# Marinade / Cure question / concern.



## Tnecnivx (Dec 16, 2021)

So I just recently tried my hand at two new things.  Pork belly -> bacon, and venison jerky.

Hoping to get a quick answer here.  On the 14lbs of bacon I used about 2.5tsp Prague #1 powder.  So that's norm.  Minimal liquid used... but some. I washed this off before smoking. 

On the jerky, being deer... I wanted to take the extra step against bacteria and added Prague #1 to the marinade.  2.25tsp for 2.5lbs of meat.  That said, I also had a good 6-8 cups of soy, teriyaki sauce, brown sugar, bla bla.  This cured for 20 hours, then got taken from that mix, set on a metal drying rack to drain.  I then used several paper towels to pat each piece to remove excess moisture from the jerky... then dehydrated it. 

It tastes amazing, but I'm coming to realize I could have for sure used less cure.

My question is...  is there any reason it's not safe to eat?  Hate to toss something that tastes this freaking good, but I don't want to make anyone sick.


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## Tnecnivx (Dec 16, 2021)

I will say, obviously 95% of that jerky marinade ended up down the drain.   Before drying the pieces were... sticky at best, not wet.  Really hoping I'm good to go with this batch, and I can just cut it down a bit on the next.


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## SmokinEdge (Dec 16, 2021)

Tnecnivx said:


> So I just recently tried my hand at two new things.  Pork belly -> bacon, and venison jerky.
> 
> Hoping to get a quick answer here.  On the 14lbs of bacon I used about 2.5tsp Prague #1 powder.  So that's norm.  Minimal liquid used... but some. I washed this off before smoking.
> 
> ...


You are fine. Just be a little more careful in the future. Don’t throw it out, enjoy it in some moderation and it’s all good.


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## SmokinEdge (Dec 16, 2021)

And, welcome to SMF. Read up on the sight and ask questions to educate yourself.


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## JckDanls 07 (Dec 16, 2021)

Myself ... I would be pretty hesitant at that cure ratio...  1 tsp per 5 lbs of meat is the recommended ratio ... 2.5 tsp to just 2.5 lbs of meat...  I dunno ... that's an awful lot...


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## SmokinEdge (Dec 16, 2021)

JckDanls 07 said:


> Myself ... I would be pretty hesitant at that cure ratio...  1 tsp per 5 lbs of meat is the recommended ratio ... 2.5 tsp to just 2.5 lbs of meat...  I dunno ... that's an awful lot...


He dehydrated it or dry cured it. In this case the USDA allows up to 625ppm nitrite. He is well within that limit. What he applied was not necessary, but is still within the quotation. Nitrite dissipates rapidly in heat and in drying. This is why it’s still safe.


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## chopsaw (Dec 16, 2021)

JckDanls 07 said:


> Myself ... I would be pretty hesitant at that cure ratio...  1 tsp per 5 lbs of meat is the recommended ratio ... 2.5 tsp to just 2.5 lbs of meat...  I dunno ... that's an awful lot...


I agree.  Learn the correct amounts . Whats taught here is the safest way to do this stuff . At least it used to be . Taking someone past that to start is not a good idea .


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## SmokinEdge (Dec 16, 2021)

I’ll just add to my post that, he also included 6-8 cups of marinade, WITH the meat.
Dont know that specific weight, but water weighs 8.33lb per gallon. Here we have about 1/2 gallon liquid. That’s about 4.165lb of brine/marinade added to the 2.5lbs of meat. Total of 6.7lb of total brine and meat. ITS NOT JUST 2.5lb of meat.

USDA says that 4.0 ounce of cure #1 is allowable per gallon of water (Roughly 4Tbs) This would be roughly 1970ppm IN THE BRINE. Uptake into meat brining or marinated is considered to be no more than 10%. This equals about 197ppm nitrite in meat uptake. This is below the USDA limit of 200ppm. However real world lab testing shows closer to a 4% uptake in meat, less than half what the USDA has in their figures. Or about 79ppm

In this case, the OP had a brine of roughly 1/2 gallon. This would allow, under USDA regulations, roughly 2.0 ounces of cure #1. However, he only applied 2.5tsp, this would be about 15 or 16 grams just shy of 1oz. This is about half the allowable cure#1 in this brine. Uptake at 4.0% and my guess is his jerky has about 40-50ppm nitrite. We can do the long math, if you like.

Otherwise, I suggest everyone that has questions should buy Marianski’s book, “Home production of quality meats and sausages” the formulas are all there, not just me saying this. Go read about it.


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## SmokinEdge (Dec 16, 2021)

chopsaw said:


> At least it used to be .


I appreciate that.


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## chopsaw (Dec 16, 2021)

chopsaw said:


> At least it used to be .


And should still be .


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## SmokinEdge (Dec 16, 2021)

chopsaw said:


> And should still be .


With all respect, if I’m wrong, provide the math as to how. I’m prepared to go as deep in this conversation as you like. I just ask that there is a productive dialogue. Numbers to numbers.


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## Tnecnivx (Dec 17, 2021)

SmokinEdge said:


> And, welcome to SMF. Read up on the sight and ask questions to educate yourself.



Will do,  thank you for the answer.  After dehydration I only ended up with about a pound, but I ate some last night... no issues to speak of so far lol. 

Nice to know how active this board is, iv been smoking for about 22 years at this point, I'm well into a build of a dual fuel (pellet / offset firebox) 1800 Sq in  vertical smoker... gonna have to spend some time here


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