Marination

{{Short description|Process of soaking foods in a seasoned, often acidic, liquid before cooking}}

File:Chicken marination.jpg

Marinating is the process of soaking foods in a seasoned, often acidic, liquid before cooking. This sauce, called the marinade, can be either acidic (made with ingredients such as vinegar, lemon juice, or wine), or enzymatic (made with ingredients such as pineapple, papaya, yogurt, or ginger), or have a neutral pH.{{cite magazine|url=http://www.finecooking.com/articles/marinades-flavor-tenderize.aspx |title=Marinades Add Flavor but Don't Always Tenderize |pages= |last=Corriher|first=Shirley|date=September 1999 |number=34 |magazine=Fine Cooking |issn=1072-5121 |publisher=Taunton Press }}{{pages?|date=August 2022}} In addition to these ingredients, a marinade often contains oil, salt, herbs, and spices to further flavor the food items. It is commonly used to flavor foods and to tenderize tougher cuts of meat;{{cite web|last=Filippone|first=Peggy Trowbridge|title=Marinade Science - How Marinades Work|url=http://homecooking.about.com/od/specificdishe1/a/marinadescience.htm|publisher=About.com|access-date=28 November 2012}} the process may last seconds or days.

Marinating is similar to brining, except that brining relies on the action of salty brine rather than the action of acids or enzymes.{{cite news |author=Benwick, Bonnie S. |date=November 14, 2007 |title=Wet Brining vs. Dry: Give That Bird a Bath |url=https://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2007/11/13/AR2007111300427.html |access-date=2018-04-07 |newspaper=The Washington Post}} Marinating is also similar to pickling, except that pickling is generally done for much longer periods of months or even years, primarily as a means of food preservation.{{cite web |last1=Elkus |first1=Grace |date=3 January 2023 |title=How Do You Know When It's Time to Throw Out Pickles? |url=https://www.epicurious.com/expert-advice/do-pickles-go-bad |access-date=13 July 2024 |website=Epicurious}} Conversely, marinating is usually performed for a few hours to a day, generally as a means of enhancing the flavor of the food or tenderizing it.{{Cite web |last=University |first=Utah State |title=Tips on Marinating Meat |url=https://extension.usu.edu/archive/tips-on-marinating-meat |access-date=2024-10-11 |website=extension.usu.edu |language=en}}

Marinades vary between different cuisines. The French word {{Lang|fr|marinade}} derives from the verb {{Lang|fr|mariner}} "to pickle in sea brine", and ultimately from the Latin noun {{Lang|la|mare}} "sea",{{Cite web |title=marinade {{!}} Etymology of marinade by etymonline |url=https://www.etymonline.com/word/marinade#etymonline_v_9616 |access-date=2024-10-11 |website=www.etymonline.com |language=en}} suggesting that marinades may have evolved from an ancient brining tradition or may have initially used sea brine as an ingredient.