There’s no easier way to make everyday food sparkle brighter and taste bolder than by a marinade. Once you’re familiar with the fundamentals of marinating, you can ditch the store-bought stuff and make your own.
Marinades are more than just a pretty face. A simple blend of ingredients can add flavor and moisture to almost anything. Certain elements, like salt, penetrate beyond the surface of the meat and add a whole new level of deliciousness to what you’re cooking.
Here, I’ll talk a bit about what each part of a successful marinade does to your food, as well as some tips for making marinades at home. It’s easier than you might think! Marinades used judiciously can work to tenderize meat, add moisture, and enhance the flavor of food, making tough cuts of meat much more palatable.
What is Marinating?
Marinating is soaking meats in a seasoned liquid, called a marinade, before cooking. Marinades often use an acid (like vinegar or citrus juice) or an enzyme (like mango, papaya, or kiwi fruit) to enhance flavors and change surface texture.
The acid or enzyme in a marinade causes the meat’s tissue to weaken on the surface, but it must be used minimally and not for extended periods. Otherwise, the meat will become mushy, tough, and dry. A successful marinade has the right balance of acid, oil, and seasonings.
How Does Marinating Work?
Salt first draws out the liquid from the meat by osmosis. Then, the brine is reabsorbed into the meat while breaking down muscle structures. The brine draws water-soluble flavors below the surface into the cut, like onions and garlic.
Oils are also used to transfer fat-soluble flavors from the seasonings like herbs, chilis, and some spices onto the surface of the meat.
Benefits of Marinating Meat
Taste/Flavor: Here’s where you can get super creative! There are endless ways to make your custom marinade suitable for every type of cuisine out there. With just a few essential pantry items, you can add a gigantic flavor boost to otherwise ordinary-tasting meats and vegetables. The choice is yours: add spice, smoke, or sweetness.
Texture: When you marinate, flank steak can melt in your mouth, and grilled chicken breast is the juiciest thing in the world. Marinades soften leaner meats that tend to be dry and make tougher cuts tastier.
Moisture/Tenderness: Similar to brining, marinating is an effective way to introduce extra moisture into meat that can get too dry when cooked. You may know that brining relies on salt to work, but a marinade is so much more than that, using acid, fat, seasonings, herbs, spices, sugar, and salt to tenderize and enhance the flavor of the food you cook.
Basic Marinade Ingredients
- Fat: You need some fat in a marinade because it helps transfer fat-soluble flavors onto the meat and also helps retain moisture. Fats help round out flavor profiles and keep sharp or acidic flavors from dominating. This could be olive oil, sesame oil, yogurt, buttermilk, tahini, or mayonnaise.
- Salt: Salt will help the water-soluble flavors in the marinade penetrate the tissues and remain behind after cooking. Salt also restructures the protein in the meat to create more gaps for moisture to fill in. It also loosens the muscle fibers to make tough cuts easier to chew. Examples of salty stuff include miso, pickle juice, sea salt, soy sauce, or fish sauce.
- Acid: Weakens the surface proteins in the meat and naturally boosts flavors. This is a large family of ingredients, such as citrus juice, pickle juice, balsamic vinegar, apple cider vinegar, hot sauce, and buttermilk.
- Enzymes: Helps break down the meat’s connective tissue, mainly on the surface. Papaya or papain (a protein-digesting enzyme used as a common meat tenderizer) can be used.
- Seasonings: One word- flavor. That dry rub mix can be turned into a marinade. Or add chili powder, adobo seasoning, peppercorns, ginger, minced garlic, Worcestershire sauce, curry paste, tamarind paste, and mustards of all kinds.
- Herbs: Adding herbs to your food, no matter what it is, can only be a good thing. Used fresh or dry, herbs of every variety under the sun have the power to up a marinade’s ante. Thyme, chives, basil, marjoram, tarragon, dill, lovage, oregano, parsley, and mint are good candidates.
- Sugar: A sweetener adds to the complexity of your food. Ketchup, honey, agave, barbecue sauce, molasses, and even soft drinks can sweeten a marinade.
Advantages and Disadvantages
Even though making a marinade is fun, easy, and completely adaptable, there are some things to keep in mind.
- Time: Marinating some food too long can result in tough, dry, or poor texture. That means you can’t let those shrimp sit all weekend in their marinade. You have to cook them.
- Adding Acid: Lime juice can do wonders for a pork tenderloin, but too much acid in a marinade can dry out and toughen chicken or meat, so finding the right oil/sugar/acid/salt balance is critical. It can also “cook” delicate meats like seafood and shellfish.
