The BEST Steak Marinade
41 Comments
Posted: 06/26/24
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If you are looking for the BEST Steak Marinade ever, this is it! This easy steak marinade is quick and made with pantry staples so you probably have everything on hand! It’s perfect for grilling up juicy, flavorful steaks that are super tender. One taste and you’ll be hooked!
Here’s the deal. I love a good steak. Seriously, check out this Marinated Grilled Vegetable and Steak Kabobs recipe…Is there ever a wrong way to cook a steak? Kabobs, on the grill, in the smoker…it’s all wonderful and great. But one thing that I truly feel is a must? Every steak needs a good steak marinade.
The good news? This easy steak marinade recipe is seriously the best. Simple and delicious. What more can you want? (besides these Teriyaki Smoked Steak Bites…so good!)
Why You’ll Love This Steak Marinade Recipe
What’s not to love? Marinating steaks is one of the easiest ways to ensure big flavor! Toss your steaks into the marinade before bed or in the morning before work and supper will be ready in minutes when you get home – that’s a win!
Should You Marinate Steak?
Absolutely. Marinating a steak gives it time to soak in all those ingredients and flavor. The longer that you let a steak marinade, the more flavorful it is going to be. Your marinade should complement your steak, not overpower it.
If I have frozen steaks I’ll actually throw the frozen steak in a marinade and let it thaw in the marinade in the refrigerator. It makes it so easy and the steak is amazing! A bonus if you really like the taste of this marinade is you can try it on chicken or pork, too!
Steak Marinade Ingredients
The combination of these ingredients makes this marinade so delicious.
- Worcestershire sauce – Adds a depth of flavor!
- Soy sauce – Truly a secret ingredient in many marinades to help tenderize your meat. (We use low-sodium soy sauce)
- Extra virgin olive oil – keeps your steak from sticking to the grill
- Light brown sugar – offers lighter flavor than it’s dark counterpart (yet interchangeable)
- Ground black pepper – essential in any seasoning or marinade
- Garlic powder – you can also use 3 cloves of fresh garlic, minced
- Honey – adds flavor and moisture
- Any cut of steak – I love Sirloin, Ribeye and New York Strip but ANY cuts of beef will do such as a flank steak or skirt steak
Helpful Tools
- Grill
- Cast-iron skillet
- Ziplock Bags or airtight container
- Grill Tongs
- Meat Thermometer
- Whisk
How to Make Steak Marinade
- In a small bowl whisk all the ingredients except the steak.
- Add steaks to a resealable ziplock bag or airtight container and pour the marinade over the top of the steak. Squeeze as much air out of the bag as possible and seal.
- Marinate for at least 2 hours or overnight.
- To make steaks in a cast-iron skillet: Turn heat to high and let preheat a few minutes until skillet is hot. Place steaks in the skillet. Cook each side for 3 minutes. Reduce heat to medium-high. Cook steaks to the desired doneness, flipping as needed. It will take about 10 minutes depending on the thickness of steaks. I prefer mine to be about 145 degrees Fahrenheit, which is medium.
- To make steaks on the grill. Preheat grill to medium-high heat. Place steaks on the grill. Cook 4-6 minutes per side or until the internal temperature reaches at least 145 degrees Fahrenheit for medium.
- Let steak rest 3 minutes before serving.
How Long Do you Marinate Steak?
This all depends on how strong you want that marinade flavor to be. At a minimum, you should marinate for 2 hours but overnight or even 24 hours is best.
What to do with Excess Marinade
Excess marinade can be discarded or heated with butter to make a yummy sauce – just be sure to get it boiling to ensure it is safe to eat after contact with the raw steak.
How to Store Leftover Steak
Store leftover steak, not that you will have much, in an airtight container for up to 3 days.
Ideas for leftovers!
- Whip up an amazing steak sandwich like our Philly Cheese Steak
- Slice up the leftover beef and add to your favourite stir fried veggies
- Swap the beef in for ham in Ham Fried Rice
More AMAZING Steak Recipes!
- Honey Bourbon Steak offers a delicious salty, sweet combo
- Look no further than Steak Kabobs with Vegetables to save time and cook your meat and veggies together
Grilled Side Dish Recipes to serve with your steak!
- Grilled Asparagus is always a simple, flavorful side
- Need a crowd pleaser? Try our Grilled Sweet Potatoes
- Grilled Cauliflower Steak is definitely a recipe worth checking out
- Try Grilled Caesar Salad, a great twist on a classic
Pro Tips
- The longer that you let a steak marinade, the more flavorful it is going to be.
- Put frozen steaks and the marinade into a zip lock bag and leave them to marinate AND thaw in the fridge
- Let steaks rest 3 minutes before serving to allow the juices to redistribute
This steak marinade is super quick and easy and will leave you with flavorful steaks cooked to absolute perfection! Delicious no matter what cut of steak you are eating, this marinade is one you’ll come back to every time!
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Steak Marinade Recipe
The is the BEST Steak Marinade ever! It makes juicy, tender and delicious steak no matter what type of cut you use. We love Sirloin, Ribeye or New York cuts, but anything will work!
Ingredients
- 3 Tablespoons Worcestershire Sauce
- ⅓ cup soy sauce low sodium
- 2 Tablespoons extra virgin olive oil
- ¼ cup light brown sugar
- ¼ teaspoon ground black pepper
- 1 teaspoon garlic powder
- ½ Tablespoon honey
- 1 ½ pounds steaks I love Sirloin, Ribeye or New York Cut Steaks!
Instructions
- In a small bowl whisk all the ingredients except the steak.
- Add steaks to a resealable zip lock bag or large bowl and pour the marinade over the top of the steak. Squeeze as much air out of bag as possible and seal.
- Marinate for at least 2 hours or overnight.
