Vacuum meat marinating made easy

The time for meat smoking is here and many of you started to marinate meat. Here are few tips to how to do it properly. This time we shall focus on vacuum bag marinating. There are several alternativesbut the traditional method is to use spices only, so-called dry marinate, but you can also use oils and other ingredients if you like. If you want to go for the proven middle course, try marinating in vacuum bags. It is not complicated at all as you will learn in this article.

Fresh meat is a must

First, go to a local butcher you know well. We decided to get a shoulder, a boneless flank and a boneless roast. Some may argue that these meats are rather dry after smoking, but the vast majority loves it. At least we think so. The final product turned out very good, as you can see in the pictures below.

Photo: Radek Štěpán

High-quality garlic and salt

Forget Spanish or Chinese imported garlic. High-quality Czech garlic for example is essential for smoking. You also need salt. As for the amount of both ingredients well, it depends on your preferences. The meat must be salted on all sides and thoroughly coated with garlic. We estimate about 30 grams of garlic per 1 kg of meat. Make sure to rub garlic into the meat thoroughly.

Photo: Radek Štěpán

Vacuum packing is great

We used one of the cheapest vacuum packaging unit we found on the market. There are different and more expensive models but you do not need to spend more than40 euros.Once you properlycoated the meat withsalt and garlic place it in the plastic bag and start the pump. Vacuuming will not waste any meat juice and that is what you want. We recommend keeping the meat in vacuum bags for 3 to 4 weeks. If you usespecial salt, 10 days should be enough. Well, now it is the time for smoking and we shall inform you how our smoking went in due time.

Youtube: Radek Štěpán

Preview photo: Radek Štěpán