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This steak marinade is one of the top recipes on my site! It’s my go-to for turning tough, budget-friendly cuts into juicy, flavor-packed steaks that practically melt in your mouth.
A Reader’s Review
Loved loved loved this recipe!!!! This my first time making steak and was so pleased! Easy and simple. Thank you!!
Asma
Why Everyone’s Obsessed With This Marinade
- It’s totally foolproof! Even if you’re nervous about cooking steak, this marinade guarantees juicy, flavorful results every time.
- It lets the steak shine! This is NOT one of those marinades that hides the steak; it brings out the best in it. The perfect blend of spices, herbs, and acidity complements the natural flavor of the meat!
- It works year round! Grill it outside in the summer or sear it to perfection in a skillet when it’s freezing out. This marinade tastes amazing either way!
Ingredients Needed
- Soy Free: Swap soy sauce with coconut aminos for a soy-free option.
- Lemon Juice Substitution: Instead of lemon juice, you can use lime or orange juice, OR a few tablespoons of balsamic vinegar or apple cider vinegar, OR a tablespoon of whole grain or Dijon mustard for a little bite.
- Italian Seasoning: Not a big fan of Italian seasoning? Reduce it to 1 tablespoon, or use a different seasoning mix. Cajun, chipotle, and southwest would all be great!
How to Make Steak Marinade
Simple pantry ingredients all come together in this incredible steak marinade recipe to give you such amazing flavor and the perfectly cooked, juicy steak! Try my Tri-Tip Marinade next!
- Combine: Add soy sauce, lemon juice, olive oil, Worcestershire sauce, minced garlic, Italian seasoning, ground black pepper, salt, and red pepper flakes to a small bowl and whisk until combined.
- Marinate: Add 4 pounds of your choice of steaks to a zip lock bag. Pour the marinade over the steaks, then seal the bag, and marinate for 2 hours or overnight.
Steak Questions? I’ve Got You (FAQ’s)
- How do you make a steak tender? I use lemon juice in my marinade to break down tough fibers and soften the steak. For really tough cuts, I’ll also pound the meat before cooking.
- Why is my steak tough and chewy? It usually means the fibers didn’t break down enough. Tender cuts need quick, high heat; tougher cuts need slow cooking with moisture to stay tender.
- How long do you marinate steak? At least 2 hours, but overnight is even better for maximum flavor and tenderness. But don’t marinate the steaks for longer than 24 hours. After that, the lemon juice will start to break down the steak, leaving it tough and mushy.
Make Ahead & Leftover Steak Marinade
- Make Ahead: You can make the marinade 2-3 days in advance and keep it in the fridge. Set out at room temperature for an hour or two before adding the steak so the olive oil isn’t solid.
- Leftover Marinade: *Never reuse a marinade that has touched raw meat! If you want extra marinade for basting or making a sauce, set some aside before adding the raw steaks.
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The BEST Steak Marinade
My steak marinade turns you into the steak master everyone talks about. Juicy, tender, bold, whether your grilling or searing!
Ingredients
- ⅓ cup soy sauce
- ⅓ cup lemon juice
- ½ cup olive oil
- ¼ cup Worcestershire sauce
- 1 tablespoon minced garlic
- 2 tablespoons Italian seasoning
- 1 teaspoon ground black pepper
- ½ teaspoon salt
- 1 pinch red pepper flakes
Instructions
Marinade
- Add ⅓ cup soy sauce, ⅓ cup lemon juice, ½ cup olive oil, ¼ cup Worcestershire sauce, 1 tablespoon minced garlic, 2 tablespoons Italian seasoning, 1 teaspoon ground black pepper, ½ teaspoon salt, and 1 pinch red pepper flakes to a small bowl and whisk until combined.
- Add 4 pounds of your choice of steaks to a resealable zip lock bag. Pour the marinade over the steaks, seal the bag, and marinate for 2 hours or overnight.
