On Sat, 14 Jun 2008 21:12:27 GMT, "James Silverton"
> wrote:

> blake wrote on Sat, 14 Jun 2008 20:59:29 GMT:
>
>>> wrote:
>>>> I want to grill a flank steak. I've done it before but I'm
>>>> looking for some new marinades. Anyone have a favorite?
>>>> Also, how long to marinate? I know I can Google this but I'd
>>>> like to hear what regular folks like to do.Thanks.
>>>>
>>> For many years we have had flank marinated with:
>>> (amounts are approximate)
>>>
>>> 3/4 cup soy sauce
>>> 1/4 cup vermouth or dry sherry
>>> finely chopped onion
>>> minced or grated garlic
>>> a few scrapes of ginger
>>> 1 or 2 tsp. sugar
>>> fresh ground black pepper
>>>
>>> Mix well and pour over flank in a zip-lock bag. Refrigerate.
>>>
>>> I have marinated anywhere from an hour to overnight (20 hrs?)
>>> Cooks Illustrated says marinating longer than 20 minutes
>>> makes the meat "mushy" but we've never experienced that.
>>>
>>> gloria p
>
>> while we're on the subject, the washington *post* had an
>> article in their food section on june 11:
>
>> <http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn...ticle/2008/06/
>> 10/AR2008061000614.html>
>
>> The Myth About Marinades
>> A Flavor Bath, In a Flash
>
>> Putting together my favorite marinade takes some time, not
>> least because I allow it to.
>
>> I always start with red wine: one glass for me, one for the
>> marinade. Then I set the two apart by adding garlic and
>> chopped parsley to the wine I won't be drinking. When I pick
>> some thyme from the veranda and rub the leaves between my
>> hands, my kitchen fills with the smell of the Greek islands
>> and never-ending summer. I throw the leaves in, along with
>> grinds of black pepper, a crushed bay leaf and sometimes a
>> drop or two of Tabasco, for temperament.
>
>> I taste and adjust, adding a little sugar, some soy sauce.
>> When I am satisfied that the marinade is just right, I pour it
>> over a couple of steaks.
>
>> While the meat is marinating, I indulge in a ritual to pass
>> the time: I count to four. One, two, three, four. That's it. And
>> finally I can dedicate myself to the masculine cooking
>> technique that involves the burning of eyebrows, slight smoke
>> poisoning and the charring of meat over red-hot coals.
>
>> Marinating meat is one of those mysterious fields in the world
>> of cooking in which there are plenty of opinions and few
>> facts; an area that many people -- mostly men -- claim to
>> master but few can explain.
>
>> ...which seems kinda fishy to me. he also says he will return
>> the meat to the marinade during the process of cooking. he
>> claims the food scientist harold mcgee backs him up on this in
>> that the marinade doesn't greatly penetrate the meat no matter
>> how long you marinate.
>
>> it would be very interesting to me to see what others think of
>> the article. it seems counterintuitive, to say the least.
>
>It's very untraditional but quite often there is very little taste from
>the marinade unless a substantial amount is left on the surface of the
>food when cooking. I am pretty well convinced by the Washington Post
>article. I am going to cook some salmon where the recipe calls for
>marinading for 12 to 36 hours and, AFAICS, an hour is enough.
>
>It would not surprise me at all if traditional wisdom is wrong and has
>never been tested. Just think about how long people were treated,
>according to traditional medical wisdom, by the use of horrible bland
>diets for stomach ulcers that were due to bacteria.

come to think of it, i've seen in more than one place the korean
practice of cooking short ribs, eating some, and putting it back on
the grill to re-crisp. can't remember if it's re-dunked in the
marinade, though.

your pal,
blake