Marinades, Rubs and Glazes
Cooking Skills: Sauces 2
Chapter 7 · Marinades, Rubs and Glazes
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The basics
A marinade is a flavoured liquid that food sits in before cooking. Its parts each do a job: acid (lemon, vinegar, yogurt) softens the surface, salt seasons deeper than anything else, oil carries fat-soluble flavours and helps browning, and spices and herbs add flavour. A marinade only reaches a few millimetres into the meat, so its main effect is on the outside, which is where grilling and roasting make the most flavour.
A dry rub is a blend of salt, sugar and spices rubbed on the surface, and a glaze is a sticky sauce brushed on near the end. Rubs are best on meat that cooks slowly; glazes with sugar must go on late because sugar burns. For barbecue technique see Cooking Skills: Beef and Steak 2, chapter 6, and for the tomato-cream sauce to serve with a tikka-style chicken see Cooking Skills: Sauces 2, chapter 3.
The method
- Mix the marinade first and taste it; it should taste slightly too strong, because meat dilutes it.
- Marinate in the fridge, in a covered dish or a sealed bag, turning once.
- Keep to the time: 30 minutes to 4 hours for lemon or vinegar, up to 24 hours for yogurt, and a few minutes to an hour for fish.
- Wipe off excess, especially sugar and garlic, before searing, so the surface can brown instead of steam.
- Glaze late, in the last 5 to 10 minutes, and never reuse marinade that touched raw meat unless you boil it first.
| Method | Main job | Best time | Goes with |
|---|---|---|---|
| Yogurt and spice marinade | Tenderises gently, flavours | 2 to 24 hours | Chicken, lamb, paneer |
| Lemon and herb marinade | Brightens, flavours | 30 minutes to 4 hours | Chicken, fish, prawns |
| Dry spice rub | Crust and flavour | 30 minutes to overnight | Pork, ribs, chicken, beef |
| Sticky glaze | Gloss and sweetness | Brushed on the last 5 to 10 minutes | Sausages, ribs, chicken |
Acid and time: acid (lemon, vinegar) 'cooks' the surface of meat and fish and turns it mushy if left too long. Keep lemon and vinegar marinades to a few hours for chicken, pork and fish; yogurt marinades are gentler and can go overnight.
Hot sugar: boiling sugar and fruit are much hotter than boiling water and stick to skin like glue. Use a deep pan, a long spoon and oven gloves, stand back when stirring, and never taste straight from the spoon until it has cooled.
Try it
A yogurt and spice marinade
Yogurt's mild acidity and calcium tenderise the meat without making it mushy, and the spices stick to the surface and char into a tasty crust. Use for tikka-style chicken, lamb pieces or paneer.
Ingredients (4 portions)
- 150 g natural yogurt
- 1 tbsp lemon juice
- 2 garlic cloves, grated
- 1 tbsp grated fresh ginger
- 2 tsp paprika
- 1 tsp ground cumin
- 1 tsp garam masala
- 1 tsp flaked sea salt
- 600 g chicken thighs, cut in chunks
- Mix the yogurt, lemon juice, garlic, ginger, spices and salt in a bowl.
- Stir in the chicken, cover and marinate in the fridge for at least 2 hours, or up to 24.
- Lift the chicken out, wipe off the excess, and grill, roast or barbecue until cooked through, with no pink and juices running clear.
Allergens: contains milk; spices may contain mustard or celery.
A lemon and herb marinade
Lemon, garlic and herbs brighten chicken, white fish and prawns. Keep the time short: the acid starts to 'cook' the surface and turns it mushy or chalky if left too long.
Ingredients (4 portions)
- 3 tbsp olive oil
- 1 lemon, zest and juice
- 2 garlic cloves, crushed
- 1 tbsp chopped fresh thyme or rosemary
- 1 tsp flaked sea salt
- 1 pinch black pepper
- 600 g chicken breasts or fish fillets
- Mix the oil, lemon zest and juice, garlic, herbs, salt and pepper.
- Coat the chicken or fish, cover and chill for 30 minutes to 2 hours (30 minutes only for fish or prawns).
- Wipe off the garlic and herbs, and pan-fry, grill or roast until cooked through.
Acid and time: acid (lemon, vinegar) 'cooks' the surface of meat and fish and turns it mushy if left too long. Keep lemon and vinegar marinades to a few hours for chicken, pork and fish; yogurt marinades are gentler and can go overnight.
