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Home Beef Recipes

Beef Steak Marinade

By:Nagi
Published:31 May '20Updated:8 Apr '21
209 Comments
Recipe v Video v Dozer v

This is just an excellent beef steak marinade that adds juiciness and flavour into steaks, transforming economical steaks from just ok to “wow!”. It injects extra flavour without overpowering the natural flavour of beef, and makes the meat tender.

Terrific for any type of steak – for grilling or pan searing!

Showing juicy inside of steak after using Steak Marinade

Beef Steak Marinade

Steaks are like wine – the more you spend, the better they are. Juicier, more flavour, more tender, no random bits of sinew throughout.

And as much as we’d all like to be able to splurge on premium quality beef every time we have a hankering for steak, the reality is that most of us cannot!

But you can turn every day beef steaks into something that tastes as good as a premium cut (in my humble opinion) by using a great beef steak marinade!

When should you marinate steak?

Use this marinade for economical steaks – it will make the flesh more tender and add flavour. Do not use this for expensive, prime grade beef steaks!

Beef Marinade - steak on plate ready to be eaten

This steak marinade makes steaks juicier and enhances the flavour rather than overpowering the natural flavour of beef!

Steak Marinade - A simple, magical marinade that truly tenderises, while adding flavour AND making the steak juicy. Genius! recipetineats.com

It’s actually easy to make marinades that infuse flavour into steaks. But it’s harder to make marinades that enhance without adding too much flavour into the steak. You want the steak to taste mainly of (gasp, shock horror!) BEEF. Not overwhelmed by marinade flavour!


What goes in Beef Steak Marinade

Here’s what you need for the Steak Marinade. Use this marinade for any economical steak – do not use for expensive steaks, that would be a waste!!

Ingredients for Steak Marinade

Here’s why this combination of ingredients makes your steak plump, juicy and adds flavour:

  • Balsamic vinegar – the tenderising ingredient, because it’s acidic (which breaks down meat fibres);

  • Soy sauce – the salty liquid to act as the brine so the steak retains moisture. It does not make this steak taste Asiany, we only use a bit!

  • Dijon Mustard – a touch of flavour and to thicken the marinade slightly so it coats the steak better (thus marinates it more effectively, rather than having to worry about turning the steak regularly);

  • Flavour – all the other ingredients! Worcestershire is pretty intense in flavour so you only need a bit to add savoury flavour into things.


How to marinate steak

I always marinate my steak in ziplock bags which I acknowledge is not environmentally friendly, but it is the most effective way to marinade steak because it keeps the steak evenly coated with a relatively small amount of marinade.

If you want to use a container instead, use a glass or other non reactive container and I would recommend doubling the marinade.

How long to marinate steak?

12 to 24 hours is best. You can also freeze it immediately – then it will marinate as it thaws!

How to marinate steak

Pan fry or grill it, and marvel at how JUICY and FLAVOURFUL your steak is!!

Close up of fork picking up slice of steak after using Steak Marinade

The steak marinade injects enough flavour into the steak such that you don’t need to serve this with a sauce. But I couldn’t resist adding a smidge of garlic butter on top!

You could also serve it with a Creamy Mushroom Sauce or Creamy Peppercorn Sauce, or even gravy.

As for sides, it’s pictured with buttered baby potatoes and a classic Rocket/Arugula Salad with Shaved Parmesan. Here are some more suggestions for great sides!

Sides for Steak Dinner

Close up of Paris Mash (Rich & Creamy Mashed Potato) being scooped up with a spoon
Paris Mash (Rich Creamy Mashed Potato)
Garlic Sautéed Spinach in a skillet, ready to be served
Garlic Sautéed Spinach
KFC Potato and Gravy recipe
Close up photo of Mini Potato Dauphinoise - Gratin Stacks
Cheesy Mini Potato Gratin Stacks (Muffin Tin)
Close up of Brown Sugar Glazed Carrots on a tray, fresh out of the oven
Brown Sugar Glazed Carrots
Potatoes au gratin (Dauphinoise Potatoes) fresh out of the oven
Potatoes au Gratin (Dauphinoise)
Close up of a spoon scooping up a serving of creamy garlic parmesan Broccoli Casserole
Creamy Broccoli Casserole (Gratin)
Close up of Balsamic Dressing being drizzled over rocket salad with shaved parmesan
Rocket Salad with Balsamic Dressing and Shaved Parmesan
These Roasted Sweet Potato Stacks have crispy edges, are buttery, salty and sweet with a hint of rosemary. Terrific Sweet Potato side dish! recipetineats.com
Roasted Sweet Potato Stacks
Close up photo of Red Potato Salad with bacon and corn
Red Potato Salad with Bacon and Corn (no mayo!)

So….who’s in the mood for a STEAK DINNER now? 🙂 – Nagi x


Watch how to make it

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Close up of slice of juicy marinated steak

Beef Steak Marinade

Author: Nagi | RecipeTin Eats
Prep: 5 mins
Cook: 5 mins
Marinating: 12 hrs
Total: 12 hrs 10 mins
Mains
Western
4.95 from 56 votes
Servings2 -4
Tap or hover to scale
Print
  • 327
Recipe video above. This is a marinade to transform good value steaks by making them juicier, more tender and adding a hint of flavour while not overpowering the flavour of the beef. With this marinade, you won't need a sauce for the beef, though I can never resist some garlic butter!

