Skip to main content
  1. Home
  2. Food & Drink

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

Pat Evans
By

alcohol marinade
Image used with permission by copyright holder
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
Former Digital Trends Contributor
Pat Evans is a writer based in Grand Rapids, Michigan, focusing on food and beer, spirits, business, and sports. His full…
Espresso martini, hot toddy, and more: These 6 apres-ski drinks perfectly cap a day on the slopes
A warm drink after a frigid day just hits different
Friend enjoying après ski in a ski lodge

When the sun dips below the horizon and your day on the slopes comes to an end, there's nothing quite like the ritual of enjoying apres-ski drinks to warm up and unwind. Whether you're nestled in a cozy mountain ski lodge or savoring the crisp alpine air, these wintery sips add an extra layer of magic to your winter adventures.

If you're looking for ways to spruce up your downtime on the slopes, let's explore six delightful apres-ski drinks that have become cherished traditions for winter sports enthusiasts. From the aromatic mulled wine to the rich espresso martini, we'll dive into the origins and appeal of each drink. So, grab a seat by the fire, and let's embark on a journey through the world of treasured ski lodge winter beverages.

Read more
How to make a French 75, a great cocktail you’re (probably) overlooking
The French 75 sounds cool, is cool, and tastes wonderful
Boozy Bubbly Lemon French 75 Cocktail with Champagne

In the hierarchy of classic cocktails, the French 75 doesn't get the respect it deserves. While boozier drinks like the Manhattan, Old Fashioned, and margarita get all the press, the French 75 cocktail is one of the easiest, freshest, most refreshing mixed drinks ever conceived and belongs more in the limelight. Even when it comes to gin-based drinks, it seems to often get overlooked in favor of gin and tonics, gin gimlets, and other drinks. This leaves us scratching our proverbial heads because it's such a great drink. In the simplest terms, the French 75 ingredients are gin, Champagne, lemon juice, and sugar. That's it. The sparkling wine is the main ingredient, making it an effervescent, delicious, sweet, citrus-filled experience. What's not to love?

The French 75 Recipe
Ingredients

Read more
The surprising ways vodka can actually be good for you
Vodka: Could your favorite spirit somehow also be the key to good health?
Liquor bottles on a bar shelf

The weekend is a great time to break out the top-shelf vodka and relax with a vodka cocktail. It’s when people choose to leave their worries behind and celebrate the week finally being over. However, there is much more to vodka than having a good time with your friends after a long, tiring week. Actually, there are quite a few health benefits of vodka most people don't even consider.

While vodka (like any type of alcohol) isn't necessarily healthy, there are some benefits to the spirit. Just make sure you don't use them to justify excessive drinking. Keep reading to find out about the various vodka health benefits.

Read more