# Best container for brining?



## tpc74

What is the best or recommended container for brining?

I made some smoked salmon for fathers day and it turned out excellent considering how little time I had to do it.  The hardest part was coming up with a good container for the brine. 

What I ended up using was a very large plastic bowl with a lid that we use for salads sometimes, and then using a bowl to weight the two pieces of salmon I had down into the brine.  This worked but didn't seem very elegant of a solution and I think it could be better.

Would it be better to pour the liquid into gallon bags?  Assuming there was room so that the fish would be better submerged?

What do you all use for your liquid brining methods?


----------



## BGKYSmoker

A food grade plastic bucket, or better yet go to a restaurant supply, they have some nice food grade containers in many shapes and sizes.


----------



## tpc74

But what do you do to weight the fish so it doesn't just float on top of the brine?


----------



## diggingdogfarm

nepas said:


> ......better yet go to a restaurant supply, they have some nice food grade containers in many shapes and sizes.



I was ready to suggest the exact same thing.


~Martin


----------



## fpnmf

Get a food grade bucket at your local grocery store that has a bakery...should be free..

Weight it down with a baggie half full of water..


----------



## tpc74

Thanks for the tips/suggestions.


----------



## arnie

I use a 5 gallon food grade bucket if I cannot get whatever I am brining to fit in a Ziploc bag.

If you use a Ziploc bag you use less brine, just make sure you squeeze out all of the air in the baggy


----------



## tpc74

Arnie said:


> I use a 5 gallon food grade bucket if I cannot get whatever I am brining to fit in a Ziploc bag.
> 
> If you use a Ziploc bag you use less brine, just make sure you squeeze out all of the air in the baggy


Well the brine mixture I am made comes out to be about 1/2 gallon or so.  Is it wrong or bad to spilt it up into multiple baggies if I can't get it all into one?

Say I take one large fillet and cut it into 4 smaller pieces.  Should I make enough brine for that and split it between baggies, one piece per baggie?  Or do something else?


----------



## rabbithutch

Ziploc makes 2-gallon double zip bags - though they are hard to find in most supermarkets around here.  They work for most everything I've brined except turkeys.  For turkeys, I use a food grade container that I got from Sam's bakery for free.  It had been filled with butter creme icing for cakes.  I put the gel pack freezer blocks in clean ziplock bags and put them in the bucket with ice water.  We have an 'extra' refrigerator that I can put the bucket in for longer periods if I need to.

Ziplocs take less brine or marinade than any other method I've tried.  Be careful with them, though, because it is easy to burst the zipper open if you put too much solution in with whatever you are treating.  Also, if you get anything into the locking channels, it tends to undo the seal.  As was mentioned, you should get all the air out before sealing them.  I prefer heavy-duty bags because the zip seal seems to hold much better and the bags are less likely to be punctured.


----------



## tpc74

fpnmf said:


> Weight it down with a baggie half full of water..


Wouldn't a baggie hlaf full of water just float?  I mean I guess I will have to try it, seems better than my bowl method as weight, just seem wierd lol.


----------



## fpnmf

From... http://www.smokingmeatforums.com/t/111573/here-s-my-easy-to-make-bacon-step-by-step#post_693843


----------



## blinddogsmoking

I use 3 gallon ziploc's and put them in a cooler of ice overnight. I would use a food grade bucket if I had the space in a fridge to keep it cold overnight.


----------



## terry colwell

You can always buy a actual Brining Croak from the Sausage Makers web site. Its a heavy croak just for brining.


----------



## daveomak

tpc, morning....  I use a food grade plastic container that fits my adult beverage fridge.... for stacking meats, I found plastic screens in the hobby dep't at wally world.... I use them for spacers for the cure/brine to circulate between the layers...  about $3... and a zip bag on top to hold it all under the brine.....   Dave


----------



## chef jimmyj

Your fish market receives their fish in plastic tubs with lids. They look like 10" X 15" X 6" Tupperware containers and are stackable. These get tossed and they will usually give them to you free. They take up a lot less space than a five gallon bucket, you won't have to move fridge shelves around...JJ


----------



## tpc74

Thanks for the help all. :)  I ended up using a rubbermaid food storage container, and ziploc baggies with water for the weighting.  It ended up being the perfect size for what I was doing.  I will make a thread with pics later.


----------



## pops6927

BlindDogSmoking said:


> I use 3 gallon ziploc's and put them in a cooler of ice overnight. I would use a food grade bucket if I had the space in a fridge to keep it cold overnight.


I have cured whole turkeys in the fridge before by emptying out one of the bottom crispers.  As long as it doesn't have any cracks (take it our and fill it with water first) it is a perfectly good food grade bucket; place the meat in it, cover with brine and weight it down w/ half-full baggie (squeeze the air out of it first).  Works like a charm!


----------



## arnie

tpc74 said:


> Well the brine mixture I am made comes out to be about 1/2 gallon or so.  Is it wrong or bad to spilt it up into multiple baggies if I can't get it all into one?
> 
> Say I take one large fillet and cut it into 4 smaller pieces.  Should I make enough brine for that and split it between baggies, one piece per baggie?  Or do something else?


I wouldn't think that would be a problem


----------



## daveomak

tpc74 said:


> Well the brine mixture I am made comes out to be about 1/2 gallon or so.  Is it wrong or bad to spilt it up into multiple baggies if I can't get it all into one?
> 
> Say I take one large fillet and cut it into 4 smaller pieces.  Should I make enough brine for that and split it between baggies, one piece per baggie?  Or do something else?


tpc, morning..... If the brine mixture you made was based on the total weight of the meat and water, dividing it up into different containers will make the brine uneven between each piece, UNLESS, your divide up the  brine in ratios the same as the meat ratios....  As an example :  If you had 10#' meat and 10 Cups brine..... You could divide 3#, 3#, 4# meat and 3 C, 3C,4C brine respectively...... that would be OK......  Dave


----------



## oldschoolbbq

Yep, where they say, just take it home and wash it our with a bleach compound(1:10 ratio) and if you do a lot of brining, do as Rabbithutch says, use a little in a large zip bag ...save the rest of what's left in your spare reefer.

No-doubt you'll be doing a lot of Chickens this Summer.

Have fun and...


----------



## mr500

One can also run down to places such as sams, wally world, local restaurants etc..and ask them for some old food grade 5 gallon buckets.  I have some that had frosting, pickles etc in them. Most come with lids to which is a good thing since  you might need to add ice to the water to keep the meat etc.. cold. My fridge is usually full up over the holidays and I use this method to brine up  turkeys, fish, etc.. without the fridge. They work great!!!


----------



## conniecash

I'm going to attempt to brine costco pork loins (cut in thirds) so this idea of using fridge veg drawers is awesome. I have an extra fridge in the garage so I'm good to go!


----------



## daveomak

conniecash said:


> I'm going to attempt to brine costco pork loins (cut in thirds) so this idea of using fridge veg drawers is awesome. I have an extra fridge in the garage so I'm good to go!


Connie, afternoon..   Look at the method I put together for doing loin....    Dave

http://www.smokingmeatforums.com/t/242305/pork-loin-canadian-bacon-my-way-money


----------

