We asked our expert for ideas for making a marinade that will make your favorite meats tender and tempting. Keep them close by while marinating meat to wipe up any splashes or spills quickly. Have side, bar or dish towels ready for clean-up.Toss marinated meat on it for mouth-watering results. Some of the tools Boudewijn recommends having on hand when marinating meat include a barbecue mop, a pastry brush and a baster. Take inventory of your kitchen gadgets.They’ll be useful during the meat tenderizing process. Keep storage bags and containers on hand.You should place boneless chicken in a thick freezer bag before using a meat tenderizer, and fish doesn’t need to be pounded, she added. Boudewijn said this simple kitchen gadget works best on boneless steaks. Use a meat tenderizer mallet as an alternative to a marinade.We eat with our eyes first, so color and presentation are almost as important as flavor,” she said. “Swordfish cubed and soaked in a red wine marinade comes out the most beautiful shade of lavender and looks so interesting contrasted with green when served on a banana leaf. Our expert gave an example of how this use of meat marinade works. Give certain types of meats a boost of color by marinating them.“Your Thanksgiving turkey, ribs, steaks, chicken breasts, fajita meat, Moroccan lamb and more benefit greatly from the added flavors,” Boudewijn said. Use marinades to add flavor to your favorite meats.“The more acid, the faster/deeper the softening process,” Boudewijn said. Our expert recommends using ingredients with a high acid content for the marinade, including vinegar, pineapple, mango, citrus juice, buttermilk, kiwi, yogurt, papaya and other acidic foods. Some ingredients work better than others for tenderizing meat. Twelve hours tends to be a good all-around amount of time.” The best ingredients for marinades “Never marinate meat longer than 24 hours - less time if marinating small cuts. She added advice about the best time recommended for marinating. Tough, dense cuts of red meat like brisket, chuck roast and bottom round are examples of the types of meats that benefit the most from marinades, Boudewijn said. So if you or someone you are cooking for is on a low-sodium diet, you can skip the extra salt and still get great results when you follow Boudewijn’s advice for marinade ingredients. “Enzymes and acids penetrate the meat and actually break down the fibrous tissue, making it softer on the teeth, more pliable for cutting, and it allows other flavors in the marinade like soy sauce, honey, and onion powder to absorb more easily in the cuts you’re serving.”īoudewijn added that salt assists enzymes in reacting and softening meat but is optional. The two main ways to do this is by adding enzymes like mango or papaya or an acidic element like lemon juice or vinegar to your marinade,” she said. “Marinades not only add flavor, texture and color to a dish but can make meats more tender. Regardless of your favorite types of meats to prepare, you’ll improve the texture and flavor when you marinate them before cooking. The Pyrex 3-Piece Glass Measuring Cup Set, McCormick’s Grill Mates Everyday Grilling Variety Pack, the Cuisinart Griddler and other essentials are included in this article to help you achieve delicious results. While some home cooks may question the effectiveness of soaking and basting the meat in marinade to soften the texture, Boudewijn said that the right ingredients will definitely have a tenderizing effect. Some cuts of meat can be tough, so what do you do about this dilemma when you want to improve the results of meaty main courses? Our cooking and baking expert, Cordon Bleu-trained pastry chef Andrea Boudewijn recommended using a marinade. Please appreciate that there may be other options available to you than the products, providers or services covered by our service.Not only will a flavorful marinade make your meat recipes tender, but it will make them delicious too compares a wide range of products, providers and services but we don't provide information on all available products, providers or services. Please don't interpret the order in which products appear on our Site as any endorsement or recommendation from us. While compensation arrangements may affect the order, position or placement of product information, it doesn't influence our assessment of those products. We may also receive compensation if you click on certain links posted on our site. We may receive compensation from our partners for placement of their products or services. While we are independent, the offers that appear on this site are from companies from which receives compensation. is an independent comparison platform and information service that aims to provide you with the tools you need to make better decisions.

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