How much curing salt do you need per kilo of meat?

Q: How much curing salt do you need per kilo of meat?

For standard dry curing, use 25–35 g of curing salt per kilogram of meat. That's the sweet spot for safe and well-balanced results. Less than 20 g gets risky, more than 40 g makes the meat unpleasantly salty.

What's behind it?

Curing salt (also called Prague Powder #1 or pink curing salt) is a mixture of regular table salt and sodium nitrite (typically 0.4–0.5 % nitrite). The nitrite does two things simultaneously: it inhibits dangerous bacteria like Clostridium botulinum (the botulism pathogen) and creates the characteristic pink color and cured flavor.

The amount isn't arbitrary — it's a carefully balanced compromise between food safety, taste, and legal nitrite limits in the finished product. Too little curing salt means insufficient protection, too much results in overly salty meat and excessive nitrite intake.

Important: These amounts apply to curing salt (Prague Powder #1), not plain table salt or Prague Powder #2 (which contains nitrate for long-term curing). These are completely different products!

How to do it right

Standard dry curing: 28–35 g curing salt per kg of meat — the safe sweet spot for ham, pork belly, loin, and similar cuts.
Brine curing: Use a 6–8% curing brine (60–80 g curing salt per liter of water). The meat absorbs the right amount on its own.
Injection curing: 15–20 g per kg, since the brine is delivered directly and distributes more evenly.
Respect the curing time: For dry curing, allow at least 1 day per cm of meat thickness plus 2 extra days as a safety buffer. An 8 cm thick belly needs at least 10 days.
Rub it in evenly: Work the curing salt into every corner and edge — otherwise you'll end up with grey spots.

💡 Pro Tip

Use the equilibrium curing method: Calculate the exact amount of curing salt needed (e.g. 30 g × meat weight in kg) and rub it all in completely. Vacuum-seal the meat, and it will absorb exactly that amount over the curing period — no more, no less. No rinsing required, no risk of over-salting. You get perfectly consistent results every single time. That's how the pros do it.

Bottom Line

28–35 g of curing salt per kg of meat is your go-to number — you'll nail it both in terms of flavor and food safety every time.

How much curing salt do you need per kilo of meat?

What's behind it?

How to do it right

Bottom Line

Theory understood? Time for practice.