# Too much curing salt in brine



## Rcdaid

So the recipe just said to let 5lbs of meat sit in a brine mixture of 1/2 cup curing salt to one gallon of water.
I misread and used one qt.
I made a batch on my dehydrator after like 6 hours of letting it chill in the fridge. Now it was I'm there about 12 hours, I removed it from the brine to add lemon pepper seasoning , and then I was gonna smoke it later today.
But after tasting the jerky it was very salty. 
Is this batch gonna kill me or is it somehow salvageable?


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## flatbroke

cure #1? half a cup of cure to 1 quart of water?


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## HalfSmoked

Read and re-read like measure twice before you cut.

Warren


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## Rcdaid

flatbroke said:


> cure #1? half a cup of cure to 1 quart of water?


Yes cure #1 , and yes one quart.


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## HalfSmoked

Rcdaid Thanks for the like it is appreciated.

Warren


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## Rcdaid

HalfSmoked said:


> Read and re-read like measure twice before you cut.
> 
> Warren


Will definitely be double checking everything next time.


HalfSmoked said:


> Read and re-read like measure twice before you cut.
> 
> Warren


Yeah, I definitely need to re read every time cause wasted a bunch of meat if it's not something that can be saved.


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## chef jimmyj

That should be 1/2C SALT and no more than " 2 Tablespoons Curing Salt (Cure #1) " in 1 Gallon of water. You have 8 TABLESPOONS in 1/4 the water. That is way too much. If all ready made into Jerky, I would not eat it. Toss the meat. If Still Raw, soak in 1 Gallon  of water, changing out 3 times. You can add back pany flavors, other than Cure, and soak over night, then Dry it. Any Recipe you find online should be Posted for a Safety Review before you proceed. There are A LOT of Dangerous Recipes online!...JJ


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## Pinback78

chef jimmyj said:


> That should be 1/2C SALT and no more than " 2 Tablespoons Curing Salt (Cure #1) " in 1 Gallon of water. You have 8 TABLESPOONS in 1/4 the water. That is way too much. I would not eat it. Toss the meat and Any Recipe you find online should be Posted for a Safety Review before you proceed. There are A LOT of Dangerous Recipes online!...JJ



Just out of curiosity, why you wouldn't eat?


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## tropics

Pinback78 said:


> Just out of curiosity, why you wouldn't eat?


Sodium Nitrite Poisoning is nothing to be played with here is some reading


			sodium nitrite poisoning - Google Search
		

Richie


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## Pinback78

tropics said:


> Sodium Nitrite Poisoning is nothing to be played with here is some reading
> 
> 
> sodium nitrite poisoning - Google Search
> 
> 
> Richie



hmm ok. but I thought he used curing salt. it would be "impressive" if one could eat so salty that he could die on curing salt overdose. Maybe getting cancer in 20 years, which is hard to pin it down on meat curing but other then that I think that just the taste is ruined in this case.


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## tropics

Pinback78 said:


> hmm ok. but I thought he used curing salt. it would be "impressive" if one could eat so salty that he could die on curing salt overdose. Maybe getting cancer in 20 years, which is hard to pin it down on meat curing but other then that I think that just the taste is ruined in this case.


I agree if it was just salt,but he is referring to curing salt that is normally Cure #1 as JJ pointed out. So unless the OP says different we can only give a guideline to help eliminate any kind of poisoning we try to keep all of our members safe.
Richie


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## Pinback78

Sure if it is unknown what exactly he used he better throw it away. But as far as I know, is pink salt only 6,25% nitrate and the rest just dyed salt. So it's hard to get any signs of poisoning before you get "salt sick". Or am I don't get the point here?


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## chef jimmyj

That amount of Salt in the Water and  Meat is just shy of 4%. Excessive but not toxic. 2 to 3% is not uncommon. On the other hand, the  amount of Nitrite is enough to cause illness. Some will dissipate but I  have no idea how much. If soaked out, to bring to a safe level,  there will be no issue. The Salt will be reduced as well...JJ


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## Rcdaid

Yeah it was curing salt #1 so im worried about nitrate poisoning . Salt would be done o had just heard once that too much curing salt is bad. I was confused about why it called for so much salt in the fist place. But I figured it must be because your supposed to add water. Well looks like all of this is going into the garbage. Thanks guys I appreciate the advice!


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## Rcdaid

chef jimmyj said:


> That amount of Salt in the Water and  Meat is just shy of 4%. Excessive but not toxic. 2 to 3% is not uncommon. On the other hand, the  amount of Nitrite is enough to cause illness. Some will dissipate but I  have no idea how much. If soaked out, to bring to a safe level,  there will be no issue. The Salt will be reduced as well...JJ


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## Rcdaid

Sorry I've never used a forum  struggling with figuring out how to reply correctly.  With soaking it is that just like soaking it in water?I don't quite understand


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## chopsaw

Rcdaid said:


> Thanks guys I appreciate the advice!


Take away the positive here . You already learned something . 
Plenty of info , correct info , on here along with real time help . So if your interest is making jerky , look around the jerky section and ask some questions if you have any . 
Enjoy !


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## chef jimmyj

The benefit of Recipes here, they have been peer reviewed for safety and tested to be flavorful.  Recipes online may have Typo Errors, like 3 TBS when they meant 3 tsps, and some folks are Cluless! They post Nonna Lori's recipe from a tattered scrap of paper. These Old recipes are frequently vague and may or may not call for modern Cures. The use of  Salt Peter is not for beginners!...JJ


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## chef jimmyj

chef jimmyj said:


> If Still Raw, soak in 1 Gallon of water, changing out 3 times. You can add back any flavors, other than Cure, and marinate over night, then Dry it.



If you soak the meat in 3 changes of 1 Gallon of water. You will reduce the Cure to an amount that is safe. Unfortunately,  this will pull out regular salt, sugar and any spices. These will need to be replaced...JJ


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## noboundaries

I once followed a bad recipe online that recommended too much cure #1 for making canadian bacon. After eating the bacon a few times, my wife and I fought gout for WEEKS (swollen joints), something we'd never had before. We tossed the cured meat and drank gallons of tart cherry juice to flush it out of our systems.


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## Rcdaid

chef jimmyj said:


> If you soak the meat in 3 changes of 1 Gallon of water. You will reduce the Cure to an amount that is safe. Unfortunately,  this will pull out regular salt, sugar and any spices. These will need to be replaced...JJ


How long do I need to soak the meat? And does it make the jerky a weird texture or anything like that?


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## tropics

Rcdaid said:


> Sorry I've never used a forum  struggling with figuring out how to reply correctly.  With soaking it is that just like soaking it in water?I don't quite understand


Glad to see you join here stick around this is the best of the best forums so all I can say now is Welcome to SMF
Richie


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## chef jimmyj

The meat is thin. So it will release the Cure quickly. 30 minute soaks should be plenty. After soaking, lay out on paper towels and pat dry. Add back your flavorings and seasonings, marinate 4 hours to overnight, and proceed. Heat to 160°F then reduce to 140 and let it dry...JJ

BTW. Can you post the whole recipe?


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