BBQ On Sunday - have some nice steak would like a marinade recipe please.?

Question

Also any chicken ideas - salad ideas, fish ideas..........

Answer 1

You've come to the right place Sam, so let me give you the skinny on marinade!

If you look at a bottle of a commercial sause, you'll see these basic ingredients:

tomatoe paste
sugar (or corn syrup)
spices

So, let's whip up a little something of our own, OK?

Take a regular size can of tomatoe paste, and spoon it into a big baking dish that you'll use to immerse your steak. Now add 2-3 tablespoons of brown sugar, or, if you don't have brown sugar, use table sugar and 2-3 tablespoons of molasses. Add several tablespoons of crushed fresh garlic (or smash up a bulb's worth of cloves). A few dashes of tobasco -not too much! Now add in about a tablespoon of steak seasoning -any old kind: McCormick, Lawry's, whatever. Finally, crush a tablespoon of rosemary (pinching it with your fingers will break it up enough) and add that; then a tablespoon of cilantro and likewise of tarragon.

OK, stir that up. You'll have a pasty mess. Good. Now take out a bottle of vinegar (balsamic preferred) a bottle of soy sauce, a bottle of worcestershire sauce and a bottle of either sherry, marsala or port wine (or all of those).

Gradually add each liquid in equal amounts as you stir up the mixture, until you've created a sauce that will coat the meat, be easily spreadable with a brush, but not be runny. Sort of like thick latex wall paint. Best tool to use is a wire whip. From start to finish, this all should take 15 minutes. You can sample the taste and add ingredients to your taste. Note that salt was not on my list, because it is in the steak seasoning already.

Do it so your steak will have at least an hour to bathe in that puppy before grill time.

Put the steak right smack dab into the sauce, move it around to coat the bottom, then flip it over to coat the other side. Pop it into the refrigerator until grill time.

Now, to cook this thing, you want the grill HOTTER THAN HELL! Flop that bad boy on there, searing one side for 3 mins, then the other. Brush on more of your sauce with each turn. Suppress flames (if they get out of hand) either by covering the grill to smother or else by squirting on some water on to the coals -just enough to knock down the flames. However, some flame is good -just keep it controlled. Turn about every 3 to 5 minutes so you get some char -but don't harden the outside too much. Takes about 20 minutes to do a medium rare steak that's 1-1.5 inches thick. Test doneness by pressing your finger on the steak, if you get a little bounce back, but still flexible -you are about medium rare.

If you want to reserve some of the sauce to add at table, boil it first to kill any nasty stuff from the raw meat; otherwise, throw it away. Try to use it all up in the cooking process.

Enjoy. By the way, wher's your house?

Answer 2

If they are nice steaks, don't put salty products or acidic products on them until you are ready to grill, the acids will break down the surface and won't look too pretty. What I do if they are good steaks,that don't need tenderizing, is the morning of I rub minced garlic all over the steak and cover it and stick it in the fridge. Then right before I grill, I wipe the garlic pieces away so they won't burn and sprinkle liberally with kosher salt and fresh cracked pepper. You'll be tasting the steak, not masking the flavor with sauces and marinades, save those for not so great cuts of steak. The same goes for your chicken. When we do a chicken barbecue we make the cornell sauce (cider vinegar, white pepper, salt, oil, poultry seasoning and eggs). You don't season the chicken first, you put it on the grill naked and as it cooks you swab the chicken. It keeps the chicken from burning and it absorbs the flavor thoroughly. For the fish, I would rub it with some olive oil so that it doesn't stick and use a bottled mesquite marinade brushed on during cooking. Salads-you can't go wrong with the tried and true potato, macaroni and/or tossed salad. if you are worried about keeping mayo out, make it a pasta salad and tossed salad. Those you can prep in advance. Good Luck and have fun.

Answer 3

I do a simple marinade which will be great if you are pushed for time with all the other BBQ arrangements.

Olive oil, Worchester sauce, 2 crushed garlic cloves, some Schwartz cajun seasoning, bit of ground black pepper and a splash of soy sauce. It's tasty (and gives the meat a nice colour) but not too spicy. You could always add a bit of zing to it with fresh lime juice and chopped chilli.

I don't measure it out, just make as much as I need depending on how much meat I am cooking. Just make sure you don't overdo it with the oil or Worchester sauce, equal parts I would say. I pour it over the meat (sometime rubbing it into the meat) and let it rest (not in the fridge) for a good hour.

