Injection Marinade

If you haven't injected marinade into meat, you have to try it.  We've got a marinade for pork and one for brisket.  You might have marinaded meats by soaking them for hours or overnight.  On thin meats that works well, but on pork butts or beef briskets you want that marinade to penetrate deep inside. So for these cuts injection works better.  It gets the marinade deep inside where it will moisten and flavor the meat throughout.


Inject with an injector syringe.  It's a large syringe with a long needle and several holes to distribute the marinade.  You can find them wherever BBQ supplies are sold.

Inject every 1 1/2" or so.  Fill the syringe with solution, stick the needle deep into the meat and slowly depress the plunger.  While depressing, pull the needle out slowly.  Repeat through the entire meat.  Some of the solution will run out of the meat; use it for more injection if you need.  This can be a messy procedure, especially during the learning process.  So be prepared to wear some marinade and find it splashed on the wall until you get the hang of it.

Marinade for Pork
Here's a great injection marinade I use for pork butts and shoulders, based on Chris Lilly's famous recipe:
     3/4 cup apple juice
     1/2 cup water
     1/2 cup white sugar
     2 TB dry rub
     2 TB Worcestershire Sauce

Boil the 1/2 cup water.  Dissolve dry rub and sugar in the water.  Combine with remaining ingredients and stir until fully combined.  Inject as described above.

Marinade for Brisket
Brisket prefers a more austere, less sweet marinade.  Here's the marinade I use for succulent tasty brisket:
     12 oz water
     1 Beef boullion cube
     1 TB Black pepper
     2 TB white sugar
     2 TB brisket rub
 Dissolve boullion cubes in 6 oz. of boiling water.  Stir in the remaining dry ingredients until dissolved.  Combine with remaining water.  Inject into brisket. Double the recipe for a large brisket (12# or over).


You'll find that injecting meat adds flavor and moisture that cannot be beat!