Always marinate in the refrigerator. Marinating at room temperature can allow dangerous bacteria to grow and lead to foodborne illnesses. Marinate vegetables for 15 to 30 minutes, fish and seafood for 15 minutes to one hour, poultry for 30 minutes to 3 hours, and other meat for 30 minutes to overnight.
Always marinate meat and poultry in the refrigerator, and boil the used marinade if you want to brush it on the meat or poultry while it's grilling. Do not save the used marinade.
The U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) recommends that meat only be left at room temperature to marinate for under two hours. If it sits out longer, the department says the meat should be thrown away, even if it looks and smells fine.
Marinate steak for at least 1-2 hours in the refrigerator. However, for best results, use a steak marinade for several hours or overnight. The extra time allows the steak fibers to break down and tenderize before cooking.
Take your steak out of the fridge about 20 minutes before grilling to bring it to room temperature. A freezing-cold steak won't cook evenly.
Remove Marinade Before Cooking: To prevent flare-ups on the grill and ensure properly browned meat when sautéing or stir-frying, wipe off most of the excess marinade before cooking. Keep just a little marinade on the meat surface to maximize flavor.
Marinating meat at room temperature creates a risk of bacterial growth and can cause foodborne illness, so it's best to marinate in the fridge.
Always Marinate in the Refrigerator
Some older recipes call for marinating at room temperature. DO NOT FOLLOW THIS PRACTICE. Marinating at room temperature causes the meat to enter the “Danger Zone” (between 40°F and 140°F), where bacteria multiply fastest.
Your best bet for achieving marination magic is to soak your chicken, pork chops or loins and steak at least 30 minutes, but never longer than overnight.
Too much salt
No salt can render food almost inedible, too much salt and you have the same result. In a marinade, it is better to err on the side of little to no salt. Salt pulls moisture out of flesh so you could wind up with a tough and dry piece of meat.
Using a knife works too, especially when you want to marinate bigger steak cuts. The meat should be covered evenly with the marinade from all sides. A great way to do this is to put your marinating meat into a zip-lock bag and flipping it halfway though.
Marinating meat for over 24 hours isn't safe
Not only will over-marinating potentially turn your meat into a mushy mess, but the process could also turn it into a rotten one, too. Federal food safety guidelines state that, if kept in the refrigerator for extended periods of time, raw meat is unsafe for consumption.
For the best flavor, I recommend marinating the steaks for at least 8 to 12 hours and up to 24 hours. The steaks will still be delicious if they're only in the marinade for 4 hours or so. However, more time is better when it comes to this marinade. The same method works for chicken or pork.
DON'T marinate in aluminum containers or foil, because a chemical reaction could spoil the food.
A typical marinade is made up of three essential components: an acid (such as vinegar, wine, or citrus), an oil (such as olive oil or sesame oil), and a flavouring agent (such as herbs and spices). These elements work together to transform the taste and texture of your dish in different ways.
This marinade of soy sauce, ginger, garlic, honey and lime is ideal for steak, but it works beautifully with any tender meats like burgers, boneless chicken, tuna and swordfish, all of which can be turned in the sauce before putting them on the grill.
Essentially, soy sauce will help your meat taste meatier. Because protein already has a considerable amount of umami flavor, adding soy sauce can make it a savory sensation. Soy sauce can also help your piece of protein take on an appetizing burnished, caramelized color. Adding soy sauce to your meat is easy, too.
Always marinate proteins in the refrigerator, Raichlen says. Keep the food covered, and make sure you are marinating in glass, ceramic, plastic or stainless steel. Reactive materials such as aluminum and cast-iron can cause off-flavors in the food when they come in contact with acid.
Flavorwise, you don't usually need an overnight marinade, though it certainly won't hurt. The truth is, the marinade isn't really absorbing into the meat past the top layer, so even an hour is usually enough to get some nice flavor.
Follow this tip: Plan to take the steak out of the fridge and let it sit at room temperature for 30 minutes to an hour before cooking. This simple step helps the steak cook more evenly.
A Very Secret Steak Marinade
As it turns out, Worcestershire sauce already contains many of the components of a good marinade! It has vinegar to tenderize the meat, sugar for sweetness and shine, and savory flavors like onion, garlic, tamarind, and anchovies.
TWO HOURS is the MAXIMUM time perishable foods should be at room temperature (ONE HOUR at temperatures 90 degrees F and higher). This INCLUDES the time they're on the table during your meal. Just ONE bacterium, doubling every 20 minutes, can grow to over 2,097,152 bacteria in 7 hours!