Have a favorite marinade? What tasted great to you? List it here!

[TinyMan]

While we have a thread on recipes, there isn't much of a compilation for marinades, to my knowledge. I've put together some of my favorite marinades, a few of my cooking methods, and a couple simple recipes. Feel free to add your favorite marinades to the list (no matter how simple or complex). Please, do be as descriptive as possible for the benefit of the other members, including things such as: brands used, amounts you used, and so forth.

In most of these marinades, I am working with 6 oz chicken breast, cubed, otherwise, it will be noted in the section. I recommend marinades to be left in the fridge for at least 2 hours. You can substitute Worchester for soy sauce (low sodium), although I much prefer worchester - a more robust flavor IMO, while retaining a low sodium content.


Marinades:

Garlic:
Crushed garlic, to taste
1 tbsp olive oil

Chili:
1 tbsp sweet/spicy chili sauce (San-J)
chili powder
.5 tsp McCormick Montreal Chicken Seasoning
1 tsp peanut/sesame oil

BBQ:
1 tbsp light BBQ sauce
1 tsp dark sesame oil
1 tsp McCormick Montreal Chicken Seasoning
1 tbsp worchester sauce
chili powder

Tandoori:
1 tbsp tandoori
1 tsp worchester
1 tsp golden sesame oil
1 tsp BBQ sauce
paprika/chili powder

Curried:
.5 tsp dry curry powder
1 tbsp worchester sauce
1 tsp dark sesame oil
.5 tsp McCormick Montreal Chicken Seasoning

Peanut:
1 tsp peanut butter
.5 - 1 tsp BBQ sauce (changes the taste, and it's not necessary)
1 tsp sesame oil
1 tbsp of worchester

Szechuan:
1 tbsp szechuan marinade (San-J)
1 tsp soy sauce
1 tbsp worchester sauce
1 tsp BBQ sauce
chili powder
.5 tsp McCormick Montreal Seasoning

Note: This is my favorite way to prepare salmon. 6 oz cubed salmon, coat it with this marinade, and it's a real treat. I don't use this very often with chicken, but if you can, try it on salmon.

Balsamic:
1 tbsp balsamic vinegar
1 tsp lemon juice
1 tsp cooking oil
oregano
black pepper

Taco Seasoning:
McCormick taco seasoning (spicy)
1.5 tsp Cholula sauce, or similar hot sauce

This is not a real marinade... but it's decent when I don't want to do any real preparation. No need to leave this one in the fridge.

[TinyMan]

Cooking/Recipes:

For most of my marindes:
Using a typical 6 ounce chicken breast, I usually cut it into 3 'layers' (that is, cutting across the breast), while results in thin slices of chicken, then cut those three layers into cubes.

Pineapple Curry:
1 small can of pineapple, cubed
.5 tsp curry powder (same type as above)
chili powder to taste

Simply combine all the ingredients with enough water to cover the chicken, and boil at a low heat setting for 25-30 minutes. Very easy and tasty. Tender meats work best.

Boiled BBQ:
1 chicken breast, 6 oz, whole (not cubed)
BBQ sauce (to taste)
.5-.75 cup of water

Use a small pot, diameter slightly larger than the chicken breast. Heat water, and add chicken, with the barbeque sauce on top. Cover, and cook 25-30 minutes at low heat setting, turning occasionally. Again, very simple to do. The resulting sauce is quite nice for using with rice or pasta, so I usually make this, and add the chicken/sauce to pasta. Works best with tender meats.

Halves/Thirds:
1 chicken breast, 6oz

Lay breast flat on a cutting board. Using a knife, cut lengthwise along the breast to essentially cut into three thin breasts. Be careful when cutting this way, you don't want to slice your hand trying to do this. Use a sharp knife (dull knives are more likely to slip), and move slowly across the breast. Try to avoid placing your hand too close to the cutting edge of the knife. Marinade (if desired) and cook, as appropriate.

