The Culinary Works

As we approach spring, my favorite season by the way, it’s time for my two favorite things. Well, they maybe aren’t my only two favorite things, but they are favorites for sure. Spring veggies are my first favorite and I promise you will hear more on that soon…I can hear the farmers markets calling my name! But another favorite is BBQ grilling. In an effort to prepare you for the season of the grill, I want to talk today about the process of marinating.

There are some critical components to marinades, some methods and a whole lot of personal opinion out there. What I want to do is give you some critical yet very basic background information so that you can develop your own marinades based on what YOU like!

A marinade is, by definition, a liquid mixture of fat (oil) and acid (citrus juice, vinegar, wine etc) seasoned with aromatics (onion, garlic, fennel, herb, celery, citrus zest etc) and/or spices (paprika, Mexican chili powder, cumin, curry, pepper etc), in which meat is soaked before cooking. That’s a pretty broad definition, I know. Lets discuss the components of a marinade and what they do.

The fat or oil isn’t used just to keep the meat from sticking to the grill. The fat transfer from outside to inside as it marinates allows the flavor to penetrate the meat. It’s like a little fat highway for flavor. The acid component can impart flavor but is used primarily as a tenderizing agent. More on this in a minute. The aromatics, which amount to whatever fresh herbaceous goodness you want to chop up and add to the mixture help impart flavor and character to the meat. The spices, well, those are also to impart flavor. When compared to the aromatics, the spices are more intense in flavor and depending on how much you add will certainly impact the end result of the dish. A little spice goes a long way and balance is something to think about when creating your marinades.

When you read on the subject, you are going to find that people all have their own idea about ratios of acid to fat, spice to liquid etc. What you want to do is determine the needs of the dish as well as your tastes and build from there. For example, if you are grilling fillet mignon, you do NOT need tenderizing agents and using a marinade full of acid would ruin the texture of the meat. That doesn’t mean you can’t use a marinade to impart some extra flavor, just create a marinade that has no acid component in it. Same would go for meat like pork tenderloin, beef tenderloin, fish, shrimp, chicken etc. The kinds of meats that benefit from an acid component are the tougher more fibrous cuts, like tri-tip, skirt steak, chuck steak etc. I personally love to marinate tri-tip in red wine, olive oil and lots of onion, garlic and fresh herbs. The red wine is the acid component, tenderizing AND flavoring at the same time.

Another one of my favorites is to marinate chicken or pork with olive oil, chopped rosemary and lemon zest. Simple but marries so well with the grill! No acid is used because the meat is tender allready…the acid would break down and actually begin to ‘cook’ or coagulate the meat, ruining the texture.

We recently smoked a chicken where I used olive oil, lime zest, orange zest and Mexican chile powder. AMAZING! (Mexican Chili Powder contains onion powder, garlic, cumin and various chili powders…it’s a must have in your spice drawer)

Shrimp kabobs? I love to marinate the shrimp in olive oil, red chili flakes and pesto! Full of flavor and a kick of heat make them crowd pleasers.

The idea is to think about the meat, what does it need and not need. Do I need an acid component to tenderize it? Then think about what sort of flavors will give the meat the punch you want…maybe you want a more mellow Mediterranean flare, rosemary and olive oil are a classic combination. Do you want more spice? Maybe you want some serious spice so chili powder and hot paprika are the flavor of the day.

Avoid sugars of course, because the sugar will just burn on the grill. You may want to keep the aromatics cut rather large so they are easy to brush off before you grill the meat….remember, small pieces of vegetable stuck on the meat could burn during grilling. A few specks here and there won’t hurt anything so don’t make yourself crazy.

ALSO, and this is important, ONLY taste the marinade BEFORE you put the meat in it. Once the raw meat touches it DO NOT taste it.

I know people who are really into mixing their own dry spice mixes and those who swear by ones they purchase. I would encourage you to find something you like and try to copy it, unless it’s a really good one that lists the ingredients on the label and they are all spices….I hate to read a spice label that is full of fillers and preservatives. If it’s just spices, hey, how is it any different than what I can mix up.

I hope this inspires you to experiment and create your very own special marinade…GRILL IT!!