A dry spice rub
A rub is the simplest 'marinade' of all: salt, sugar and spices. The salt seasons the meat, the sugar caramelises into a dark crust. It is good on pork shoulder or ribs, chicken wings and thighs.
Ingredients (4 portions)
- 1 tbsp smoked paprika
- 1 tbsp brown sugar
- 1 tsp garlic powder
- 1 tsp ground cumin
- 1 tsp flaked sea salt
- ½ tsp black pepper
- ½ tsp mild chilli powder
- 800 g pork ribs, chicken wings or thighs
- Mix the spices, sugar and salt in a small bowl.
- Pat the meat dry and rub the mix all over. Leave it for at least 30 minutes, or overnight, covered in the fridge.
- Cook slowly at 150°C (130°C fan, gas 2) for ribs until tender, or at 200°C (180°C fan, gas 6) for chicken until cooked through, with no pink.
Burning sugar: sugar in a rub burns at a high heat. Cook slowly, or add the rub late when grilling.
Allergens: spice blends may contain celery or mustard.
A sticky glaze
Honey, soy sauce and mustard make a dark, shiny coat on sausages, chicken thighs and ribs. Brush it on in two or three coats in the last 10 minutes of cooking, turning the food each time.
Ingredients (4 portions)
- 3 tbsp honey
- 2 tbsp soy sauce
- 1 tbsp Dijon mustard
- 1 tbsp lemon juice
- 1 garlic clove, grated
- 1 tsp smoked paprika
- Stir everything together in a small pan and warm for 2 minutes until the honey loosens.
- Cook the meat nearly through, then brush with the glaze for the last 10 minutes, turning and brushing every few minutes.
- Brush the last coat on, and let it set for 2 minutes before serving. Keep any unused glaze that has not touched raw meat.
Allergens: contains soy, wheat and mustard.
Experiments
30 minutes or 8 hours
Time.
- Marinate two pieces of chicken in the yogurt marinade, one for 30 minutes and one overnight, and cook them the same way.
Look for: The longer one has deeper flavour and is more tender; the short one is milder. The difference is less than people expect.
With and without salt
Seasoning.
- Marinate one chicken thigh with salt and one without, then cook both.
Look for: The salted one tastes seasoned all the way through and is juicier. Without salt the flavour stays on the surface.
Acidic or yogurt based
Texture.
- Marinate two pieces of chicken for 4 hours, one in lemon juice and oil, one in yogurt.
Look for: The lemon one can be firmer and drier at the surface; the yogurt one stays softer and juicier.
Brushing early or late
Burning.
- Glaze one sausage at the start of cooking and one in the last 5 minutes.
Look for: The early glaze burns black and bitter before the sausage is cooked. The late glaze is shiny and sweet.
Tasting notes
| What I tried | Method or amount | What I saw | What I thought | Will I do it again? |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Yogurt and spice marinade | ||||
| Lemon and herb marinade | ||||
| Dry spice rub | ||||
| Sticky glaze | ||||
| 30 minutes or 8 hours | ||||
| With and without salt | ||||
| Acidic or yogurt based | ||||
| Brushing early or late |
Troubleshooting
| Problem | Likely cause | What to do |
|---|---|---|
| Meat mushy | Marinated too long in acid | Shorten the time next time; use yogurt for long marinades |
| Burnt outside, raw inside | Sugar or honey on too early, heat too high | Cook slowly, glaze in the last 10 minutes |
| No flavour | Too short, no salt or marinade too weak | Add salt, marinate longer, and score thick meat |
| Steamed, grey meat | Excess marinade left on | Wipe off or pat dry before searing |
| Bitter crust | Burnt garlic or spices | Wipe off garlic before cooking at high heat |
| Dry meat | Overcooked | Cook to temperature (chicken 75°C in the thickest part, general guidance) and rest |
Hot sugar: boiling sugar and fruit are much hotter than boiling water and stick to skin like glue. Use a deep pan, a long spoon and oven gloves, stand back when stirring, and never taste straight from the spoon until it has cooled.
Keeping sauces: cool a sauce quickly in a shallow container within 1 to 2 hours, press cling film onto the surface to stop a skin forming, chill and use within about 2 days. Reheat until steaming hot, stirring. Milk and cream sauces can split when frozen, so freeze other sauces instead.
- I know what acid, salt and oil each do in a marinade.
- I can marinate safely in the fridge.
- I can choose a marinade time that does not ruin the meat.
- I can make a dry rub.
- I can glaze late so the sugar does not burn.