Marinades are a quick and easy way to add a boost of flavour to your grilled foods.
The bright, acidic flavours of a marinade balance the charred and smoky flavours from the grill.
Using a grill mat when you marinate will keep the delicious flavour on the meat instead of falling through the grill grates.
The culinary artists at Granny Mouse Country House & Spa have some super awesome tips on how to marinate for success along with the easiest, most customisable marinade recipes you will ever find.
Tips for you to remember when making your marinade:
- Marinades are amazing to help prepare meat for the braai by mixing up a bunch of special ingredients. This is then poured over the meat and must rest for a minimum of an hour before going on the grill.
- Once you have added the marinade to the meat, don’t leave it out on the kitchen counter, especially in summer. Make sure you store it in the fridge.
- When using marinades, remember meat will burn easily due to the sugar content, so when cooking make sure you grill longer over a lower heat. Try to remove the excess marinade before grilling and just before removing it from cooking add it again.
- Once the marinade has been used, it’s best to discard it.
- Tip: Ziplock bags are excellent for marinating meat. This way you can easily massage the marinade into the meat and keep turning it over in the fridge so both sides are well marinated.
Chicken marinade
Ingredients
15g onion powder
15g garlic powder
15g fresh thyme
15g whole-grain mustard
10g fresh ginger
10g fresh garlic
Zest of one lemon
Juice of one lemon
Salt & pepper to taste
Method
Mix all ingredients well.
Toss chicken in the mixture and allow to marinade for about 2 hours.
Thereafter, it is ready to be cooked on the grill, braai, or roasted in the oven.
Beef marinade
Ingredients
5g rosemary, finely chopped
2 cloves of garlic, finely chopped
15g thyme, finely chopped
15g paprika
10g onion powder
5g ground cloves
2 tots of whisky of choice (optional)
Method
Pat fillet dry, season with salt and pepper, and set aside.
In the meanwhile, mix all other ingredients in a bowl.
Coat the fillet generously with marinade.
Seal meat in a hot skillet if intended on roasting in the oven.
Can be cooked directly on the heat if grilling or braaiing.
Once cooked to the desired temperature, let the meat rest for at least 15 minutes before slicing and serving.