What is the difference between a brine and a marinade?

Answer 1

A brine is a solution of salt water, commonly used for making pickles. A marinade is a sauce that is used to tenderize and flavor meats prior to cooking or grilling, and is usually made with vinegar, spices and other seasonings, and sometimes with wine.

Answer 2

A brine is when you soak the turkey in a mixture of water, salt, sugar and seasonings. It usually marinates for at leasty 8 hours and then spends another 8 hours in the fridge. It is a time consuming process and does help make the turkey stay moist. Honestly, I have never felt the need to do a brine. I make an herb butter and shove it up underneath the breast meat and it keeps the meat nice and moist. It is important when you are cooking a turkey to not over cook it. The breast meat will dry out then. Another way to keep the meat moist is to lay strips of thick cut bacon on top of the breat area and take it off about 30 minutes before the turkey is done, so it can brown up top. I have never heard of a dry brine.... brining is a liquid so maybe it has something to do with adding dry wine or something? Good luck, Kim

Answer 3

A brine is salty and a marinade is acidic. Either can have all kinds of flavorings--sweet or savory or spicy or whatever.

But they both work completely differently. The brine works by 'osmosis' by the meat drawing in flavor with the salt (like with corned beef or pastrami). The marinade works by the acid breaking down the connective tissue in the meat to make it more tender.

Answer 4

Brine is "a strong solution of salt and water used for pickling" , like you would use to make salt pork. Marinades are "Mixtures of vinegar or wine and oil with various spices and seasonings; used for soaking foods before cooking."