Pickle bags are sturdy, clear plastic bags used for pickling meats and vegetables in brine. They come in different sizes and should not be used for cooking. They are disposable and can be found in specialty food markets and butcher shops.
Pickle bags are airtight bags designed for soaking different types of meats and vegetables in a prepared brine solution. In general, the bags are clear and made of a sturdy plastic that is able to easily support the weight of a large ham or turkey. Pickle bags should not be confused with roasting bags, which are used to cook foods in an oven. A pickle bag should never be used around heat of any kind and is only suitable for pickling food.
There are different sizes of bags to use, depending on the type of pickling activity that needs to take place. For smaller cuts of meat, there are bags that are ideal for brining one or two cuts at a time. Larger bags allow you to soak more cuts at once, such as four pork chops for a family meal. There are also bags that are ideal for whole turkeys or a rack of ribs.
In appearance, a bag of pickle looks very similar to a freezer bag. One end is open, allowing the meat or vegetables to be placed in it along with the brine. The end is then sealed using the press and seal closure in common use today with storage bags of all types. Once sealed, the pickle bag seals in the flavor of the savory spices and allows them to infuse into the food.
As a tool in the brine process, the brine bag is extremely useful. You can brine larger pieces of meat while using smaller amounts of the brine mix. Occasionally, the bag of brine can be rotated or rotated as needed to ensure that the brine permeates the meat evenly. When the food is adequately salted, the brine is poured in and the salted food is removed from the bag.
In general, we don’t recommend attempting to clean and reuse a bag of brine. Instead, a used bag should be discarded and a new bag used for the next brine project. This can help minimize the chances of any lingering bacteria contaminating foods later, thus reducing the chance of food poisoning.
Identifying different sizes of brine bag isn’t hard to do. Butcher shops often carry the bags, along with many specialty food markets. Some supermarkets carry the smaller bag sizes as well, while a restaurant supply store would be a good place to look for the larger bags. While slightly more expensive than regular pickle bags, the price is easily offset by the time spent cleaning after the picking process is complete.
Protect your devices with Threat Protection by NordVPN
