Recipes Ingredients Meat & Poultry Beef Recipes 19 Steak Marinades That Sizzle These marinades bring a world of flavor to the table. By Anna Kovel Anna Kovel Anna is a freelance writer for MarthaStewart.com. Editorial Guidelines Published on August 21, 2023 Trending Videos Steaks on the grill are always a treat, whether cowboy ribeyes or thinly sliced skirt steak tacos are on the menu. Sometimes, salt and cracked black pepper are all you need for seasoning. Other times, you want a marinade to coat the exterior and create an extra layer of flavor, and a glaze-like finish. The cuts of beef we marinate are typically the cuts with the most chew, and they need to be sliced across the grain before serving. Steaks like flank and skirt, and others, such as tri-tip and hanger steaks have a wide grain, which gives the flavors in a marinade a chance to get in. A gingery glaze or garlic and herb marinade gives these cuts a head start in tenderizing, but mostly we marinate for the flavorful edges. Kebabs take to marinades and spice pastes too, because they're cooked over high heat and seared on all sides. There's not much point in marinating a steak you're going to pan fry, because it could stick to the pan. Always wipe off wet or dripping marinades before grilling to prevent steaming and flareups; it's the spicy, seared crust we're looking for when we turn the meat over the glowing fire. 19 Easy Steak Recipes You'll Want to Make Again and Again 01 of 19 Pomegranate Skirt Steak Kebabs Bobbi Lin The main ingredient is this rich, sticky glaze for steak is pomegranate molasses. Look for bottles of this imported ingredient in specialty stores. View Recipe 02 of 19 Cider-Whiskey Marinade for Flank Steak Flank steak gets a punchy marinade of apple cider, whole grain mustard, and whiskey. Some of the marinade is reserved and cooked down to become a luscious and syrupy sauce to serve with the steak. View Recipe 03 of 19 Balsamic-Rosemary Marinade Balsamic vinegar takes this steak marinade in a slightly sweet-tart direction, and rosemary adds to its Italian accent. View Recipe 04 of 19 Cola Marinade for London Broil London Broil is a general term for many cuts of beef. Try marinating any chewy steak in cola—it's as American as a cookout and sweet as apple pie. Vinegar and onions set up a flavor trifecta. View Recipe 05 of 19 Mushrooms, Red Peppers, and Beef With Balsamic-Rosemary Marinade Andrew Purcell Another Italian balsamic-rosemary marinade, this one glazes savory vegetables and steak at the same time. View Recipe 06 of 19 Grilled Skirt Steak and Hearts of Palm Salad Con Poulos Skirt steak is marinated in red curry paste for this beefy dinner. The resulting platter of red curry steak, vegetables, and noodles have us dreaming of the South Pacific. View Recipe 07 of 19 Beef Satay With Peanut-Ginger Ramen Andrew Purcell A soy marinade turns into a savory glaze for these skewers. Instead of a dipping sauce, a quick peanut sauce coats the noodles—a meal in one. View Recipe 08 of 19 Tandoori-Spiced Flank Steak The combination of Indian spices used in tandoori recipes varies, but usually consists of cardamom, pepper, and cumin, as well as other spices. Look for a jar of this blend in spice shops and specialty stores, and enjoy this easy flank steak dish on the regular. View Recipe 09 of 19 Chile-Spiced Steak and Grilled Onion Tacos Petrina Tinslay This taco dinner idea comes fresh off the grill. Not only is the chile-spiced steak grilled, you can warm your tortillas on the grill too. The marinade uses lime and soy sauce to help powdered chili penetrate the steak. View Recipe 10 of 19 Curry Yogurt-Marinated Lamb Kebabs Bryan Gardner This savory kebab recipe features summer squash and lamb, but you can mix it up—the yogurt and spice marinade works wonders with beef and chicken too. View Recipe 11 of 19 Beef Satay Indonesian or Thai satay is a case of marinade perfection—the rich marinade adds spice and color to the thinly sliced meat. View Recipe 12 of 19 Sofrito-Marinated Flank Steak Sofrito bathes flank steak while it sizzles under the broiler. This fragrant mixture, also called garlic-pepper sauce, is made with onions, garlic sweet peppers, and cilantro. Cook it in big batches and explore the many ways it can be used. View Recipe 13 of 19 Lemon-Rosemary Marinade A repertoire of steak marinades is a good thing to have but there are some you'll turn to more often than others and this is one. We love rosemary with steak and fresh lemon adds brightness. View Recipe 14 of 19 Soy-Marinated Flank Steak Brown sugar in a marinade gives it serious glaze potential—all you need to do is bring the marinade to a boil and cook it down until it has a syrupy consistency. View Recipe 15 of 19 Simple Balsamic-Marinated Skirt Steak RICHARD GERHARD JUNG What's better than a classic Italian marinade on a toothsome steak? This recipe is a good reminder that you can use your broiler if you don't have an outdoor grill. View Recipe 16 of 19 Curried Steak With Scallion Rice and Peas Ren Fuller Thai curry paste, a pantry item you can find at most grocery stores, creates the flavor—and the sauce—for this weeknight steak and rice bowl. View Recipe 17 of 19 Grilled Ribeye With Garlic-Thyme Marinade Because fat transfers flavors so well, it is the simplest way to marinate. We use extra virgin olive oil, garlic, and fresh thyme sprigs to coat decadent ribeye steaks. View Recipe 18 of 19 Spiced Steak Kebabs John Kernick A brushing of spiced oil may not count as a typical marinade, but it creates flavorful steak kebabs. And because it is not a wet marinade, you can grill these kebabs indoors without too much smoke. View Recipe 19 of 19 Grilled Flank Steak With Lime Marinade Soy, ginger, and lime hit all the notes in this classic steak marinade. Be sure to let your flank steak rest before slicing, so it retains the delicious juices. View Recipe Was this page helpful? Thanks for your feedback! Tell us why! Other Submit