Okay to brine then freeze?

Black_Badger

Hello All,
Today I made up a pretty big batch of brine for some pork loin I'm going to smoke tomorrow. I hate to use it once then just throw it out, but I don't want to cook so much that it never gets eaten. Would I be okay brining some extra pork loin (or chops) then drying them and vacuum sealing BEFORE sticking them in the freezer? I've seen lots of pre-brined meat in the stores but I don't' think I've ever seen it frozen. Any reason not to do this?

Cheers -
B_B

slovelad

I don't see any issue with it, but that's just me lol no scientific thought behind that

gdenby

Black_Badger said:

I've seen lots of pre-brined meat in the stores but I don't' think I've ever seen it frozen. Any reason not to do this?

I think there is a reason not to. During brining, salt is drawn into the meat, and that holds extra water in the meat. But unless the meat is frozen really quickly, like w. liquid nitrogen, large ice crystals form. These rupture the muscle cell walls. Then, when cooked, the meat ends up drier because the moisture escapes more readily.

In most settings, the fewer times meat is frozen, the better.

Why not boil the brine after use, skim off any protein scum,and save that in a jar?

slovelad

Now that @gdenby mentions that. I take back my statement. The pre brined corned beef brisket that I cooked recently was extremely dry. And I couldn't figure out why. But now I remember that I put it in the freezer for a couple days after buying it. I think that's the answer why it was dry.

lousubcap

No science here but @gdenby has a great point.  I would sacrifice the brine.
@Black_Badger - most basic liquid brines start withh a ratio of around 16 to 1 water to salt.  Don't know your recipe but perhaps you can scale it for the next round.  FWIW-

blasting

That's an interesting question.  I think for the sake of a little molasses and salt I'd start fresh again.