Fried rice:
2 eggs, yolk & white
Worchester sauce
Soy sauce (low sodium preferred)
Vegetables to stir fry with
Cooking oil

Cook the rice seperately. Using basmati rice, I bring the rice to a boil (1:1.5 of rice:water), cover and cook at medium-low heat for 10 minutes. Fluff/Dry the rice somewhat.

Heat the cooking oil in a pan. If you are going to add meat (chicken, etc), cook the meat in this oil, and set aside on another plate. No need to wipe down the pan really, scramble the eggs in it, and chop finely with a spatula (or similar implement). Add vegetables and rice, and add worchester & soy, in equal portions (1:1). Cook until the vegetables are ready, turning occasionally so the rice doesn't burn. Mix with meat if desired, and presto, food.

Curry
Lasagne
Pad Thai

I'll add some more later as I think of them

[TinyMan]

Brining:

Originally Posted by The_Doc

I've been experimenting more with brine lately, because it imparts the most flavor completey throughout the meat, where a marinade will only penetrate 1/4" at most. After having chicken and pork done this way I will never have it any other way ever again. The flavor, texture and moistness is so far above and beyond anything I've ever experienced that there's just no way I could ever go back to bland, dry chicken breasts again. Here's my favorite brine that I've come up with:

2 quarts warm water
1/5-1/4 Cup Kosher salt
2 Tablespoons liquid smoke
1/4-1/2 teaspoon MSG (Accent in spice isle) *optional
1/2 teaspoon garlic powder
1/2 teaspoon onion powder
1/2 teaspoon black pepper *
Any other flavors/spices you wish to infuse

Mix ingredients until disolved and, add 4-5 chicken breasts or lean pork and let stand at room temperature for 45 minutes. Then refrigerate for at least 2-3 hours (or over night) and grill, broil or pan sear. This method gives you alot of room for error in the juicy meat window. If you tend to cook your chicken a little longer for whatever reason this helps maintain the juiciness even if slightly overcooked. I usually grill my chicken for 8-12 minutes and I cooked the brined ones for 20 with no discernable loss of juciness or flavor. As for the MSG, I don't care what anyone says the stuff makes food taste better without adding unwanted calories or fat.

Quick tid bit on MSG:
People have long-known about the four basic tastes - sweet, sour, salty and bitter. But now a distinctive, scientifically recognised, fifth basic taste called umami is now universally accepted. The umami taste is imparted by glutamate (like MSG) in foods. Other substances, including nucleotides, also have the umami taste. However, glutamate is the quintessential source of the umami taste and is easily accented by with the use of small amouts of MSG.The Doc

* Fixed a typo - TinyMan. All credit to Doc for this one!

[TinyMan]

Bumping this once for the afternoon crowd.

[combs08]

do you have a teriaki (sp?) recipe?

-Combs-

[bernbabybern820]

great thread

[TinyMan]

Originally Posted by combs08

do you have a teriaki (sp?) recipe?

-Combs-

I think I may have one somewhere, but to be honest, I usually just use a premade teriyaki marinade. Mine never comes out tasting right.

I would try something like:

2 tbsp low sodium soy sauce
2 tbsp Mirin (shin I think)
.5-1 tsp honey (Mirin is somewhat sweet to start with. Adjust for your tastes)
ginger (optional)
chili powder, if you want a bit of kick.

This would probably do best for brushing while grilling meat, however I think it would suffice for a marinade.

If you aren't familiar with mirin, it is a type of liquid that is commonly used in cooking (originally meant to drink), due to the slightly sweet taste, and texture. There are two general types (that I know of), hon and shin - hon having a fair amount of alcohol, and shin having almost none. I think sake can be replaced for mirin, but it won't be quite the same.

And thanks bern hoping to get contribution from others on marinades - I'm always looking for something new to try.

[squat_princess]

I use this for fish and chicken.. and everything

Garlic minced
soy sauce
sesame oil
mustard powder
ginger powder (just a little)
lime or lemon squeezed
And sometimes i might throw in some sugar free 'maple syrup' to give it a sweet taste.

I looove this stuff, especially on salmon.

