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Brine Calculator

Computes the grams of salt (and optional sugar) for a wet brine from the water volume and a percentage concentration expressed relative to the water weight (6 % = 60 g per litre).

When to use

You are brining poultry, pork or vegetables and need the salt for a given amount of water at a target strength.

Do not use when: You need a dry brine or an equilibrium brine based on the meat's weight (salt = 0.5–2 % of meat + water weight), or curing with nitrite salts, which follow different rules.

Formula

salt_g = water_liters × 1000 × salt_percent / 100; sugar_g = water_liters × 1000 × sugar_percent / 100; salt_percent_of_solution = 100 × salt_g / (water_g + salt_g + sugar_g)

Percent of water weight (w/v) is the usual home-cooking convention; a 6 % brine is 60 g salt per litre, close to the USDA guideline of ¾ cup table salt per gallon (≈ 58 g/L). Sea water is about 3.5 %.

Inputs

Parameter	Type	Unit	Required	Description
`water_liters`	number	L	yes	Volume of water in litres (1 L = 1 kg). Range: > 0, ≤ 1000
`salt_percent`	number	%	default 6	Salt as a percentage of the water weight: 3–4 % mild (long brines), 5–6 % standard for poultry (4–12 h), 8–10 % quick brines (1–2 h). Range: ≥ 0.5, ≤ 30
`sugar_percent`	number	%	default 0	Optional sugar as a percentage of the water weight (often half the salt). Range: ≥ 0, ≤ 30

Outputs

Output	Type	Unit	Description
`salt_g`	number	g	Salt to dissolve in the water.
`sugar_g`	number	g	Sugar to dissolve in the water.
`water_g`	number	g	Water weight.
`brine_total_g`	number	g	Water + salt + sugar.
`salt_percent_of_solution`	number	%	Salt as a percentage of the finished brine weight, the convention used in food science tables.

Example

2 L at 6 % salt, 3 % sugar: {"water_liters":2,"salt_percent":6,"sugar_percent":3} → {"salt_g":120,"sugar_g":60,"water_g":2000,"brine_total_g":2180,"salt_percent_of_solution":5.5}

4 L at 3.5 % salt: {"water_liters":4,"salt_percent":3.5} → {"salt_g":140,"sugar_g":0,"salt_percent_of_solution":3.38}

GET https://tttkmbb.com/api/v1/calculate/brine?water_liters=2&salt_percent=6&sugar_percent=3

Machine access

API: GET https://tttkmbb.com/api/v1/calculate/brine (query parameters) or POST with a JSON body {"inputs": {...}}
Schema: https://tttkmbb.com/api/v1/calculators/brine · Markdown: https://tttkmbb.com/food/brine.md · JSON definition: https://tttkmbb.com/food/brine.json
MCP: server https://tttkmbb.com/mcp, tool run_calculator with calculator_id="brine"
OpenAPI operationId: calculate_brine
Freshness: static. Authentication: none. Rate limit: fair use (see rate limits).

Sources

USDA FSIS – Poultry: Basting, Brining, and Marinating (¾ cup salt per gallon of water; brine in the refrigerator) (government)
Wikipedia – Brining (reference)

FAQ

How many tablespoons is that?

It depends on the salt: table salt ≈ 18 g per tablespoon, Morton kosher ≈ 15 g, Diamond Crystal kosher ≈ 9 g. Weigh salt whenever possible.

How long should I brine?

At 5–6 %: whole chicken 4–12 h, turkey 12–24 h, pork chops 1–4 h, shrimp 30 min; always in the refrigerator. Rinse or reduce added salt afterwards.

Related calculators

Turkey Cooking Time Calculator — Roasting time for the brined turkey.
Cooking Measurement Converter — Convert gallons or quarts of water to litres.