How To Tie Or Strap Meat For Barbecue

Although it may seem like a complicated task at first, you’ll see that bridling meat for roasts is much simpler than you thought and gives surprising results. Here’s how to do it.

Bridling meat is a culinary technique that consists of tying meat so that it maintains its shape when cooking (usually with butcher’s twine or meat-tying twine), also guaranteeing uniform cooking and an unbeatable presentation. Kitchen twine also ensures much juicier meat, making your roasts irresistible.

Types of meat bridging

Depending on the preparation you need to make, the most common types of meat bridles are French bridles and American bridles. Both give the meat uniform cooking, a compact shape, and ease of cutting.

French bridled

French tying is a traditional way of tying meat such as turkey, chicken, duck or other game birds, which is characterized by its precision and care when tying. To carry out this technique you will need a needle and thread since it not only seeks to maintain the shape of the meat but also to embellish its final presentation. For this type of tying, the function of the needle is essential, since it will pierce the food exactly where necessary with the greatest precision.

American style bridled

American tying is a quicker and easier tying technique than French tying and does not require a needle. Used for poultry and other cuts of meat, this type of tying is ideal if you are looking for an efficient way to tie pieces without investing too much time in the technique. Since a needle is not used, American tying will not be as precise as French tying.

Utensils for bridling meat

To tie meat, you need several specific tools that make the task easier and also ensure a good result. This is what you will need:

• Kitchen twine: Preferably unwaxed to prevent melting when cooking, it should also be strong enough to withstand the tension without breaking, and also food safe. Our recommendation is cotton kitchen twine, it will give you the best results.
• Kitchen shears: Sharp enough to easily cut thread, and sturdy enough to better handle more precise cuts.
• Tying needle: Make sure it is stainless steel, large and curved to make it easier to pass the thread through the meat, and that it has a large eye to thread the thread easily.
• Cutting board: Easy to clean and with a non-slip grip so you can handle meat safely and without difficulty.
• Kitchen knife: Medium-sized and well-sharpened to allow you to make precise cuts before tying the meat.

What kitchen twine is best for tying meat?

Although you can find several types of kitchen twine, the best for tying meat is 100% cotton twine as it meets the basic requirements: It is safe for contact with food, contains no harmful chemicals, is strong enough to hold meat in place without breaking during cooking, and withstands oven heat well without burning or disintegrating.

How to tie meat for barbecues

Bridging meat is a useful technique for large pieces of meat such as roast beef or stuffed pork loin, for large birds such as chicken or turkey, and even for small pieces such as partridges or quail. Depending on the preparation and the piece or cut of meat, you can choose one or another way of bridging the meat. These are the most common ways to do it.

How to tie meat with rope

To tie with string, place the meat on a kitchen board and shape it into the desired shape with your hands. Cut about 1 meter of kitchen twine (preferably with some leftovers). Place the string under the meat along the length of the piece, take one end, pass it over, and tie a firm knot with the other end. Tie a piece of string to one end and begin tying the whole piece, pressing it tightly and leaving gaps of about 3 cm between each string. Turn the meat over, tie the end of the string to the opposite end so that it is tied tightly, and cut off the excess string.

How to tie meat with mesh

Cut a piece of stretch mesh that is about twice as large as the piece of meat and stretch it with your hands. Place one end of the meat into the opening of the mesh and push the meat through, stretching and tightening the mesh as you go. Once you have the meat inside the mesh, adjust it nice and evenly along the length of the piece. You can tie the ends of the mesh together with kitchen twine and trim off any excess mesh at the ends.

How to tie meat without meat-tying rope

In addition to tying the meat with kitchen string, there are some techniques that use various utensils to tie the meat. Although it is not the most common way to do it, we present the following alternatives to tie the meat without string:

• You can do this with toothpicks or skewers as long as they are small birds to be stuffed so that you insert the toothpicks to close the openings and that the stuffing does not come out during baking. The best way to do this is by crossing the toothpicks in an X shape.
• Silicone bands are a great alternative for tying meat (especially stuffed meat) since, in addition to making the task much easier, they are reusable and can be washed by hand or in the dishwasher. You only have to place the bands around the piece of meat, cook it, and remove the bands when it is done.
• If you don’t have kitchen twine on hand, another alternative could be cheesecloth, a fine cotton cloth that you can use to tie poultry or pieces of meat so that they remain firm and secure during cooking.
• As long as it’s not waxed or flavored, you can even use dental floss to tie pieces of meat and even poultry. You’ll also want to make sure it’s heat-resistant and safe for use in contact with food.

How to tie stuffed meat

To tie stuffed meat, make sure that the stuffing is evenly distributed throughout the meat, making sure that there is not too much, so that it does not come out during cooking. Close the meat over the stuffing and tie the meat in the most convenient way according to the piece.