Wet or dry brine, measured by weight — with the right salt amount, optional sugar, and an honest note on why salt type matters.
A brine is just salt as a percentage of weight. The trap is volume: a cup of table salt weighs almost twice as much as a cup of Diamond Crystal kosher, so a recipe that says “¼ cup of salt” gives wildly different results depending on which salt you grab. Working in grams removes the guesswork.
Wet brine submerges the meat in salted water — usually 5–6% salt by the water's weight. It adds moisture and works fast, good for lean poultry and pork.
Dry brine rubs salt straight onto the surface — about 0.5–1% of the meat's weight. It uses less salt, doesn't dilute flavour, and gives crisper skin. The salt draws out moisture, which then reabsorbs as a concentrated brine.
Sugar is optional and usually added at about half the salt weight; it balances the salt and helps browning.
| Salt (1 tbsp) | Weighs about |
|---|---|
| Table salt | 18 g |
| Morton kosher | 14 g |
| Diamond Crystal kosher | 8 g |
That's why this tool gives the salt by weight first, and a teaspoon figure only as an estimate for your chosen salt.