If you’re looking to add a little extra moisture to your meats – then try a technique called injecting. You can inject your meat with flavours or brine to help make it more succulent. Injection is also a no-wait, no-waste method to add flavour, since you don’t have to soak the meat in a marinade for hours. Injecting meats can take some practice, but we have some basic tips.
What to Inject
The usual suspects are salt water, marinades, butter and stock. You can also add olive or pepper oils, spices, syrups, sauces, stocks, broths and butter. Amazing Ribs writers recommend not using dark liquids like Worcestershire or Teriyaki sauce in light coloured meats like chicken or turkey.
Types of Injectors
There are all sorts of injectors out there, from pumps to hypodermic syringes. Find something simple that works for you. Make sure the needle has sharp tip and that’s it’s easy-to-clean and store. Look for injectors with at least a two-ounce capacity. Don’t use brass, copper or aluminium, which can be affected by salt.
How to Inject Meat
Pinch the skin, almost like you are giving a shot to someone and inject slowly into along the grain of the meat, into the muscle. Don’t inject too much, you don’t want your meat to be mushy and the muscle already has a lot of water content. Make sure you go between the muscle fibres and bundles, not within the fibres. Push the plunger in and slowly pull the injector out at the same time you are pushing the plunger in. Also make sure you inject uniformly, with as few punctures in the meat as possible. You can use the same hole to angle into other areas of the meat. The goal is to get flavour in as many places as possible. If the liquid comes out of the surface, just baste the skin with a little rub or marinade
TIP – Make sure you wash the injector needle after each use. You can use a toothpick or wire to pull out pieces of meat trapped in the needle.