Ingredients

  • 2 steaks , economical (Note 1)

Marinade

  • 1 tsp Dijon mustard
  • 1/2 tsp minced garlic (1 large garlic clove)
  • 1/2 tsp onion powder (or sub with garlic powder)
  • 1 tbsp soy sauce (Note 2)
  • 1 tbsp oil (I use olive oil, but any oil is fine)
  • 1 tbsp Worcestershire sauce
  • 1 tbsp balsamic vinegar
  • Black pepper

Instructions

  • Mix together mustard, garlic and onion powder. Then mix in remaining ingredients.
  • Place beef in a ziplock bag with Marinade and marinade overnight (12 - 24 hours).
  • Remove from the fridge 30 minutes before cooking to bring to room temperature - key for even cooking of steaks. Shake off excess marinade.
  • Brush BBQ Grills with oil, then heat on high heat until is really hot - you should see wisps of smoke. Or heat a heavy based skillet on high until very hot, then add oil - it will heat almost instantly.
  • Add steaks. For 2cm / 3/4" thick steaks, cook the first side for 2 minutes, then turn and cook the other side for 2 minutes (medium rare 52°C/125°F, chart below for other doneness temps). (Note 3)
  • Remove from skillet onto a WARM plate, cover loosely with foil and set aside for 5 minutes.
  • Serve! I couldn't resist garlic butter - see recipe in notes.

Recipe Notes:

1. Choosing steak: Use this for any good value cut of steak, not prime cuts. Typically, most steak cuts purchased in supermarkets are what I would consider good value steaks. Basically, the more you pay, the better the steak!
And remember, it's not just the steak cut that determine quality. There are different grades for the same cut of steak. Rib Eye at my butcher costs almost twice as much as it does at the supermarket. I would never marinade the one from the butcher!
Make sure you use a GRILLING steak. Any cut of steak suitable for grilling is great for this.
2. Soy sauce - use an all purpose, normal soy sauce. I use Kikkoman. Do not use light soy sauce (too salty), tamari or dark soy sauce (too much flavour)
3.Internal temperature of cooked steak. The most popular (and my personal preference) is medium rare. Cook times differ drastically depending on how thick your cut is.
Internal temperature cooked steak medium rare
4. Garlic butter: 100g / 1 stick unsalted softened butter, 1 small garlic clove very finely minced (using crusher is best), 3/4 tsp salt, 1/4 cup finely chopped parsley. Mix together, place on baking paper to form a log. Roll up then twist ends tightly repeatedly until it forms a neat log. Refrigerate until firm, cut to serve.
5. Nutrition per serving for a 400g/14oz bone in steak (T-bone, ~300g/10oz exc bone), excluding butter.

Nutrition Information:

Serving: 305gCalories: 584cal (29%)Carbohydrates: 3.8g (1%)Protein: 100.2g (200%)Fat: 15.6g (24%)Saturated Fat: 5g (31%)Cholesterol: 248mg (83%)Sodium: 687mg (30%)Potassium: 963mg (28%)Sugar: 2.1g (2%)Vitamin C: 0.8mg (1%)Calcium: 20mg (2%)Iron: 9.4mg (52%)
Keywords: beef steak marinade, steak marinade
Did you make this recipe?I love hearing how you went with my recipes! Tag me on Instagram at @RecipeTinEats.

Originally published June 2016. Updated 2020 with new photos and brand new video! No change to recipe.

My favourite back-pocket marinades

These are the ones I use over and over again, made with pantry staples with lots of sub options!

Cooked chicken breast (after marinated in Chicken Marinade) on a white plate, ready to be served
Just a great Chicken Marinade
Italian Marinated Grilled Chicken with Zucchini - using a marinade that doubles as a dressing is a nifty way to make midweek meals even faster!
Italian Dressing Chicken Marinade
Overhead photo of Grilled chops on a plate with potato rosti and salad, made using amade using a great Pork Chop Marinade
A Great Pork Chop Marinade
Rosemary Garlic Grilled Lamb Chops - A simple marinade infuses this with fantastic flavour! Use the marinade for any quick-cooking cut of lamb - chops or steaks. www.recipetineats.com
Rosemary Garlic Grilled Lamb Chops
I swear to you, my friends were actually speechless the first time I made this for them. It's that good! I BBQ'd it, but also make it on the stove and oven.
Asian Chicken Marinade
BEST Grilled Chicken marinades
BEST Grilled Chicken Marinades

And more steak recipes

Pan Seared Steak with garlic butter sauce on a plate with a side of crispy smashed potatoes and rocket salad
How to Cook Steak – like a chef!
Close up of Creamy Peppercorn Sauce dripping down the side of steak
Steak with Creamy Peppercorn Sauce
Close up of spoon drizzling Chimuchurri Sauce on steak
Skirt Steak with Chimichurri Sauce
Carne Asada grilled to perfect, pink inside, marinated in a citrusy, garlicky authentic Carne Asada marinade. recipetineats.com
Carne Asada
Simple yet stunning Asian Steak with a sauce inspired by the great Tetsuya! All you need is 15 minutes, soy sauce, mirin, sake or sherry, butter, garlic and ginger. Amazing! www.recipetineats.com
Asian Steak
Close up of spoon scooping up Creamy Mushroom Sauce
A Mushroom Sauce for Everything!

