How many percentages of a pig shank are meat (and cartilage) and bone respectively?

I am calculating an equilibrium brine for a batch of pig shanks. I have got a guestimate myself, but would love some input from you guys.

Thanks!

PS: Keep up the great work ChefSteps!

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grant

Depends on what texture you are looking for. I would still do a 1% equal intuit brine. The skin, fat and collegian will all slow the brining process. If you wanted to brine a shank to the center I would expect it to take up to 2 weeks.

Michael_Peo_65900

I'm looking for a quite firm texture, thus going for a 1,25% brine.

My question is how much weight i should subtract for the bone in the shanks?

I think i am going to go with about 20% of the weight being bone, 20-30% being skin and connective tissue, and the rest of it meat.

I am only going to subtract the weight of the bones (and not that skin and connective tissue) from the meat and water weight, when calculating the amount of salt, as i am guessing that the brine will permeate the connective tissue as well as the meat?

I have done a few before with good result after a weeks time in the brine of similar saltines, but it bugs me to not know the weight of the bones, and whether or not to calculate the skin and connective tissue with the meat or with the bone.

I'm doing 10 shanks this time, so i'd like to get it right :-).

Thank you for your time Grant.

Johan_Edstrom_5586

Googling around a little I found this.

http://www.oldenproduce.com/images/Pork Carcass Breakdown Weights2.pdf

Michael_Peo_65900

I thank all of you for your time and attention.

In the end, i guess it does come down to an educated guess. I was just thinking, that someone would have made this guess before me. Also, i figure that fthe connective tissue count as meat, as fare as calculating brine percentages goes.

Again, thank you all - it's so nice with a forum were this sort of question is actually being taken seriously.

Johan_Edstrom_5586

It was an interesting question!