[TinyMan]

3-4 ounces yogurt (plain )
diced small onion
1 tsp ginger/garlic (optional)
1 tsp black pepper
1 tsp cumin
.5 tsp nutmeg
.5 tsp garam marsala (optional)
1 tsp sesame or olive oil

[animal2b]

Bust out a flank steak.

Marinade it in the juice of two-three limes
grated ginger
diced garlic
soy sauce
sugar (just a tad)

marinade for a few hours at the LEAST and 10 hours at the max.

broil and slice or just stuff the flank in your pocket and munch on it throughout the day.

[Word]

Anymore? These are great. i think i am going to try them all out, first the brine recipe as I always have a problem with dry chicken...

[Max Protein]

Originally Posted by animal2b

broil and slice or just stuff the flank in your pocket and munch on it throughout the day.

lmao, still that sounds like a great recipe, I'll have to try it.

[TinyMan]

I got this from a previous roommate - used on beef.

1/3 cup soy sauce
small green onion (chopped)
1 tbsp rice vinegar
1 tbsp olive oil or sesame oil (we used dark sesame)
garlic to taste
black pepper to taste

I think sugar may be commonly used in these marinades, so either use something like 1-2 tsp of honey, or just skip it all together. I don't remember if we used sugar or not, but I need to make this again sometime. We marinated using this, and grilled the meat, brushing some of the leftover marinade on it.

[ironstrife]

great thread.. keep em coming!

[Dr.Dave1]

Chicken - I marinade my chicken for ~24hrs in olive oil, italian seasoning, salt (just a bit), pepper, poultry seasoning, onion powder, a little tabasco and cayenne for kick and sometimes a TBSP or two of BBQ sauce for variety and then grill it. I don't have exact measures as the amount of chicken I make tends to vary but it is usually a variation on the theme; works good for chicken breast sandwiches.
- another simple recipe I use for dinner - sautee some minced garlic in olive oil, then add chicken and season w/ sage, S&P and poultry seasoning. Optional add 1/4 cup white cooking wine near the end of cooking. Again I season this to taste.

[TinyMan]

Haven't looked at this thread in quite a while...

1 tsp hot chili oil
1 tbsp soy (low-sodium, preferrably)
crushed garlic

[xerxes54]

This is simple, tastes good and I'll slather it on turkey burgers, chicken breasts, and ground beef:

3 finely chopped tomatoes
1 tbsp. olive oil
1 tbsp. flaxseed oil
3 tbsp. balsamic vinegar
salt & pepper
Equal or Splenda

[wuzzo87]

U forgot to include toasted sesame oil & rice vinegar in the teriyaki

Here's a few of mine.
Jerk Marinade
-Habaneros -minced
-Blackstrap Molasses + Malt
-Allspice + Hints of nutmeg, cinnamon & cloves
-Thyme
-Onion powder
-Dash of Soy sauce
-Olive oil
-Coffee (ground) for smokiness

Char-siu Style
-Oyster Sauce
-Hoisin Sauce
-Dash of dark Soy & some light soy
-Mirin/Chinese Sherry
-Optional garlic/five spice powder
-dash of sesame oil

Spicy Korean Style Grill
-Ginger juice
-Sesame oil
-Minced scallions & Garlic
-Soy
-Korean red pepper paste (koujchang)
-Korean red pepper powder / Pure ground chillies
-Optional mirin/sake

Vietnamese Style
-Fish Sauce
-Soy Sauce
-Lemongrass minced
-Lime Juice
-Dash of Dark Sweet Soy
-Rice vinegar
-Chopped chillies
-Ginger/garlic

[TinyMan]

Originally Posted by wuzzo87

U forgot to include toasted sesame oil & rice vinegar in the teriyaki
...

How dare you point that out! Some great ideas in your list there, thank you!

[Smoker]

Thanks.
Good thread.

[PullAndBear]

3 year bump for more marinades!!!

Here's a great one I use all the time for Chicken

http://www.recipezaar.com/Amazing-Ch...Marinade-29598

[Dracoy]

STICKY!!!! win!