This also works well with pork and chicken. I do chicken or pork kebabs with onion, mushroom, pepper, sometimes tomato, all served with pitta bread. Lovely!

Answer 4

I usually only marinate leaner cuts of beef, like London Broil. A very easy marinade is bottled Italian dressing. I pour the bottle into a ziploc bag & add the meat. I try to turn the bag evey couple of hours and let it sit overnight.

If you have really nice steaks, you may not want to marinate them. They will probably taste wonderful without any marinade. If you want to add a bit of flavor try a rub instead. There are some really good ones in the condiments aisle at the grocery store. I highly recommend the steak one from McCormick.

Answer 5

Here is a terrific and easy marinade for steak
Combine a cup of zesty italian dressing with two tablespoons of a good steak sauce. Let steak marinate in it overnight turning it over if needed after a few hours. This is great on the grill.

Answer 6

Buy a couple of large salad bowls in Tescos, some cucumber and a mix of fresh peppers, cherry tomatoes etc Have some Italian dressing or french dressing handy for this and some grated cheddar. Also buy some coleslaw and potato salad, beetroot etc
Steaks always go with cracked black pepper and a mix of crushed garlic blended into a mix of dried herbs and french dressing.
I recommend you buy Jamie Olivers flavor shaker as it makes great marinades and mixed sauces.

As for chicken always go with crushed red chillies with the seeds left in mixed with a sun dried tomato pesto and garlic, just glaze it on before you grill.

For fish I would go with a hollandaise sauce you can buy in any supermarket, place it in a gravy boat so people can help themselves. Just pour over some dried french seasoning and grated onions mixed with garlic while grilling the fish.

Answer 7

well if the steaks are very good, like filet or Kobe, or tenderloin. Personally i would use very little marinade. the natural flavor and juiciness of the steak will be compromised. But for a little flavor, use natural elements, like garlic, herbs, a little fruit juice, a touch of sea salt and peppercorn. some of the answers so far, are simply covering up the natural flavor of the meat. BBQ sauce, a1, those are what you would use on a BAD piece of meat, to make it more tender and add flavor, coz you have to to make it edible. and NEVER cut slices int o the meat. this is how all of the natural juices get lost and can make the meat dry. also med to med-rare. i am in the rest biz and my chef refuses to cook a steak to more than med. saying it ruins it. ok, good luck and happy eats

Answer 8

Marinade cheap cuts of meat.... A good cut of beef should get grilled enough to seal it on both sides. A bit of salt & a twist of the pepper mill is enough.

Ribs or chicken.... I skin the chicken and put the parts in container with crushed garlic, s&p, soy sauce and half a can of Coke (the other half of the can gets mixed with rum). You can use the same mix with the ribs. Best if all sits 24 to 48 hours before cooking. Mix several times. Remem - best to cook meats when they get to room temperature.

Answer 9

If you have a good, quality cut of steak, it shouldn't need a marinade to mask the steak flavor or make it tender. It should already be so. If not, your steak isn't as great as you say.

Filet mignon, med-rare with a little salt and pepper is the way to go, imho!

Answer 10

Steak marinade:
1/2 cup olive oil
1/3 cup soy sauce
4 scallions, washed and cut in 1/2
2 large cloves garlic
1/4 cup lime juice
1/2 teaspoon red pepper flakes
1/2 teaspoon ground cumin
3 tablespoons dark brown sugar or Mexican brown sugar
2 pounds inside skirt steak, cut into 3 equal pieces
Mix ingredients in a zip lock bag and mix then place meat and let marinate overnight or at least 4 hours prior to cooking.


Potato Salad with Egg, Dill Pickle, and Tarragon
1 1/4 pounds small new potatoes (1 to 2 inches in diameter)
1 hard-cooked large egg, peeled and chopped
3 tablespoons mayonnaise
3 tablespoons sour cream
1/4 cup finely chopped dill pickle
1 tablespoon finely chopped shallot
2 tablespoons Dijon mustard
1 tablespoon finely chopped fresh tarragon leaves or 1 teaspoon dried tarragon or to taste

In a large saucepan combine potatoes with enough water to cover by 1-inch and simmer until just tender, about 15 to 20 minutes. Drain potatoes and cool until they can be handled. While potatoes are cooling, in a bowl combine remaining ingredients with salt and pepper to taste. Cut potatoes into quarters and gently toss with egg mixture. Serve potato salad chilled or at room temperature.

I hope these help! Enjoy!!