- Sugar: Marinades containing sweeteners like sugar, agave, honey, or molasses will burn quicker, so keep an eye on the food and move whatever you’re grilling to indirect heat if it starts to burn.
How to Safely Marinate Meat
Because raw seafood, poultry, pork, and meat may contain harmful bacteria which could contaminate the marinade, it’s essential to take a few safety precautions:
- Marinate in the Refrigerator: Keeping raw food cold while marinating inhibits bacterial growth. Never allow the meat to marinate at room temperature.
- Do Not Reuse a Marinade: Make extra marinade if you’d like to serve a sauce alongside your grilled food, but put it in a separate container, and don’t use it to marinate the meat, seafood, or poultry. Never serve marinade that has come into contact with uncooked meat, seafood, or chicken.
- Use Non-reactive Materials: Acid in marinades can react with some metals and pottery glazes. Therefore, use glass or food-safe plastic to marinate foods. Never marinate in aluminum cookware or aluminum foil.
How Long to Marinate Foods
Depending on the marinade recipe, meats could be marinated in the refrigerator for anything from 30 minutes to overnight. Vegetables should only be marinated for up to 10 minutes or so.
With both acid and enzyme marination, be careful not to over-marinate meat, as prolonged exposure to acid can cause it to become tough or break down entirely, especially in the case of seafood.
Types of Food to Marinate
Seafood: Fish and shellfish should marinate for only 30 minutes to an hour; any longer and the flesh might start to “cook” in the acid and yield mushy results.
Chicken: A chicken marinade is excellent for the whole chicken or individual parts. If you’re planning to cook an entire chicken, consider using a technique called spatchcocking to flatten the carcass. Furthermore, cutting a chicken into smaller pieces or removing the skin will help absorb the marinade. Two hours of marinating is plenty of time for the meat to soak up the flavor, but poultry can marinate for up to two days in the refrigerator. Very acidic marinades can toughen the meat over time, so read the recipe and follow the recommendations.
Cut of Beef and Pork: A steak marinade is ideal for tougher cuts like flank, skirt, sirloin, round, and hanger. It also works wonders for pork tenderloin and pork loin if the loin is cubed into smaller pieces. These cuts can marinate for up to 24 hours. Flat cuts of meat benefit the most from tenderizing marinades. Avoid better-quality steaks, like porterhouse or ribeye, because skirt steak marinade can ruin them.
Tofu: Unlike meat, tofu can absorb flavor and be marinated for as long as 24 hours.
Vegetables: Avoid marinating soft vegetables longer than 10 minutes; they will throw off the water and become soggy before hitting the grill. Firm vegetables like potatoes, carrots, squash, etc., can marinate for up to 30 minutes.
Preparing Foods to Marinate
- Size- Whole vs. Pieces: Marinating works best with thinner, flat cuts of meat or more substantial cuts if cut into uniform-sized cubes or thin slices. Of course, this depends on what you’re cooking, but larger roasts don’t generally fare as well.
- Skewers: Keeping smaller cut-up pieces of meat and shrimp in place and turning them while cooking on a grill can be a little tricky. I recommend using skewers to keep the parts out of the coals, even if you’re not making kabobs. The pieces can be removed from the skewer after they’ve cooked for serving.
Best Ways to Cook Marinated Foods
- Grill: Go ahead and grill to your heart’s content! The grill’s heat can caramelize the sugar in some marinades, so watch the food carefully. Grilling is a perfect way to cook kabobs or flank steak to slice up thin and enjoy in tacos.
- Broil: If you’re curious about the top feature inside your oven, by all means, broil! Try some garlic, parsley, olive oil, and lemon zest marinated shrimp which cook up fast under the direct heat of the broiler.
- Bake: Chicken breasts can get very dry if baked all by themselves, so this method works well with a marinade. Try a yogurt, turmeric, garlic, and garam masala mixture slathered over the pieces.
- Roast: Roasted pork roast might taste fabulous in a marinade of apple cider vinegar, coriander, honey, and garlic.
Tools for Marinating
- Resealable Bags: A zip-top bag makes marinating super easy and mess-free, ensuring that the meat directly interacts with the marinade. You can mix everything without getting your hands dirty, too.
- Skewers: Using a skewer is a beautiful way to grill marinated meat efficiently. Bamboo skewers should be soaked in water for at least twenty minutes, so the wood doesn’t burn on the grill. Stainless steel skewers can be used right away.
- Whisk: A stainless steel whisk works wonders when mixing up all those herbs, mustards, and oils.
