The Simplest Summer Marinade

And it's addictive

In general, I am not a huge fan of marinades if their purpose is to break down or deeply season meat as it’s almost impossible for flavor to travel into the cells of meat in such a way it seasons the inside (a brine is a different story). This marinade, however, is bold and flavorful and only requires about 10 minutes of soak time to flavor the exterior of the product being cooked, making it more of a sauce. Its purpose is not to tenderize, but to amplify the flavor of the meat or veggies in which it cooks. It works on anything and everything; cooked down a touch, it acts as the ultimate sauce as well. I prefer to use this as an extra dressing that happens to cook onto the item I am grilling or roasting - the added bonus is a built-in “sauce”.

When I build flavors, I want to satisfy the entire palate profile - salty, sour, sweet, and bitter with a touch of umami. This is how we determine what foods taste good and which foods are incomplete or unbalanced. Have you ever eaten a dish and it tastes incomplete? Most likely it was missing one of these flavor components. In this case, I use white balsamic vinegar for the sour element, mustard and garlic for the bitter component, sugar for the sweetness, and tamari for the salt contribution. For the umami, I added a dash of Worcestershire sauce as it includes fermented anchovies - rich in umami.

Too often marinades are full of only acidic flavors making them sour. If the meat sits too long in the marinade, the result is a dry and grainy exterior with a sour taste. Too short and it’s a waste of product.

Give this recipe a shot and I promise you you’ll be a believer in the shortcut marinade.

For this recipe, I used cross-cut short ribs - an incredibly flavorful cut of meat that is tender and rich when cut thinly and grilled. The fat and collagen hold up well with the marinade. I ALSO took a couple of rib eyes that I cooked slowly in an oven for 30 minutes (preparing for a reverse sear) and soaked them (par-cooked) in the marinade for 10 minutes then finished on the grill. It was just enough to add another layer of flavor.

FOR THE MARINADE:

2 tablespoon white balsamic vinegar

1 tablespoon Worcestershire sauce

2 tablespoon Tamari (or soy sauce)

1 tablespoon sesame oil

2 tablespoon sugar

1 tablespoon Gochuchang (fermented red chili paste)

1.5 tablespoon Dijon mustard

2 tablespoon minced garlic

1 lime zested

Combine ingredients with a whisk and soak your meat for 10-20 minutes.