Whenever making a marinade, you will need the right ingredients as well as the right amounts of each. The perfect blend will include ½ to 1 cup of the acid (wine), ¼ to ½ cup of the fat (oil), ½ to 2 teaspoons of herbs, and ½ to 2 teaspoons of spices (salt).
When choosing the type of wine you wish to use, you should consider the type of meat you are cooking as well as the type of wine you want to serve along with the meal. They need not be exactly the same but they should compliment one another.
Examples of acid include:

  • White wine
  • Red wine
  • Lemon Juice
  • Vinegar
  • Honey
  • Agave
  • Worcestershire Sauce
  • Dijon Mustard
  • Buttermilk
  • Tomato Paste

Examples of fat include:

  • Butter
  • Olive Oil
  • Grapeseed Oil
  • Walnut Oil
  • Flax Oil
  • Peanut Oil
  • Sesame Oil

Examples of spices include:

  • Salt
  • Black, Red, or white pepper
  • Cayenne pepper
  • Cumin
  • Paprika
  • Chili powder
  • Coriander
  • Nutmeg
  • Cinnamon
  • Cloves
  • Curry powder or paste
  • Tandoori spice
  • Onion powder

Examples of herbs include:

  • Rosemary
  • Garlic
  • Thyme
  • Onions
  • Shallots
  • Oregano
  • Sage
  • Parsley
  • Ginger
  • Bay leaves
  • Wasabi
  • Celery
  • Carrots

The most important thing about marinading any kind of meat is that you need to give it enough time. If possible, vacuum seal your marinading meat in the appropriate bags. When you vacuum seal them, you speed up the tenderizing process and you help all those flavours penetrate the meat that much faster. Don’t over fill the bags. You want to make sure that each piece of meat is completely surrounded by the marinade. While cooking your meat, keep some marinade on hand and baste the meat regularly to keep it soft, moist, and delicious.