- Bowl: Bowls of various sizes are always handy, especially so for marinating without using a bag. Make sure your bowl is glass, stainless steel, or food-safe plastic. Avoid pottery bowls that may have lead glazes or react with the acid in the liquid.
- Baking Dish: A glass baking dish or casserole is a nice thing to have on hand for marinating a flank steak or a larger cut of meat because it provides the space and surface area without crowding.
MsKislow says
This was very helpful information. I was hoping you would include a formula for ratios of ingredients to use.
Jessica Gavin says
Glad you found the marinating guide helpful! I have various marinade recipes like chicken, steak, carne asada, and skirt steak you can check out for specific marinade amounts.
Elizabeth Clarke says
Love knowing the science of foods and cooking. Need to get.your cookbook! Your recipes are easy to follow and use common household ingredients. Thanks
Jessica Gavin says
You’re welcome, Elizabeth! Let me know when you get the cookbook. I’m happy to send you a signed card if you’d like!
Sue Bowling says
If a recipe uses a 5lb pork roast in marinade for 6 – 8 hrs, if using a roast half that size, do I adjust the marinade time? I think it use the lower end of the marinade time, my hubby says cut the time in half.
Jessica Gavin says
I would say at least 5 to 6 hours of marinating the pork roast since it’s a thick piece of meat for half the weight.
Andrew Bethune says
With all due respect, research shows marinating has little to no effect on meat and will not penetrate deeper than the outer 1/8th inch of meat regardless of how long it is marinated. Brining is a different story, but this kind of advice causes people to waste time and good ingredients. If you don’t believe me, just google “does marinating work”.
Pat says
This is so informative, I’ve learned so much. Thank you!
Russ says
I’m marinating a Brisket. I accidentally put it in too early. Recipe calls for overnight and I’m doing it a day early. Possibly 24 hours of marinating. Would that be too long?
Jessica Gavin says
The additional marinating time of the brisket will add more flavor but may make the meat on the surface a little chewy because of the salt drawing to the moisture. There is a lot of connective tissue in the brisket, so I don’t worry about the meat getting mushy. Let me know how it turned out!
Marilyn says
How much does marinating pork or beef cut down the cooking time. For example, I have an old recipe for country style ribs that I want to marinate for 4 to 8 hours. Would I cut down both the roasting temperature and time? If so, by what percentage? Thanks.
Jessica Gavin says
Hi Marilyn- Great question! Marinating won’t impact cook time or the temperature applied. Unless it’s something acidic like making ceviche and using the acids to “cook” the protein, I would still follow the directions from the specific recipe and carefully monitor doneness.
Diana Harris says
Can you use the marinade you put pork un if you heat it for gravey?
Jessica Gavin says
If you boil the marinade to cook any raw juices, you can use it as a sauce.
Lisa says
Ratios would be helpful, considering “too much acid” is subjective and can ruin the meat.
Andy says
Hi Jessica,
If I were to marinate chicken breast one day with olive oil in the marinade, and then cook it on a pan the next day, do I still need butter or olive oil spread on the pan to still cook the chicken breast properly? Or will the olive oil in the marinated chicken be enough to cook the chicken without burning it?
Jessica Gavin says
I recommend using some fat in the pan to help brown the chicken and prevent sticking. Make sure to not move the chicken to create a golden crust, and let the proteins hard to make it easy to remove from the pan.
Denise says
Hi. Could you please tell me if I am doing 18 kg pulled pork in a marinade, and the recipe is for 1 kg pork, do I need to X’s the marinade by 18 or would that be too much.
Thankyou
Denise
Jessica Gavin says
I think you’ll need to gauge the amount of required marinade once you add the pork to the container. The meat should be submerged unless you plan on rotating so that all sides get evenly covered over time.
Karen says
Exceptional article! BRAVO!!! It was concise, informative and written flawlessly. If your cooking is even half as good as this article, you might be the best chef on this planet. Thank you soooo much!!!
Jessica Gavin says
Wow, thank you, Karen! You just made my day. You’re the nest!
Matthew says
You might want to sound a word of warning about yogurt (in the Fat category,) as it has active enzymes that will break the meat down fast. I read somewhere to only marinate in yogurt for an hour or less.
Donna Marie Gomez says
Should I allow a simmering marinade to cool before adding it to the chicken or beef to marinade in fridge overnight?
Jessica Gavin says
Yes, I would let the marinade cool down. This prevents it from cooking the outside of the meat and causing food spoilage.
