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4.7 from 147 votes

The Best Meat Marinade {Chicken, Beef, Pork}

From ingredients to enjoyment, this recipe makes it easy to create something wonderful.

Prep Time
12 hrs 10 mins
Cook Time
10 mins
Total Time
12 hrs 30 mins
Servings: 6 servings
Course: Main Course
Cuisine: American

Ingredients

  • 2 pounds meat chicken, beef, pork, preferably in pieces, like chicken breasts, steaks, pork chops, or thin pork tenderloins
  • 4 tablespoons fresh lemon juice from about 2-3 lemons
  • 1 cup soy sauce I always use low-sodium OR 1/2 cup soy sauce and 1/2 cup pineapple juice (see note)
  • 2 cloves garlic finely minced
  • 2 tablespoons olive oil
  • 1 tablespoon freshly grated ginger or ginger paste or 1 teaspoon dried ginger
  • 1 tablespoon onion powder
  • ½ teaspoon pepper

Instructions

    Cup of Yum
  1. Place the meat in a shallow dish or ziploc bag.
  2. In a medium bowl or liquid measuring cup, whisk together the lemon juice, soy sauce, garlic, olive oil, ginger, onion powder and pepper.
  3. Pour the marinade over the meat to cover. Refrigerate for 8-12 hours (or up to two days).
  4. Grill the meat, discarding excess marinade, until cooked through (exact time will depend on the cut of the meat and temperature of your grill). Let the meat rest for 10-15 minutes before serving to seal in the juices.

Notes

  • Marinade: I've only ever used this meat marinade for grilling, but I suspect that if you let the meat marinade, you could pour the meat AND marinade into, say, an Instant Pot and quickly pressure cook until tender. 
  • Saltiness: a couple of you have found this too salty even using low-sodium soy sauce. I made it again the other night using half soy sauce (still low-sodium) and half pineapple juice and it was just as yummy - so keep that in mind if you are worried about saltiness.