Best Marinades for Steak and Chicken

By the nature of the two beasts, the flavors of steak and chicken are two totally different things. There are some dishes you can prepare with one ingredient that would not work at all for the other. However, if you have a house full of fussy eaters, you may have to have both main dish meats on hand. In that case, consider using marinades that will work equally for both meats.

Marinating meats is an excellent way to infuse other ingredients into your dish. Marinating has a side benefit in that it also tenderizes tough meats before cooking.

Meats and poultry should be marinated for at least two hours in the refrigerator, and can be left for overnight marinating. Place meat in a Ziploc bag or cover with plastic wrap. Make sure you turn the meat at least once while it is marinating. Here are a few easy and delicious marinades that will work on both:

Teriyaki - Teriyaki marinades add an Asian flavor to meats, and work wonderfully for both steak and chicken. Teriyaki is also a great flavor for other entrees, including scallops, salmon and shrimp. Homemade teriyaki marinades are made from soy sauce, a little bit of sugar or honey and rice wine vinegar. However, it's just as easy to find teriyaki marinades on your grocer's shelf, including Kosher varieties. My favorite comes from Kikkoman.

Italian Dressing - Yes, a bottle of Italian salad dressing can also be used as a marinade! In the past, I have used it on tougher steaks, and it works well on chicken. It is also a good marinade for chuck roasts.

The Mexican Influence - Instead of the usual tacos with ground beef, try tacos with steak or chicken. Inject a spicy influence by marinating your steaks and chicken in a simple taco seasoning marinade. Take a packet of pre-made taco spices (that you would normally use in your ground beef) and sprinkle over the meat. In addition, add a little water, limejuice, cilantro and olive oil and make sure that your meat has seasoning on all parts. Refrigerate until ready to use. Once you have grilled the meat, cut into slices before serving as the meat portion of your taco.

Lemon and Rosemary - To inject a little Mediterranean influence, use a marinade where these two ingredients come to the fore. Mix lemon juice, olive oil, and chopped rosemary and oregano in a bowl; then coat meat with mixture. This marinade should not be left on your meat for more than a couple of hours, as the use of so much lemon will serve to "cook" your meat if marinating too long. This is a great one to use on chicken, lamb or veal, and is only moderately successful on beef.

Red Wine Marinade - Take red wine vinegar, a little red wine, Dijon mustard, garlic and pepper and combine in a small bowl. Coat the meat with the mixture and chill. Red wine marinades work especially well with tough cuts of beef, but can also add a distinctive flavor to chicken.

Barbecue - For deep barbecue flavor, marinate your meats in a mixture of barbecue sauce, olive oil and a little pineapple juice. The pineapple adds a hint of sweet flavor.

There are several safety tips when using marinades. Never marinate at room temperature. Do not save or reuse marinades. Also, it is not recommended to marinate any foods longer than 24 hours, as the texture of your meat may turn mushy.

If you are an adventurous cook, try making your own marinades based on the flavors that you enjoy. Just remember that any marinade must have some form of acid in it to be successful. These include but are not limited to vinegar, wine, pineapple juice, citrus, salsa and yogurt.