Glenn Huffington says
Excellent summary but regarding marinade and using the leftover, just boil it to make it safe for use at the table similar to Au jus. It is really useful when reducing down to a concentrated liquid. From there you have an excellent liquid base to expand out for any sauce or gravy to work with. This is crucial to penny pinchers in the kitchen like me when using not-cheap marinade ingredients like olive oil and store bought fresh herbs.
Fully cooked used marinade also freezes well for quick weeknight meal throw-togethers. I do this with chicken, pork, beef, and even lamb dish marinades specifically. Some marinades have more salt than others, so all of that factors in on how to deal with them as well for a sauce or gravy. Just throwing that out there as an idea for others watching their household budget in these new normal times of skyrocketing grocery bills!
Aberch says
Thank you so much for the information. do you thinks using herbs and spices can be a replacement for salt in the marinate or is it a must to add salt to the marinate?
Adam Kesingland says
Hi Jess
I am a big fan of Sate or Satay. I find over marinading chicken and beef can make it furry on the outside. Especially beef I only like to marinade that day (4 to 8 hours). I am sure you must have heard of Heston Blumenthal here in the UK? Not classically trained but has three Michelin Stars, I have been lucky to eat at one of his restaurants twice. He did studies with marinating chicken breasts for Tandoori chicken and actually put them in an MRI machine after marinating to see how far the marinade penetrated, you are right it is not far, millimeters in fact. I love your approach.
Love and Peace Adam x
Jessica Gavin says
Thanks for sharing your experience with marinating meat, Adam! I would love to try one of Chef Blumenthal’s restaurants someday.
Goetz Von Berlichingen says
I would like to add one more ingredient to your marinade list – alcohol. There are flavors that are only alcohol soluble.
Jessica Gavin says
I definitely think some alcohol could be a nice addition. Just caution to not add too much as it could cause the muscle fibers to squeeze out moisture if the concentration is too high of the alcohol.
Michael says
I’m getting back into cooking more in my old age. Thank you for reminding my brain about marinades. You’ve done a wonderful job. Please keep it up.
Jessica Gavin says
That’s wonderful that you are cooking more, Michael!
Francesco says
This is GOLD, literally everything I wanted to know about marinades!
Thank you so much!
Francesco
Jessica Gavin says
You’re so welcome Franceso! I’m happy to hear that the marinating guide was helpful to you.
Marco says
I am ever amazed that after cooking daily for 40 years, every time I read one of your write-ups I learn something new about cooking…your knowledge of everything food and the clear and complete explanations you provide are remarkable. Many thanks.
Marco
Jessica Gavin says
Thank you Marco! Cooking provides endless opportunities to learn, that’s what I love it so much!
MARY CUNNINGHAM says
Great article on marinating meats! I was staring at a tri tip and with all the fascia, thought there’s no way the marinade can get through much of that. But taking it off makes the meat lose it’s shape. I’m going to cut it across the grain into slices and then marinate the slices for 2 hours. Sound ok?
Jeanine says
I’d like to know this reply as well. I love tri-tip and grilling, so the reply would be helpful. Thank you.
John d says
Science says that marinating is balony. Salt yes. Salt penetrates but nothing else does beyond the surface flavor after the cooking.
Isabel Austin says
I soak chicken breasts in plain milk overnight. Does buttermilk work any differently? Because… more acid?
Jessica Gavin says
The acid in the buttermilk will tenderize the meat more but if you marinate too long it may make it mushy.
CATHY says
Thank you, Jessica!
Very helpful for me, as I have some beef rump roast, that I thought I had “marinated” in half-wine, but it’s still tough and sinewy.
Now that I know about using vineagar or some other acid, and other ingredients to use in a proper marinade, I understand why the wine just added a little flavor, but did zero towards making the meat tender.
Bless you!!
Jessica Gavin says
You are a rockstar Cathy! I love that you were able to troubleshoot for the next time.
Sara says
How long can I keep a marinade in the fridge? Just the marinade, no meat. I’ve been considering making marinades ahead of time, but am unsure how long they will keep in the fridge and what to store them in. Trying to save time by prepping a little. Thanks!
Karen Brentwood says
How does marinade make chicken juicier? Wasn’t the whole point that nothing pentrates the chicken more than superficially? Even brining doesn’t penetrate very far into the meat, though I know it will add flavor more effectively than fat-based marinades. Doesn’t juiciness really just have to do with cooking method?
Abdullah says
Hi Mam
Enjoyed reading this article. I am a cooking enthusiast my self. Got a question. You’ve said in the article that Beef & Pork can be marinated for 24 hours. This marination is in the refrigerator or outside the refrigerator.
