The Perfect Marinade Recipes, Explained by Science
Produced by Sun Ngo, Photography by Christie Vuong, Food Styling by Sage Dakota, Prop Styling by Nicole Billark.
A typical marinade recipe consists of oil, salt, taste builders and an ingredient that tenderizes meat. The tenderizer serves two purposes: to soften tough cuts and permeate them with flavour.
Acidic ingredients, like citrus juice, vinegar or yogurt, probably come to mind when you think of making meat tender. Acids do help unravel tight proteins for a more succulent bite, but there are so many other ingredients you can swap in, or even combine, to deliver a juicy forkful.
Take salt, for example. This key ingredient does more than just season meat; when you cover meat in anything saline (from miso to fish sauce to your basic kosher salt), some of the meat’s proteins will dissolve in the solution. This results in a more open texture within the meat that helps it retain more of its juices. Brine that turkey, baby.
There are a handful of lesser-known tenderizing substances that I love to deploy as secret ingredients, like soy sauce. The fermentation process involved in brewing it yields protease, an enzyme that facilitates the breakdown of tough proteins. The papain enzyme in papaya, bromelain in pineapple, and ficin in figs all have a similar effect on meat.
Finally, there's the restaurant technique of "velveting,” which uses baking soda (a chemical base; the opposite of an acid) for ultra-tender bites. By increasing the alkalinity, you modify the meat’s protein structure in a way that boosts moisture retention, makes it less resistant (giving the meat a softer bite) and allows for more browning reactions, which has the bonus effect of boosting the flavour of the final dish. Velveting is typically reserved for small slices or bite-sized pieces of meat used in a stir-fry, but it’s worth trying on larger cuts, too.
Now that we’re on track for super-juicy meat, let’s move on to the taste. For flavour, fat is truly key. Most yummy additions—think garlic, onion, spices— consist of fat-soluble flavour compounds. You need oil to carry those flavours. Be sure to enlist a high-smoke-point oil for high-heat cooking, such as avocado or canola.
Some sweetness can be a balancing counterpoint to sassier flavours in a marinade, but be careful–sugars will burn quickly. Unless your recipe takes just a few minutes over the flame, hold off and brush some sweetness (like honey whisked with a little hot water to loosen it up) onto your proteins in the last few minutes of cooking. You’ll get the irresistible caramelized bits you crave without burning the whole thing.
Marinating is an incredible technique to have in your arsenal, but it does take time and forethought. To cut down on time, I love to prep a recipe in big batches, then freezing it in its marinade for future use. Bear in mind that a marinade can’t penetrate frozen food, so it still needs to chill in the fridge for the designated marinating time either before you freeze it, or after thawing. Happy grilling!
Look for the 1⁄4-in.-thin-cut flanken-style beef short ribs for the most delicious fall-off-the-bone ribs. The 1⁄2-in.-thick ones will work in a pinch, but the marinade won’t permeate the meat as thoroughly. The marinade’s sweet-spicy-umami combination makes it irresistible. Get this short rib recipe.
I love marinating with yogurt because the added dairy proteins and sugars help facilitate the Maillard browning and caramelization reactions, which lend tons of extra flavour. Get this spiced yogurt chicken recipe.
Velveting pork with baking soda makes the meat incredibly moist and juicy. Be sure to rinse it thoroughly after velveting so none of the alkaline taste remains. Get this pork and snap pea stir-fry recipe.
Jennifer Pallian is a food scientist, recipe developer and blogger at Foodess. She lives in Vancouver.
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