The 3 Ingredients Required For A Simple Yet Worthy Steak Marinade

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Marinating steak with ingredients that highlight the succulent, savory nature of beef is the best way to elevate the flavor of the meat and make every bite a blissful encounter. Still, you don't want to let this protein bathe in just any ingredients you have lying around. Just as you should go mild when flavoring seafood marinades so they don't overpower the delicate taste of fish, a steak marinade should heighten the eating experience by emphasizing the rich, umami character of the meat.

A simple way to accomplish that is by combining soy sauce, Worcestershire sauce, and Dijon mustard. The soy and Worcestershire accent the umami essence of red meat while simultaneously incorporating a bit of saltiness and other aromatic ingredients. A flavorful Dijon like Inglehoffer Traditional Dijon Mustard offers a subtle bite of white wine that contrasts with the robust umami in the liquid elements and adds some welcome zest to the substantial fatty taste.

These three components blend together flavors that make everything from an expensive ribeye to cheaper cuts of steak that experts swear by taste like they were prepared by a seasoned chef. Yet, while you can't go wrong using this marinade most of the time, using alternative ingredients to complement beef in other dishes can elevate your fare even further.

While soy, Worcestershire, and Dijon mustard will pack your steak with flavor every time, sometimes substituting one or two ingredients can enhance the overall meal when considering what accompanies the meat. There are boundless elements that can be used in a steak marinade, so the real key is to pair complementary ingredients. For instance, if you follow celebrity chef Robert Irvine's advice for making a flavorful steak salad, balsamic vinegar can be used to accent the dish. If you substitute balsamic vinegar for the Dijon mustard in your marinade, you can get that sweet, acidic tang right in the meat when it cooks.

If you are making something like steak fajitas, ditching the soy sauce and Dijon mustard for lime juice and brown sugar will incorporate zesty citrus notes and extra sweetness to the meat. Steak for a stir fry would welcome white sugar and mirin instead of Worcestershire sauce and Dijon for a teriyaki-like marinade. A flavorful soy sauce like Lee Kum Kee Premium Dark Soy Sauce will still emphasize the rich umami characteristics of the meat, the mirin contributes subtle acidity that, with sweetness from the sugar, nicely complements the stir-fried veggies. The real trick to perfecting a simple, flavorful marinade is to make sure it not only accents the steak but all the other accompanying ingredients.