Regards
Abdullah
Jeanine says
I believe she said it is best to marinade In the refridgerator versus marinating at room temperature. The natural bacteria on the uncooked meat will contaminate the marinating meat if the process takes place at room temperature.
David says
My wife and I like to marinate chicken breast sliced thin as you suggested the issue were having is all the meat doesn’t seem to be evenly marinaded . I think it’s a process issue my wife makes the marinade up and then adds the meat . I like to add the meat and marinade in layers or meat then marinade then squish the sealed bag around to better coat the meat or should there be enough liquid to submerge the meat
Naeemah says
Personally, I add the marinade to the meat but I don’t really think it matters as long as you make sure you it’s coated well. If I’m only using a bag to marinate I seal the bag and move the meat around in it until each piece and each side is coated. Then I remove the air and let it marinate in the fridge. It could also be that there’s not enough liquid to cover all of meat. Added a small amount of oil could do the trick. You’d have to check but it definitely doesn’t need to be submerged.
Dammy says
hi Jessica can I marinate palm weevil worm before roasting and how long
Kevin S Miller says
Very informative, I’m making chili with cubed London broil and want the meat to be tender. You covered all the questions that I have been thinking about. Thank you Jessica!
Jessica Gavin says
You’re welcome Kevin!
Christel says
Great explanation about how marinade works. I did not realise that chicken for example can get tough if it’s too acidic. I had thought the more lemon juice the better. A very helpful post. Thank you.
Dennis says
Excellent discussion of the why, how, when of marinating. Do you have a .pdf version?
We will be teaching a 4 week course on grilling this fall at OLLI UNC Asheville. This would be a prefect handout.
Dennis
Jessica Gavin says
Hi Dennis- Your course sounds amazing! I do not have a pdf handout. Have fun teaching the class!
Euretta says
Going to try he olive oil and thyme and herbs on chicken breast thanks will see what happens thank you
vivian gerard says
great tips on BBQing thank you. Never knew about marinating expensive cuts of steak i always buy a ribeye or strip loin i love my Webber bbq i don’t use it all that much as i am by myself but its good
Jessica Gavin says
Thank you Vivian!
Phyllis Sheets says
Jessica, thanks for the info on marinating.
Could you provide a simple marinade for chicken breasts.
thank you so much, I enjoy reading your recipes and have
saved to try.
Jessica Gavin says
Yes! I just added a recipe today, please search “chicken marinade” on my website.
Denise Muller says
can you marinate frozen meat while it thaws?
Jessica Gavin says
Great question! The marinade will not take effect until the meat is thawed, so you would need longer marination time. The marinade cannot move into the meat or flavor the surface with the ice crystals still intact. I would recommend monitoring the meat as it defrosts because you do not want to over marinate. However, the best bet is to defrost the meat, pour off excess moisture and then marinate.
Annette Charley-Sale says
Wow. Thanks for this information. I was putting the marinate in a ziplock bag with the frozen meat at the time I bought it and placing everything in the freezer, taking it out, overnight, and allowing it to thaw when I was ready to cook!. So, now am I understanding that I should divide up the meat, freeze and then thaw overnight perhaps then marinate in the morning to cook in the evening?
Leona Butchart says
What is a good marinate for flank steak and how long to marinate?
Jessica Gavin says
Hi Leana- I like a soy-based marinade, marinated for 1 hour. I just posted a recipe called “the best steak marinade” that you can use for flank steak!
Marlene says
Since I’ve never marinated anything, I appreciate all the information you shared. I’ll have to try it soon. Thank you.
Jessica Gavin says
You’re welcome Marlene! I’m so happy that you found it helpful 🙂
Richard (Dick) Allen says
Dear Jessica,
I don’t know about other men and I am not impressed with cooking shows. I am in awe of your style and knowledge. Where did you study Culinary Science? I have already made your recipe for meatloaf. It is the absolute best I have ever eaten. My fiancée is coming for a visit and I will be making Bolognese sauce, her favorite. I am planning Veal/Chicken Marsala and am going to marinate flank steak. Thanks for the information on marinades. I have commercial Brazilian marinade that I like. If I had your recipes I would be making everything from your book.
Jessica Gavin says
Hi Richard! I studied food science at calpoly, san luis obispo and got my bachelors and masters there. Then I went to culinary school, and then got my food scientist and culinary scientist certification. I have a cookbook 🙂
Vineeta says
Thats a wonderful article on marinades..very informative. Thanks.