Marinating Tips

Meats, poultry, seafood and even vegetables can all use a little seasoning to create an explosive and unique flavor. When deciding how to season your foods most recipes recommend unique rubs and marinades to add low-fat and delicious flavor to grilled foods.

Rubs are typically blends of dried herbs and spices that are worked into the surface of the meat, seafood or poultry (hence the name, “rub”). Most recipes will recommend letting your rubbed food sit for a minimum of 30 minutes but can take up to 3 hours or even overnight for larger cuts of meat.

Marinades are also made with herbs and spices but also include oil and an acidic liquid like citrus juices or vinegar. These ingredients help tenderize and moisten the meats while giving the food lots of flavor. The oil in marinades also helps keep the food from sticking to the grill.

When marinating meats, poultry or seafood make sure they are kept in the refrigerator and discard the liquid after use. If you are also basting your foods, set aside some of the marinade before soaking the meat and use the non-contaminated marinade for basting. Also make sure that you are only basting cooked, not raw, meat surfaces with your basting brushes.

When grilling with marinated food, make sure you use a drip pan to help avoid flare up and to help keep your grill clean.

Ready to get grilling? Try out our Tequila Mockingbird chicken and seafood marinade.

Photo Credit: natures-health-foods.com