpeter)

It doesn't need to marinate that long. How cold is your fridge?

Bob

phaeton > wrote:

> Would it be safe to marinate a brisket in the fridge for 10 days to 2
> weeks with half as much salt? Would it matter if it will eventually
> spend 10-12 hours in the slow cooker?

The problem with using a weaker brine is you don't get
the proper amount of turger pressure to get the cure into
the cells. You would be safer to cure it with the full
amount of salt, then soak away a lot of it just prior to
cooking.

Bill Ranck
Blackburg, Va.

"zxcvbob" > wrote in message
...
> phaeton wrote:
>> I absolutely *love* corned beef. Since I recently made one (thanks to
>> Janet Wilder and everyone's help) I still have the taste in my mouth. It
>> beckons me.
>>
>> The problem with corned beef for people prone to hypertension is of
>> course the sodium content (nm the fat, we'll worry about that later).
>> Suppose I were to get a brisket and brine it myself, but use no saltpeter
>> and maybe half the salt? All other (pickling) spices will remain the
>> usual ratio.
>>
>> Would it be safe to marinate a brisket in the fridge for 10 days to 2
>> weeks with half as much salt? Would it matter if it will eventually
>> spend 10-12 hours in the slow cooker?
>>
>> thx
>>
>> -J
>
>
> Would be more interesting to use the saltpeter and spices without the
> salt. (Prague powder #1 would be much more appropriate than saltpeter)
>
> It doesn't need to marinate that long. How cold is your fridge?
>
> Bob

Prague power #1 is 6.25% sodium nitrite and the remainder is sodium
chloride, or salt. I wonder if anyone has tried potassium chloride to cure,
along with the nitrite?

Ed

> wrote in message ...
> phaeton > wrote:
>
>> Would it be safe to marinate a brisket in the fridge for 10 days to 2
>> weeks with half as much salt? Would it matter if it will eventually
>> spend 10-12 hours in the slow cooker?
>
> The problem with using a weaker brine is you don't get
> the proper amount of turger pressure to get the cure into
> the cells. You would be safer to cure it with the full
> amount of salt, then soak away a lot of it just prior to
> cooking.
>
> Bill Ranck
> Blackburg, Va.

I'd vote for the soaking as well, and braising and changing the braising
water at least once during cooking.

Ed

Theron wrote:
> "zxcvbob" > wrote in message
> ...
>
>>Would be more interesting to use the saltpeter and spices without the
>>salt. (Prague powder #1 would be much more appropriate than saltpeter)
>>
>>It doesn't need to marinate that long. How cold is your fridge?
>>
>>Bob
>
>
> Prague power #1 is 6.25% sodium nitrite and the remainder is sodium
> chloride, or salt. I wonder if anyone has tried potassium chloride to cure,
> along with the nitrite?


Bad idea. The reason why food grade nitrates/nitrites are
always mixed with salt is so that home cooks can dispense the very
the small quantities allowed. Using it in pure form, you'd need a
sub-gram scale to get the quantities right and not overdose the stuff.

"RegForte" > wrote in message
...
> Theron wrote:
>> "zxcvbob" > wrote in message
>> ...
>>
>>>Would be more interesting to use the saltpeter and spices without the
>>>salt. (Prague powder #1 would be much more appropriate than saltpeter)
>>>
>>>It doesn't need to marinate that long. How cold is your fridge?
>>>
>>>Bob
>>
>>
>> Prague power #1 is 6.25% sodium nitrite and the remainder is sodium
>> chloride, or salt. I wonder if anyone has tried potassium chloride to
>> cure, along with the nitrite?
>
>
> Bad idea. The reason why food grade nitrates/nitrites are
> always mixed with salt is so that home cooks can dispense the very
> the small quantities allowed. Using it in pure form, you'd need a
> sub-gram scale to get the quantities right and not overdose the stuff.

A good point, I'll throw the saltpeter.
Thanks,

Ed

On Tue, 17 Mar 2009 15:27:58 -0700 in rec.food.cooking, RegForte
> wrote,
>Theron wrote:
>> Prague power #1 is 6.25% sodium nitrite and the remainder is sodium
>> chloride, or salt. I wonder if anyone has tried potassium chloride to cure,
>> along with the nitrite?
>
>
>Bad idea. The reason why food grade nitrates/nitrites are
>always mixed with salt is so that home cooks can dispense the very
>the small quantities allowed. Using it in pure form, you'd need a
>sub-gram scale to get the quantities right and not overdose the stuff.

So if I understand you, you are saying to forget about the salt because
it is just filler, and weigh out your KNO3 on an accurate scale, and
you'll be good to go? Cure with no added sodium?

"David Harmon" > wrote in message
...
> On Tue, 17 Mar 2009 15:27:58 -0700 in rec.food.cooking, RegForte
> > wrote,
>>Theron wrote:
>>> Prague power #1 is 6.25% sodium nitrite and the remainder is sodium
>>> chloride, or salt. I wonder if anyone has tried potassium chloride to
>>> cure,
>>> along with the nitrite?
>>
>>
>>Bad idea. The reason why food grade nitrates/nitrites are
>>always mixed with salt is so that home cooks can dispense the very
>>the small quantities allowed. Using it in pure form, you'd need a
>>sub-gram scale to get the quantities right and not overdose the stuff.
>
> So if I understand you, you are saying to forget about the salt because
> it is just filler, and weigh out your KNO3 on an accurate scale, and
> you'll be good to go? Cure with no added sodium?
>

No he is not saying that at all. He is saying it is a bad idea. You NEED
some salt. Cures are not just a mix of salt and nitrates, but the materials
are dissolved, mixed in liquid form, solidified, and then ground. This
assure proper distribution. If you tried to get the tiny amounts of
chemicals distributed through the meat with no dilution, you'd have hot
spots and dead spots.

Meat has been preserved for centuries using the same basic methods and most
involve salt. Trying to find a "better" way can result in some very nasty
gastric side effects, even death.