Share on ThriftyFunThis page contains the following solutions. Have something to add? Please share your solution!
My husband is a retired butcher and I am certified in Culinary Arts. Marinades are expensive. Try soaking your beef steak or roast in Cola or Dr. Thunder from Walmart. Cover for 24 hrs. Then season and cook.
Unbelievably tender!
Source: My husband the butcher picked it up in the meat industry many years ago.
By Jeanne from Elysian Fields, TX
Mix pineapple juice, green onion, ginger, soy sauce, sesame oil, brown sugar, pepper and salt together in large, re-sealable bag, add meat, refrigerate and marinate for 1 to 2 hours for fish and up to 10 hours for beef, chicken or pork.
By Deeli from Richland, WA
This is super easy. A friend told me that if you marinate your poultry/pork/beef etc in ginger ale, not only will you have a tasty result but it also tenderizes even the most tough bargain cuts of meat.
Use regular ginger ale (not diet). Place the meat (beef/chicken/pork) in a bowl, cover it with the ginger ale or diluted (half water/half gingerale) and marinate for at least 8 hours. Overnight works the best. You can add salt in if you want.
Drain the meat and cook as you regularly would, with your favorite seasonings or BBQ sauce.
Just cook as you regularly would (frying, broiling, crockpot, BBQ, steaming, roasting, sauteing). It tenderizes the toughest bargain meats, creates a fresh and tasty flavor that does accentuates your regular seasonings. It does not impart a "sweet taste", just a tender flavorful result.
I get tons of compliments whenever I marinate the meat before cooking, whereas I was just a mediocre cook before. I can really tell the difference, the marinated meat is fork-tender and tastes great. Non-marinated meat tends to stay sort of tough and chewy, especially the bargain cuts.
By Bella S. from Forks, WA
Whisk all ingredients together in a glass bowl and proceed with the marinating process.
By Deeli from Richland, WA
I love making marinades! Not only do they give meat flavor but also tenderizes meat. You can do this on shopping day before you freeze all your meat, using heavy duty freezer bags.
Whisk all ingredients together. Taste for seasoning. I use this for a light salad dressing and a meat marinade. It is quite versatile. It doubles easily.
I used to make a wonderful marinade for steak with a couple of ingredients including Vegemite and Sherry. It was on a Vegemite label but I lost this recipe years ago.
My Papa (Grampa) came here from Niceon, Greece. Lots of foods he taught my Grama to cook had a citrus flavor. I can't afford lamb like they used but this marinade is also excellent with beef, fish, poultry or shrimp.
What are the proportions of acid to oil, etc, in making your own marinade?
Try this super easy marinade. It can be used for chicken, beef, or pork.
Mix all ingredients except the salt and pepper in a bowl, then pour into either a container with a lid that seals, or into a zip-lock bag.
Mix together and add meat desired. Marinate in the fridge for 24 hours (turning meat often). Excellent for pork chops...
Even the most "not so tender" cut of meat, such as beef chuck blade can cook so tender you would not know it's chuck. The secret is to marinate the beef chuck over night.
Even the most "not so tender" cut of meat, such as beef chuck blade can cook so tender you would not know it's chuck.
Recipe for Soy Sauce Marinade - Combine ingredients. Use to marinate beef, pork, or chicken before grilling or broiling. Makes 1 1/4 cups.
Mix together; marinate overnight. Can reuse.
This is better the second day than the first. Makes the meat so tender, great flavor!
Combine all ingredients, mix thoroughly. Pour over vegetables to marinate.
Ask a QuestionHere are the questions asked by community members. Read on to see the answers provided by the ThriftyFun community or ask a new question.
I haven't bought any stir-fry or marinades for ages and don't intend to... as I am trying to cook from sratch as much as possible but the only one I have that I can make from scratch is a soy/garlic/sweet stir-fry sauce which I double as a marinade. To be honest, I'm rather tired of using the same one each time I cook marinated steak or stir-fries.
Have you ever tried a dry rub on roast chicken or beef??? Just rub the meat with olive oil and then a mixture of equal parts salt, pepper, paprika, and brown sugar and broil over a grill. I can't tell you how wonderful that is!! Also, lemon or lime juice, garlic and parmesan cheese is very good on chicken. Don't use acids too long on chicken before cooking or it will go to mush. I found out the hard way. I wouldn't marinade poultry in acids (sours) any longer than a half an hour before cooking. Beef or pork can marinade a bit longer. Try any salad dressings...they can be very flavorful. Ranch dressing, mixed or dry powder is good on meat and especially in potatoes and in rice!!!! The easiest way to marinade that I've found is to seal the meat and marinade in a zip lock bag. When you are finished, throw away all of the nasty blood and bacteria with the bag. Good luck and God bless.
This is the recipe that I use a lot.
Korean Marinade
1/2 cup soy sauce
4 green onions, finely chopped
4 cloves garlic, minced
1/4 cup sugar
1/4 cup dark sesame oil
1/4 cup dry sherry
1 tablespoon grated ginger root
&frac; teaspoon pepper
Mix all together.
I have used this on beef, chicken, pork and shrimp.