Also try this Mushroom Gravy (this is a seared chicken recipe, just switch the chicken with steak) or the onion gravy in this sausage recipe (just directly switch the sausages with steak).


Life of Dozer

Suffice to say he didn’t stray too far the whole time I was photographing and filming this steak….😂

Dozer staring at steak

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Hi, I'm Nagi!

I believe you can make great food with everyday ingredients even if you’re short on time and cost conscious. You just need to cook clever and get creative!

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209 Comments

  1. D says

    May 30, 2022 at 12:13 am

    5 stars
    Absolutely delicious!!!! Marinated ribeye in it and I wanted to lick the plate.

    Reply
    • Nagi says

      May 30, 2022 at 1:59 pm

      Oh yummy! That sounds delicious D! Enjoy! N x

      Reply
  2. Gloria says

    March 25, 2022 at 3:12 pm

    My husband and I just used this recipe to make beef jerky. We marinated very thinly sliced beef in it for 48 hours and then dehydrated it in the oven at 175 degrees Fahrenheit for about 4 hours. PERFECTION. We have also made steak with it before. Best steak ever!

    Reply
    • Nagi says

      March 25, 2022 at 3:16 pm

      That’s a clever way to use it! Thanks for that tip! N x

      Reply
  3. Flo says

    March 16, 2022 at 2:34 pm

    5 stars
    Recipe is great taste like steak house 5 star restuarant style according to my family loved it. including my daughter the picky eater. Thank you

    Reply
  4. Jeanine says

    January 3, 2022 at 4:09 pm

    5 stars
    This is the first time I have ever tried making a steak and although only got to marinate it for about 6 hours or so, the end result was fantastic. I absolutely loved the marinade and so did everyone who ate it. Thank you Nagi.

    Reply
  5. TriRegionBestBuds says

    October 29, 2021 at 6:31 am

    5 stars
    Standard. Break up a bay leaf. Add some pepper. Red peppers. The go to. Drop it right in the air fryer.

    Reply
  6. Andreea says

    September 13, 2021 at 7:11 pm

    5 stars
    Super super super delicious!! Thanks Nagi

    Reply
  7. Philindo says

    September 13, 2021 at 4:18 am

    Thanks for reminding us not to marinade high quality beef!

    Reply
  8. Anna Vivona says

    September 6, 2021 at 11:00 pm

    I hate to say that I did not like this recipe & I have tried a lot of Nagi’s recipes & they were all amazing, but to be fair, I did make some changes. I used scotch fillet and cut them in cubes so I could skewer them. I also didn’t have any onion powder so I sliced fresh onion. Even though it was a very good cut of meat, after marinating for approx. 18 hours, it turned out very dry when cooked and had a weird furry texture. I think all the acid in the marinade and fresh onion started to cook the meat so I’m assuming that this was the problem.

    Reply
    • Nagi says

      September 7, 2021 at 2:02 pm

      Hi Anna, that doesn’t sound right at all sorry! I hope you can give it a go as written! N x

      Reply
      • CherC says

        March 25, 2022 at 12:15 pm

        5 stars
        Hi Nagi,
        In response to Anna, the meat did look weird after being in marinade,
        I cooked mine on a super hot grill plate, fast, with nice charred marks, was very tasty and juicy, Not dry at all. Perhaps it was the pan heat?
        Oh I added 1 heaped tsp of chilli jam to my marinade.

        Planning next steak night!

        Thanks for the terrific recipes, Regards Cher.

        Reply
  9. susan says

    August 24, 2021 at 10:12 am

    5 stars
    OMG This was SO good!!! I had purchased a value pack/budget cut, very lean beef steaks to make jerky treats for my dog…and decided to try the marinade on one of the steak. Pan fried in a cast iron…and the steak came out juicy and SO GOOD!!! Thank you Nagi!

    Reply
    • Nagi says

      August 24, 2021 at 4:42 pm

      Wahoo! Sounds like you nailed it Susan!! N x

      Reply
  10. Delphia says

    August 1, 2021 at 8:30 pm

    5 stars
    Only had 7 hours to marinate before work. I enjoy steak but never rave about it. I certainly did this one. I put another large piece in the bag & froze to enjoy this awesomeness again.

    Reply
  11. Amy Bennet says

    July 19, 2021 at 10:32 am

    I have just put my steak in the marinade. I accidentally put double the amount of onion powder in! Should still be ok, right? I’m looking forward to cooking and eating tonight.

    Reply
    • Nagi says

      July 19, 2021 at 8:12 pm

      Hi Amy, it should be fine – I hope you love it! N x

      Reply
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