note of both texture and flavor.
Results
Even before beginning cooking, you’ll notice that the
meat that was salted the night before is significantly
stickier. This is the dissolved myosin cross-linking
and creating a tighter protein matrix. Because salt
also loosens muscle fibers and allows them to retain
more moisture, you’ll find that the batch that was
salted overnight will retain between 10 to 20 percent
more moisture than the one salted just before
cooking or the unsalted one.
When you taste the patties side by side you’ll see
that the one that was salted overnight has a springy,
juicy texture and is quite flavorful. The one salted
just before grinding will also be flavorful but will
have a looser texture and have lost more juices as it
cooked. Finally, the one with no salt will be bland
and have a loose mushy or crumbly texture, more
like hamburger than sausage. Not only does salt
flavor meat, but in the case of sausage, it enhances
its texture by dissolving muscle proteins, allowing
them to cross-link and provide resilience and spring
to the mix, as well as loosening muscle fibers to allow
them to retain more moisture as they cook.
Moral of the story: Salt your sausage meat at least a
night in advance.