On all but shrimp marinade in refrigerator over-night.
Shrimp should only be a few hours. I have cooked these
on the outdoor grill and also on the George Foreman grill.
BEEF OR PORK MARINADE
&frac; c. soy sauce
2 tbsp. brown sugar
&frac; tsp. ginger
2 tbsp. Worcestershire sauce
1 tbsp. lemon juice
Whisk all together and pour over meat. Let sit in fridge, turning occasionally, for a couple of hours.
CURRIED YOGURT MARINADE
&frac; c. plain yogurt (minus 1 tbsp.)
1 tbsp. honey
1 tbsp. curry powder
1 tbsp. olive oil or cooking oil
&frac; tsp. salt
In a small bowl, combine all ingredients. Makes enough for 1-1&frac; lbs. of meat. Marinate meats for 2-4 hours. Can be used to marinade pork, chicken, lamb, or beef for grilling. Long cooking meats should be cooked on indirect heat so that honey doesn't burn. Makes about 1/3 cup marinade.
SUMMER CITRUS MARINADE
4 cloves minced garlic
&frac; c. lime juice
&frac; c. olive oil
2 tbsp. lemon juice
2 tbsp. honey
Salt and pepper to taste
Whisk together all ingredients, reserving one tablespoon for basting. Marinade chicken for 1 hour. As chicken is being grilled, use reserved sauce for a baste.
WASABE MAPLE MARINADE
2 tbsp. wasabi powder (if unable to find wasabi powder, replace with 2 tbsps. Horseradish)
&frac; c. real maple syrup
&frac; c. extra virgin olive oil
&frac; c. red wine vinegar
1 clove of garlic, minced fine
1 tbsp. minced shallot or red onion
&frac; tsp. coarsely ground black pepper
&frac; c. cold water
In a medium sized mixing bowl, mix all ingredients thoroughly and store in an airtight container. When you are ready to use this marinade, bring it up to room temperature to allow the olive oil to liquefy. Thoroughly coat your meat or vegetable and allow to soak for 1-2 hours in the refrigerator before grilling.
SESAME SEED MARINADE
1 tbsp. brown sugar
3 tbsp. soy sauce
1 tbsp. sesame seeds
2 cloves garlic; chopped
1/8 tsp. fresh black pepper
4 boneless or bone-in chicken breast halves
Combine all ingredients except chicken in a shallow dish. Mix well. Add chicken, turning to coat. Cover and marinate in the refrigerator at least 2 hours. Remove chicken from marinade. Place the marinade in a small saucepan and heat to a boil, then cool. Place the chicken on the grill over medium-hot coals until chicken is done, and juices run clear. Turn and baste frequently with reserved marinade. Serves 4.
Hmmm... not sure why the fractions didn't come through on the posts. They looked fine when I previewed them! Anyway, here's the fractions for the recipes I just posted:
BEEF/PORK MARINADE
1/2 c. soy sauce
1/2 tsp. ginger
CURRIED YOGURT MARINADE
1/4 c. yogurt
1/2 tsp. salt
CITRUS MARINADE
1/2 c. lime juice
1/2 c. olive oil
WASABE MARINADE
1/4 c. maple syrup
1/2 c. olive oil
3/4 c. red wine vinegar
1/2 tsp. pepper
1/4 c. water
Try a dry rub. Rub roast meat with oil. Mix ground oregano and paprika and garlic salt. Rub on top of oil. I use cooking wine to bake it in. Drench it with the wine after rub. It smells like lasagna but its best beef or pork ever. The amounts of spices is up to you. I use more garlic salt then the other two. Experiment with it.
I learned this in the military, experimenting with meat.
Take a cheapo beer(amount depends on amount of meat) Pop the top and let it sit in the fridge over night.
Get some steak rub, garlic powder, black pepper, XX virgin olive oil, cayenne pepper, salt, dash of cinnamon. Mix in bowl. Heat up oil/spices before introducing to meat(microwave is just fine)
Once beer is flat, poor in bag with meat. Add oil/spices. Let sit for close to 12 hours or so. Squeezing and shaking bag every now and then.
Grill... Enjoy.
More of a "throw together" for a cook out. But I always get lots of compliments.
For even more flavor. I usually do 2-4lbs steaks, so yes, you'll almost have grill marks yourself by the time you are finished cooking. I go medium rare, slow cook the entire time. Once cook to desired temp, throw some(very little) lemon squirts on it. Serve, enjoy!
Add a delicious oriental flavor to your meat or veggies before putting them on the grill. This page contains teriyaki marinade recipes.
This is a page about tough meat marinade. You can use a less expensive cut of meat with a tenderizing marinade, to create a delicious main dish.
Boil 8-10 large spears asparagus until crisp-tender. Cool. Peel and slice four large avocados. Arrange in 8x8 inch shallow dish. Cover with marinade and refrigerate 3-4 hours.
Marinade: Mix 2 packages dry Italian salad dressing mix with 1/4 cup vinegar, 1/4 cup water and 3/4 cup olive oil - or use your favorite Italian salad dressing.
By Robin from Washington, IA
