With winter finally on its way out, people all over the UK will soon be wheeling out barbecues to enjoy their favourite grilled delights. It marks the start of an exceptionally busy time of year for butchers, so as well as refreshing your inventory of the best butchers equipment, it’s a good idea to start thinking ahead to the likely questions you’ll be getting from customers looking for advice on how best to prepare meat for the grill.

Here’s one potential question that could get fired your way - “why do we marinate meat?”. A good question, so to make sure you’ve got an answer ready, we’ve come up with a few reasons why we marinate meat incase you’re in need of a refresher.

What is marinating?

In a nutshell - marinating is the process of soaking meats (or vegetables) in a seasoned liquid called a marinade. We usually marinate meat for two reasons – firstly to add flavour to our meat, and secondly to tenderise it, as some cuts are a bit tougher than others and can benefit from a good soak in a tasty marinade. (Quick note here, in case you’re wondering - marinade is the noun, marinate is the verb. So you’ll marinate a piece of meat in a marinade, not the other way around.)

Sounds pretty simple right? Here’s a few things to bear in mind though before you start experimenting with marinade.

marinating-meat

Getting started

There are three main ingredients that help to tenderise meat. First, acid – the kind you’d get from things like citrus juices, vinegar, wine and so on. The acid helps to break down some of the muscle fibres in the meat, making it a bit softer.

Next, we have the herbs and spices - things like ginger and papaya have enzymes that help with the tenderising process. As a side tip though - we’ve found that the fruity flavours don’t tend to work too well with red meat, causing it to end up a little bit on the mushy side.

The last ingredient required for tenderising is dairy, such as yogurt or buttermilk - if you’re wondering why, weirdly enough nobody knows! Just trust us, it makes a difference!

Soaking a piece of meat in a marinade will only get you so far though. The marinade will only penetrate a small amount of the surface (usually only a few millimetres), which is fine for thinner cuts like steaks and small chunks, but not ideal for full chickens or a whole ham.

Bring the flavour

Enter, salt. Salt begins by drawing out the liquid in the meat by using the process of osmosis (we won’t give you a full science lesson here, but it’s basically just drying out the meat). Keep an eye on your total salt content though, as it’s easy to end up adding too much. Generally, it’s best added either just before or after the cooking phase.

The brine from the meat then draws the more water-soluble flavours further down below the surface of the cut - things like onions and garlic. It's then reabsorbed into the meat while simultaneously breaking down its muscle structure. Oils are also a helpful ingredient, as they transfer fat-soluble flavours from seasonings like herbs, chilis, and some spices, onto the surface of the meat.

Now for a bit more science - as well as bringing you the delicious benefits of enhanced taste, a tender texture, and improved moisture; marinating your meat can also help reduce the impact of carcinogenic compounds caused by high heat grilling like heterocyclic amines (HCAs) and polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs), by providing a buffer for your food while it cooks - think of your marinade as like protective shield around your food.

So, now you’re all up to speed on your marinating essentials, the next step is to make sure you’re fully equipped for the coming Spring and Summer seasons. That’s where we can help - here at Butchers Equipment Warehouse, we’ve got everything you need to keep your butchers in full working order during BBQ season. For over 30 years, we’ve supplied tried and tested, five star rated brands to all our clients. With our extensive range of butchers machinery, accessories, and knives, we know our butchers equipment inside out. Give us a call on 01254 427721 and we’ll be happy to answer any questions you may have!