- To make steaks in skillet: Turn heat to high and let preheat a few minutes until skillet is hot. Place steaks in skillet. Cook each side for 3 minutes. Reduce heat to medium-high. Cook steaks to the desired doneness, flipping as needed. It will take about 10 minutes depending on thickness of steaks. I prefer mine to be about 145 degrees Fahrenheit which is medium.
- To make steaks on the grill. Preheat grill to medium-high. Place steaks on grill. Cook 4-6 minutes per side or until the internal temperature reaches at least 145 degrees Fahrenheit for medium.
- Let steaks rest 3 minutes before serving.
Nutrition Information
Calories: 505kcal (25%), Carbohydrates: 21g (7%), Protein: 36g (72%), Fat: 31g (48%), Saturated Fat: 12g (75%), Cholesterol: 104mg (35%), Sodium: 1320mg (57%), Potassium: 629mg (18%), Fiber: 1g (4%), Sugar: 18g (20%), Vitamin A: 25IU (1%), Vitamin C: 1.7mg (2%), Calcium: 42mg (4%), Iron: 4.2mg (23%)
Donna says
I always use this recipe for my venison steaks which helps mask any flavor my family doesn’t like about deer meat. Thanks for sharing
Brooke Kill says
I’m so happy to hear you keep coming back! Thanks for sharing!
Patti says
To sweet tasting for my family.
Brooke Kill says
Thanks for your feedback! You can reduce or omit the sweetener and adjust the flavors to your taste. Let me know if you try it—I’d love to hear how it turns out!
Curtiss Rickey says
I was wondering if I could omit the honey as I’m allergic, or substitute something different
Brooke Kill says
Yes, you could substitute it with maple syrup instead so you are still getting some of the sweet flavor!
Mr. Joe says
good job. good taste
Sarah Hill says
So glad you enjoyed it!
Rosemary says
Loved this and it was so tasty; will definitely make this one of my favorites.
Sarah Hill says
I’m so glad you enjoyed this recipe!
Jack says
Excellent!!!!
Sarah Hill says
Thank you so much!
Cheri says
This was an awesome recipe, it only marinated for 2 hours very flavorful. Will definitely use this again
Courtney says
Awesome to hear! Thank you!
Robin says
This was hands down the best marinade I’ve ever used. It will be my #1 go to from here on out. Didn’t have low sodium soy sauce so added a little water and then a couple dashes of Montreal Steak seasoning. Marinated for 5 hrs. Grilled the steaks and they were flavorful and melt in your mouth tender. Thank you for such a great combination!5 stars!!
Courtney says
We love to hear it!!! Thank you for sharing you loved it! It makes our day!
Kathy E. says
Excellent marinade! I prepared this the day before I planned to grill the steaks, so they were “bathing” in this yummy pool for about 18 hours. I even added 2 chicken breasts to the mix and they were delicious too! Thank you!
Courtney says
Great idea to use it for the chicken breasts! So glad you enjoyed this and thank you for rating this recipe.
Kristy says
My family loved this marinade. Made our steaks taste just like they came from a high quality steak restaurant.
Courtney says
Yay! That was the goal for this marinade. So glad you enjoyed it. Thank you for rating this recipe!
Technomax says
A great marinade – used it on rib fillet. I substituted for black garlic but only because I wanted to experiment. Normal garlic would be great too. Meat was so tender. Saved to make this marinade again.
Courtney says
Awesome! So glad you enjoyed this marinade! Thanks for the comment and the rating on this recipe! 🙂
Robyn says
I made the marinade 3 hours before, followed the instructions for then putting in an airlock bag, cooked sirloin for 3 minutes on high heat turning every 30 seconds for 3 minutes, absolutely delicious – thank you
Courtney says
So glad you loved it!! We love this marinade!
Ronda says
The best steak marinade ever!
Courtney says
So glad you love this marinade!
Nita says
Recipe really sounds delicious
Tim says
This marinade has a bit of a teriyaki vibe. My family liked it, but it is very sweet. My son said it has a beef jerky flavor. All in all, we enjoyed it.
the Evinks says
Glad you enjoyed it Tim!
Marti says
Thank you for posting this marinade. Used it on rib steaks and very good. Im going to made sirloin steak burgers next and use this marinade, then stuff blue cheese inside the burgers then put on the grill. Keep up the great recipes.
Megan Mitzel says
You’re welcome! I’m glad you loved it!
Anne Smith says
I tried this marinade with high hopes but I doubt I will use it again unless it is on a tough cut of meat; I had ribeye steaks and per instructions and suggestions, marinaded them for 7 hours. I found the flavor of the marinade overwhelmed the flavor of the steaks. They were sweet from the brown sugar and honey, and the flavor of the soy sauce and Worcestershire overcame the flavor of the steak. I had hoped that perhaps the sugar would create a crust, but it did not. The steak was indeed tender, so that was good and why I might use it on a less tender cut. But don’t mess up a good steak with this marinade.
Megan Mitzel says
Hi Anne, I’m sorry it didn’t meet your expectations. I hope you can find a few other keepers on the blog!
Dottie says
I don’t have a Grill, I live alone and didn’t want all the clean up just for me! I have cooked in restaurants but, I never cooked steaks. I’m giving this a try and might use my Foreman grill? I’ll let you know how it comes out ??
All the years in restaurants and I can’t cook a Steak nor can I make Coffee!??
Julie Evink says
You can do it on the stove top in a grill pan too!
Malinda Linnebur says
This steak marinade was perfect! Thanks for helping me up my grilling game!
Julie Evink says
We love this! Just made T-bones on the smoker using it!
Danielle Green says
Marinades can make or break a steak on the grill. This sounds like it would make it absolutely divine!
Julie Evink says
So true!