I recently realised that when I post recipes requiring red meat, I often get questions from the readers on how to marinate the meat properly. In this post, I will quickly explain some basic tricks about marinating red meat answering some of the questions I get regularly. You will be able to marinate with only a few simple ingredients that you can find at home. Let’s start!
Which types of meat require marinating?
Pancheta, tenderloin, any type of steak, meat chops, beef neck and lamb shoulder are the few examples of meat types which require marinating before the cooking starts.
How thick should the meat be?
The maximum thickness of the meat you are preparing should be 1,5-2 cm (about half an inch). If it is thicker than this, it will be harder for the marination sauce to penetrate into every layer of the meat.
Should I tenderise the meat?
If you are cooking meat chops, you may tenderise them according to your taste. I wouldn’t recommend tenderising other types of meat since it would cause them to lose their structure which is a very important element in keeping the meat juice inside.
What are the most used sauces to marinate red meat?
I personally use two different sauces for red meat before cooking. You can choose either sauce before you start trying any of my red meat recipes (Click here for the recipes), they are both compatible.
1-Milk Marination
- Milk
- Olive Oil
- Paprika
Place the meat in a deep bowl. Pour cold milk on top of the meat until every part of the meat is covered. (Usually it takes half a liter of milk for 500 mg of meat) Add 4-5 tablespoons of olive oil and 2 tablespoons of paprika. Mix it thoroughly and cover the bowl up with its lid or some cling film. Place it into the fridge.
2-Acidic Marination
- Red Wine or Balsamic Vinegar
- Olive Oil
- Soy Sauce
- Lemon
Place the meat in a deep bowl. Pour red wine (you can use old leftover wine) or balsamic vinegar on top of the meat until every part of the meat is covered. You can dilute it with water if you don’t have enough wine or vinegar to cover up the meat. Add 4-5 tablespoons of olive oil and 2 tablespoons of soy sauce. Squeeze half a lemon into the mixture. Mix it thoroughly and cover the bowl up with its lid or some cling film. Place it into the fridge.
How long should the meat wait in the sauce?
For the marination process, you should leave the meat in the sauce for at least 2-4 hours. It can stay up to 24 hours for maximum marination.
Do I strain the sauce or use it for cooking?
If you used the milk sauce, then you should strain the sauce before you can start cooking. But the acidic sauce can be used for extra taste later if the recipe you are trying allows it.
After I take the meat from fridge, can I start cooking immediately?
If the recipe you are trying is not specifying it, you will need to wait for the meat to reach the room temperature for the ideal cooking experience.
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