Brine Suggestions for Roast Beef


 
BenM

BenM

TVWBB Fan
12/30/23

Good morning

I will be making a 5-pound roast beef for New Year's Eve. I've cooked many before, but this year I want to try something new and use a brine. Having never brined a roast beef, I would love to get some suggestions from the group. Wet vs dry? Ingredients? How long to bring for?

Any advice is appreciated.

Thank you, and Happy New Year!
 
No expert on brining beef here but what comes to mind...

Salt, pepper, garlic and an herb of your choice-DRY-allow to season overnight uncovered and in the fridge.
That would be my approach ( more of a seasoning than a brine as I see it ).
 
Dry brine with kosher salt at1/2 tsp per lb of meat at least 24hrs. You can make your own salt free rub, (tons of recipes out there), or a simple mix of dried rosemary, minced garlic, dry time & black pepper.
Works every time. No mess, no muss, no fuss!
 
Hey, Ben! My suggestion for beef would be to dry brine. I find wet brines to be more useful for proteins that I want to ensure have a better chance of staying moist. For the most part, roast of beef will be cooked no further than medium, so should be moist without the need for a wet brine. I've amalgamated bits and pieces from lots of recipes out on the net, but I think this YT video from Kenji Alt Lopez would be a decent place for you to start.


Good luck, and let us know how it turns out!!

Rich
 
Thank you to everyone for all of your replies and suggestions. For this particular cook, I went with a wet brine.
  • 8 cups of water
  • 8 cups of freshly brewed coffee
  • 1 chopped onion
  • 2 tbsp Worcestershire
  • 2 tsp garlic powder
  • 2 tsp onion powder
  • 1 cup of kosher salt
The roast is 4.65 pounds. I'm using the 20-minute per pound guideline, so this will take about 90-95 minutes to hit 155 IT.

I'll post pics as I begin the process

Thanks again, and Happy New Year!
 
The final results. Perfection!

Happy New Year!
 

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While your roast looks great, I'll have to agree with others when it comes to wet brines. Unless I'm curing a whole brisket or other very large cut, usually for pastrami or corned beef, about the only time I use a wet brine is when smoking fish or making jerky. Dry brining is so much easier and requires a lot less space in the fridge that it just make sense for me. To each his own though. As with many other cooking related things, there's more than one way to skin a cat.
 
The proof is in the tasting...and this was perfection.

I'm retired, tons of time, love to cook, and have a huge refrigerator.

I'll try a dry brine next time

Happy New Year
 
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