Marinades are the ultimate tool to deploy on days when you don’t feel like cooking. Does marinating your meat take a bit of forethought? Sure! But while you go about your life, that marinade will work to infuse your meat (or plant-based protein) with flavor, making your hands-on cook time such a light lift.
If you cook deliciously marinated meat — or tofu or mushrooms, etc.! — you can keep the sides you serve it with simple. Plate it with any grain you’ve got (rice, farro, quinoa, pita, couscous, a loaf of crusty bread, etc.) and a simple veg or side salad, and voilà — dinner is served.
One of the main objectives of What To Cook When You Don’t Feel Like Cooking is to provide you with dinner recipes that don’t make you spend time thinking about which protein goes well with which grain and which vegetable. But we also know that many of you love to improvise in the kitchen, so today we are sharing a printable PDF with 32 marinade (and dry rub!) recipes that you can use to piece together a perfect meal based on what you’re in the mood for and what you have on hand.
If winging it in the kitchen is absolutely not your thing, no prob! You’ll also find an index of What To Cook recipes that each include a delicious marinade below.
Keep reading for all that — but first, let’s talk tips.
Are you into improvising in the kitchen or do you prefer to stick to a recipe?!
To preface… don’t overthink this. Marinating is so easy! Let some protein hang out in a flavorful liquid (typically a combination of fat + acid + seasonings) for a bit in the fridge. The marinade will add flavor and a bit of moisture to your meat, and help tenderize it, too.
Again, keep scrolling if you’re just here for a list of recipes that include a marinade (the recipes will spell out what to do!). But if you are going to try your hand at improvising with a marinade… here are some FAQs to keep in mind.
How long should I marinate meat?
In general, you can marinate meat or a plant-based protein for between 30 minutes and 24 hours in the fridge. The thinner and more delicate the meat (like shrimp, chicken tenderloins, chicken breast), the less time it will need. The thicker, tougher, bigger the cut of meat (think pork tenderloin, steak), the more time it will need.
When using a marinade, you can follow these general guidelines:
Peeled, deveined shrimp and fish: 15 to 30 minutes
Boneless, skinless chicken breasts or chicken tenderloins: 2 to 6 hours
Boneless, skinless chicken thighs, bone-in cuts of chicken, thinner cuts of steak like flank, tofu: 6 to 12 hours (or up to 24 hours)
Pork tenderloin, steak, lamb, roasts: Up to 24 hours
If a marinade is heavy in acid (i.e., vinegar and/or citrus juice), err on the shorter end of the time range. If the marinade is mostly oil- or yogurt-based, go on the longer end.
If you are cooking a recipe that includes a marinade and the instructions don’t align with the above, definitely defer to the recipe’s cues! For example, in our sriracha shrimp sushi bowls, we ideally marinate the shrimp for between 4 and 24 hours. And in our sesame-ginger steak (and Dan’s steak tips recipe from the other week), you can let the steak marinate for up to 48 hours. The guidelines above aren’t hard and fast rules, they’re just that — a guide!
Also do not stress if you don’t have the *ideal* amount of time to marinate your meat.
If you only have 4 hours to marinate a steak rather than 24, don’t bail on the plan — your steak will still taste great!
You can let your chicken breasts marinate for 8 hours while you’re at work — they will not turn to mush (just try not to stretch it to more than 12 hours).
If your chicken has been marinating for 6 hours then all hell breaks loose in your house you need to eat cereal for dinner tonight, just shake the marinade off the chicken and keep it in the fridge (out of the marinade) until tomorrow. We’re going for great not perfect here.
Can I freeze meat in a marinade?
Yes! Make the marinade in a zip-top freezer-safe bag, add the meat, make sure it’s all covered, get as much air out of the bag as possible when you seal it, and place the bag in the freezer for up to 3 months. Let it thaw in the fridge then cook it.
What vessel should I marinate meat in?
An airtight zip-top bag, a glass storage container with an airtight lid, or a non-metal mixing bowl wrapped tightly with plastic wrap or foil. Avoid marinating meat in metal — it can have a weird reaction with the acid.
How should I cook my marinated meat?
Once your meat has marinated, you can grill it, roast it (AKA cook it at a high temp in the oven), pan sear it (cook it in an oil-laced skillet on the stovetop), broil it (cook it under an open flame in the oven), or throw it in your Instant Pot — whatever works!
If you are trying to figure out the cook time for a specific cooking method for a certain protein, Google it! Or use ChatGPT/some type of AI, if you’re into that. Type: “how long do I [grill/pan sear/roast/instant pot] [chicken breast/shrimp/pork tenderloin]?” Alternatively, use a WTC recipe with that cut of meat as your guide, and follow the cooking instructions. The WTC recipe index is broken up into protein types, which will help! And if you plan to grill, you can consult our grill guide.
Two notes that will apply no matter how you’re cooking your meat/plant-based protein:
Shake the marinade off before you cook it.
If you want really defined grill marks/sear on your protein, pat it dry before adding to the grill or skillet.
Also be sure to pat dry meat that has marinated in yogurt if using an Instant Pot! The dairy could curdle (yuck).
PS, don’t marinate ground meat or it will get mushy!
Can I eat the leftover marinade… ?
You cannot eat it as is if it has touched raw meat.
BUT, you can boil it to kill off any bacteria and use that as a sauce! To make sure it’s safe to consume, it needs to reach a rolling boil for at least 1 to 2 minutes. You can then bring it down to a simmer and cook until it has reduced by about half.
Alternatively… pour some of the marinade into a bowl BEFORE you add the raw meat to use as a sauce.
What’s the deal with dry rubs?
Marinades infuse meat with subtle flavor — they also help to tenderize and add a little moisture to meat. Dry rubs, on the other hand, are all about surface-level flavor. They are commonly used for grilling, smoking, and roasting meat when you want a nice crust on the outside — like for ribs, brisket, steak, or a whole roasted chicken — but you can add a dry rub to all kinds of protein, from shrimp and fish to chicken thighs, pork, and more.
Apply your dry rub 30 minutes to 2 hours before grilling (or pan searing, or roasting), and let the meat sit at room temperature for 15 to 30 minutes before cooking. Don’t use a dry rub on marinated meat — pick one or the other so the flavors aren’t competing.
If you’re not into winging it in the kitchen, here’s a round up of What To Cook recipes that lean on a tasty marinade (or dry rub!) to make cooking dinner quick, easy, and delicious.
eastern nc ribs with ranch butter smashed potatoes (this uses a dry rub!)
marinated grilled veggies with burrata (click there to learn about a *reverse* marinade)
rosemary garlic pork shoulder with sweet potato puree (this uses a dry rub!)
If you DO like to improvise in the kitchen, here are 32 of Caro’s favorite marinades and dry rubs, with meat and plant-based protein suggestions included.
Many of the ingredients included here are pantry and fridge staples, so we hope this helps guide you on a day when you *think* you have nothing to do with that pack of chicken breast sitting in your freezer or fridge. Keep the sides simple and let your delicious protein be the star of the show!
