Cure & Salt
Enter your meat weight to calculate cure #1 and salt amounts in grams.
Preset: cure #1 at 0.25% of meat weight. Added salt: 39.7 g (excludes salt in the cure and other ingredients).
Cure #1 is not a seasoning
Check the instructions on your curing product before using the result. This calculator assumes cure #1 contains 6.25% sodium nitrite and uses 0.25% of the meat weight. It cannot tell whether that dose suits your recipe. Do not substitute cure #2, plain salt or another curing blend. Keep cure clearly labeled and follow a tested recipe for heating, drying and storage.
Measure cure and salt by weight
The calculation uses 2.5 grams of cure #1 per kilogram of meat. Check that this matches your product and recipe before weighing it out. The separate salt figure does not include salt already present in the cure or other ingredients.
| Meat | Cure #1 | Salt |
|---|---|---|
| 1 lb | 1.13 g | 7.9 g |
| 5 lb | 5.7 g | 39.7 g |
| 1 kg | 2.5 g | 17.5 g |
| 2.27 kg (5 lb) | 5.7 g | 39.7 g |
Calculation assumes 6.25% sodium nitrite in cure #1. At a 0.25% dose, that is about 156 ppm ingoing nitrite; it is not a safety guarantee.
Common questions
Do I need cure #1 for jerky?
Follow your tested recipe. Some jerky recipes use cure #1 and others do not. Adding cure does not replace the heating step or make homemade jerky suitable for longer storage by itself.
What exactly is cure #1?
Cure #1 is a curing mixture commonly made with 6.25% sodium nitrite and salt. Check the label because curing products differ. It is not pink Himalayan salt, and it cannot be swapped with cure #2.
Why 0.25% and 156 ppm?
Those numbers come from the preset: 0.25% of meat weight multiplied by 6.25% nitrite gives about 156 ppm. The calculator does this arithmetic; your curing product instructions and tested recipe determine the amount to use.
Is the salt in cure #1 enough to season the meat?
This tool calculates added salt separately. That is in addition to salt in the cure, soy sauce or other ingredients. Check the complete recipe before adding it all.
Can I scale a recipe that lists cure “per pound”?
Enter the meat weight to see the amount for this preset. Only use it if your product and tested recipe specify the same dose. Weigh the cure in grams rather than converting it to teaspoons.
What scale do I need?
Use a scale suited to measuring the small quantity your recipe needs. Check its accuracy and minimum weight; a display that shows tenths of a gram does not guarantee it can reliably weigh every small dose.