Skip to main content

Cooking with Classic Cocktails: How to Make an Alcohol Marinade for Your Meat

Sipping a well-craft cocktail is a beautiful experience, but there are other uses for these beverages. Booze can often find its way into the kitchen — often as a cook imbibes —but with the right techniques, a creative chef can marinate with cocktails.

There are some natural flavor match-ups for meats and cocktails, but of course experimentation is always encouraged. Be aware that alcohol has a tendency to cook the outside of meat, meaning the flavor won’t necessarily penetrate the rest of the cut. To work around this, cook the alcohol out of a cocktail by allowing it to simmer for approximately two hours, which will help solidify the flavors within the mixture. It’s generally recommended that alcohol marinades be used for less than four hours, especially with light fish and shellfish.

Recommended Videos

Now, without further ado, here are some classical cocktails that also make great marinades.

Margarita

Margarita Shrimp alcohol marinade
Image used with permission by copyright holder

A quick five to 10 minute stop in a margarita bath should be all some skewered shrimp need before heading to the grill. Tequila-lime shrimp is a menu staple at many bars, and a margarita mixture delivers a little extra sweetness and char with sugar.

You can upgrade with other fruits or spice it up with jalapeno. Here are some essential tequila cocktails you need to know, including a classic margarita recipe.

Vodka Tonic

Vodka Tonic Chicken alcohol marinade
Image used with permission by copyright holder

Vodka is already a staple in some pasta sauces, but a simple vodka tonic can be used to marinade a piece of chicken, preferably for a short duration — say 30 minutes. Lime would be the major contributing flavor factor, unless a flavored vodka is substituted in, but don’t underestimate the role of good tonic water. Gin lovers could also test the botanical spirit with a similar gin and tonic — just make sure to use the best gin.

Old Fashioned

old fashioned steak alcohol marinade
Image used with permission by copyright holder

For a cheap steak — who would marinade a nice steak? — an Old Fashioned offers a way to cut through the toughness with a variety of strong tastes. Bourbon and sugar bring vanilla and oak flavors to the meat (sounds tasty for a chili), but the fruits of an orange or cherry also accompany a steak excellently. These are our favorite whiskeys for Old Fashioneds.

Dark and Stormy

dark and stormy ribs
Image used with permission by copyright holder

This classic rum recipe is a great choice for many meats, but ribs or pork tenderloin would be an ideal choice. The marinade can also end up making a great barbecue sauce. A quality rum will make all the difference.

Pat Evans
Pat Evans is a writer based in Grand Rapids, Michigan, focusing on food and beer, spirits, business, and sports. His full…
How to make a dairy-free Grasshopper cocktail like a pro
How to make a classic cocktail with a twist
The Mommy Grasshopper.

So many great cocktails, so little time. This week, we thought we'd get a fresh take on a classic cocktail recipe. Naturally, we reached out to those who know them best, aka pro bartenders.

The Mothership is a great bar in Milwaukee. The place resides in the Bay View neighborhood and mixes up some top-shelf drinks. And they were nice enough to offer a fresh take on The Grasshopper, the cocktail that's done everything from feature in timeless bar jokes to shows starring Kristen Wiig.

Read more
Peroni drops shaved Italian beer ice for summer sipping
A Mediterranean adult slushee of sorts
Peroni shaved Italian beer ice.

Hot off a new partnership with celebrity chef Giada De Laurentiis, Peroni is greeting summer in style. The iconic Italian beer brand is now offering shaved beer ice, available via Goldbelly. And for the DIY types who want to try their hand a making the stuff at home, there's even a recipe.

Peroni Italian Beer Ice comes via a recipe from De Laurentiis. The refreshing drink is 5% ABV and blends a bit of citrus with the signature taste of the Pilsner. It's tough to imagine a better frozen drink for the hottest days of summer.

Read more
I never liked cast iron pans — until I tried this game-changing version
Why it's different than your typical cast iron pan
Field Company Cast Iron Skillet

I never quite understood the hype around cast iron pans, despite everyone I know swearing by them as must-have kitchen essentials. As someone who loves cooking (especially things like a pan-seared steak), I've wanted to love cast iron skillets more than I ever actually did. That said, my experimentation with cast iron pans was short-lived and involved using an old pan that had been passed down to me.

Founders of Field Company, Stephen & Chris Muscarella, started off with a vintage 1930s Wagner cast iron pan and were told that there was no possible way a modern foundry could pour iron that thin. Yet, they defied odds, crafting a hand mold with slight changes (a heat ring, a more balanced handle) to develop the innovative Field Company cast iron pan we know today. If you've never quite mastered using a cast-iron pan, it may be time to reconsider. Modern-day cast-iron pans aren't like the ones your grandmother used to use. Field Company's cast iron pan changed my mind on the matter -- and it might change yours, too.
Pre-seasoning and easy maintenance

Read more