Beef-beating bacteria. Magical shrinking shank. This is the scientific secret to
marinating meat that every carnivore needs to add to their repertoire!
If you're a meat-lover, then the chances are you've had to use a marinade at some point in
your culinary life. A perfect marinade is like a flavor bath for your beef, chicken,
fish, and pork: it results in a delicious, tender, juicier experience on the plate.
But marinades aren't without their perils. A good marinade boasts a yin and yang of acids and
spices, and sweet and salty flavors, and just the right amount of soaking time is needed to
achieve this kind of meaty bliss. One misstep, and you could be known as that jerk who made a dry,
chewy hunk of meat that will have you and your guests wishing they were a vegetarian.
"The only jerk around here is the spicy marinade on this Jamaican chicken, mon."
There's clearly more to a marinade than throwing whatever ingredients and leftover
condiments you might have lurking in the fridge into a bowl. In fact,
there's a whole formula to creating a good marinade.
According to Bon Appetit, it requires an oil, an acid, something sweet, something savory,
and some spices and aromatics. And there's a lot of choice when it comes to the acid:
yogurt, vinegar, or citrus juices not only create different flavors,
but can also change the weight and texture of the meat.
Serious Eats took readers to its cooking lab to help home cooks understand the role
acid plays in marinades. The site shared its findings about the best way to marinate meat,
specifically chicken and lamb, based on their experiments.
Serious Eats marinated chicken and lamb in lactic acid, citric acid, and acetic acid. Of the three,
the lactic acid was the mildest when it came to its effects on the meat's texture. Lactic
acid also led to lower levels of shrinkage during the marinating and cooking process.
So, why does it work so well? Well, yogurt is a great marinade for chicken because the
active bacteria goes to town on the protein, while the lactic acid does its magic much
slower than other acids, leaving behind a tender piece of meat that's ready to cook.
The gentler interaction between the lactic acid and the protein minimizes some of the
marinade challenges you encounter with vinegar- and citrus-based acids. So,
the next time you're making lamb or chicken,
you may want to put this science to the test and try a lactic acid-based marinade.
Despite what many of us might think,
marinades do not go very deep into the skin and flesh of the meat. In fact,
a marinade is a "surface" treatment. The only exception to this would be if you soaked your
meat in salt, which is easily sucked up and dissolved by all the moisture in the meat.
It is important to remember, of course, that meat is made up of about 75% water. Be warned,
though: while sodium is readily absorbed by the water in your various meat cuts, the same
cannot be said about your vinegar varieties, lactic acids, oils, sugars, and aromatics.
Because acid deteriorates protein, it can result in a mushy surface or prevent
the protein from trapping moisture, leaving you with dry meat. In fact,
Cook's Illustrated recommends very limited use of acid generally.
However, chef-instructor Christopher Arturo of the Institute of Culinary
Education told Huffington Post that "fat mutes flavors like salt and
acid," so fatty meat would call for more acid in the marinade, not less.
And if a marinade relies mainly on salt, it's probably more likely to be a brine.
But even salt needs time to work its magic. AmazingRibs.com's resident scientist and advisor,
Prof. Greg Blonder, shared that you would need to soak your meat in salt for 24 hours for it to
reach 1″ deep. The conclusion: Marinades work best on your thinner cuts of beef, chicken, and pork.
The Institute of Food Technologists explains that the amount of time you
marinate "different types of meat" does have an effect on the overall taste and texture
of your end product. Some meats should soak a little longer in their flavor bath than others.
Beef and lamb are going to need more time than chicken or seafood, for example. Specifically,
you don't want to leave seafood in a marinade longer than an hour max. Chicken can stay in its
marinating juices for about two hours, while beef can go for up to 24 hours.
What happens if you marinate your meat too long? You'll end up with mushy meat
that is both unappetizing and inedible. And remember: while meats like beef and
lamb keep well in your fridge for several days, raw, unused chicken
should only remain in your refrigerator for up to two days after you purchase it.