George and Andrew violently disagree on whether brining meat matters. George thinks brining is totally unnecessary; Andrew thinks George is a heathen. They resolve their dispute with the help of some chemistry, a blind tasting, and DC’s very own Roaming Rooster.

Serving Up Science on PBS Food
   • Why Am I Craving Sweets? | Serving Up...  

For a guide on how to brine turkey (*not* 5 days) see J. Kenji’s comprehensive blog post:
https://www.seriouseats.com/the-food-...

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Credits:
Executive Producer:
Matthew Radcliff

Producers:
Laurence Vuckovic
Elaine Seward
Andrew Sobey
Darren Weaver

Writer/Host:
George Zaidan

Scientific Consultants:
Dr. Mark Jones, Ph.D.
Brianne Raccor, Ph.D.
Michelle Boucher, Ph.D.

Executive in Charge for PBS: Maribel Lopez
Director of Programming for PBS: Gabrielle Ewing
Assistant Director of Programming for PBS: John Campbell


Reactions is a production of the American Chemical Society.
© 2022 American Chemical Society. All rights reserved.


Sources:

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https://www.sciencedirect.com/science...

Consumer preference for chicken breast may be more affected by information on organic production than by product sensory properties - ScienceDirect
https://www.sciencedirect.com/science...!

CONSUMER PERCEPTION AND PREFERENCE OF BOTTLED AND TAP WATER - TEILLET - 2010 - Journal of Sensory Studies - Wiley Online Library
https://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/a...

Different actions of salt and pyrophosphate on protein extraction from myofibrils reveal the mechanism controlling myosin dissociation - Shen - 2016 - Journal of the Science of Food and Agriculture
https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/26085...

Histological Study of Ultrastructural Changes in Muscle Exposed to Various Concentrations of NaCl Brine - Astruc - 2018 - Journal of Food Science - Wiley Online Library
https://doi.org/10.1111/1750-3841.14122

Techniques for postmortem tenderisation in meat processing: effectiveness, application and possible mechanisms | Food Production, Processing and Nutrition | Full Text
https://fppn.biomedcentral.com/articl...

Structure of Muscle Fibers (IB Biology) - YouTube
   • Structure of Muscle Fibers (IB Biology)  

Myology - Skeletal Muscle (Sarcomere, Myosin and Actin) - YouTube
   • Myology - Skeletal Muscle (Sarcomere,...  

Science of Brining
https://www.scienceofcooking.com/scie...

On the mechanism of water holding in meat: The swelling and shrinking of myofibrils - PubMed
https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/22055...

The Food Lab's Definitive Guide to Buying, Prepping, Cooking, and Carving Your Holiday Turkey
https://www.seriouseats.com/buying-pr...

The Right Way to Brine Turkey | The Food Lab
https://www.seriouseats.com/the-food-...

How to Brine a Turkey for Thanksgiving
https://www.seriouseats.com/quick-and...

Physical Characteristics and Sensory Evaluation of Cooked Pectoralis superficialis from Broiler Carcasses Chilled in Water or Brine Solutions Under Commercial Time and Temperature Conditions - ScienceDirect
https://doi.org/10.3382/ps.0640664

The Effect of Water Soaking, Brining and Cooking Procedure on Tenderness of Broilers1
https://doi.org/10.3382/ps.0551494

A Comparison of Brined and Unbrined Paired Broiler Carcass-Halves for Tenderness1
https://doi.org/10.3382/ps.0610716

Physical Characteristics of Pectoralis superficialis from Brine-Chilled Broiler Carcasses1
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