Video
Notes
Servings: Makes about 1 ⅔ cups of marinade, enough to marinate up to 4 pounds of steak.
Cooking Steaks in a Skillet: Heat the skillet over high heat before adding the steaks. Add the marinated steaks and cook on each side for 3 minutes or until the outside forms a brown crust. Reduce the heat to medium-high. Cook the steaks to the desired doneness. Mine took about 10 minutes, flipping 3 times to get a medium well. Top the steaks with salted butter and garnish with fresh parsley, if desired.
Nutrition
Calories: 279kcalCarbohydrates: 8gProtein: 3gFat: 27gSaturated Fat: 4gPolyunsaturated Fat: 3gMonounsaturated Fat: 20gSodium: 1596mgPotassium: 246mgFiber: 1gSugar: 3gVitamin A: 68IUVitamin C: 11mgCalcium: 70mgIron: 3mg
Nutrition information is automatically calculated, so should only be used as an approximation.
Tried this recipe?Mention @alyssa_therecipecritic or tag #therecipecritic!
More Delicious Steak Recipes
Steak is already a rockstar! It doesn’t need a lot to taste amazing. A good cut is packed with flavor on its own, but the right recipes (like these!) take it to the next level.
Really nice marinade. We’d just bought a large pork tenderloin & beef tenderloin to slice and portion out with vacuum sealing. Not wanting to risk an internet recipe on the entire lot, I tried the marinade on 4 sliced pork tenderloin steaks (overnight – ziplock) while fresh and I also marinated a package of 4 beef steaks before vacuum sealing, then freezing. Those fresh pork tenderloin steaks were so tasty! We really enjoyed them and now look forward to fridge thawing the beef steaks to enjoy same at our next outdoor BBQ. I used bottled lemon juice with on hand ingredients and it was great. Will use fresh lemons when I have them. We both said it’s a definite make again. Thanks for the recipe. Enjoyed it a lot.
I used the marinade on my New Strip today, marinated for six hours, and even though I overcooked the steak it was so flavorful I was not upset, it was absolutely delicious. This is a must save…thanks for sharing
I used your marinade on a flank steak. It was fantastic. Marinated for 2 hours. Cut into strips and cooked as directed. Easy. Perfect. Delicious. Thank you!
Stumbled on this marinade, didn’t have what I needed for mine as I’ve always cooked awesome steaks, let me just say PERFECT. I cooked ribeyes in the air fryer with some port mushrooms. Family complimented me for a week after way more than before! Thank you.
Hi,
I tried your recipe left it overnight to marinate, Omg was the best steak I ever had in years I mean that from the heart thank you for sharing this with us.
Would this be good on NY steak ?
Yes, absolutely! It will be perfect!
if you don’t have lemon juice use balsamic vinegar. trust me.
I only wish I could attach the picture of last night’s steaks. This treatment for steaks is all that you said, and more! I chose Fillet Mignon, and the infused flavors turned the fillet into something so flavor filled, which is typically not the definition of a fillet….yes, fillets— always tender, but maybe not so flavor filled. So here is the ridiculous part of this easy to throw together marinade….this morning when typing out the recipe for future cooks, I realized that I completely forgot the garlic. This will not happen next time, but just saying that the marinade was still fabulous. Thank you Alyssa for sharing.
Brilliant
This is the best marinate for steak i would say taste is lovely
I want to make this for dinner tomorrow, but some part of me wants to add some brown sugar. Thoughts on this?
That sounds delicious and will add a sweetness to the steak!
Will this marinade work on beef tenderloin?
Yes! This is a great marinade for most beef!
I am an average cook but using this marinade made me look like Julia Child! Unbelievably delicious results.
This is seriously delish, but I changed one ingredient.
I always been told To follow up the original recipe first and then tweak it to your liking. But when I bought all the ingredients that I didn’t have I forgot to collect The Italian herb.
I didn’t have time to go and get it so I substituted this with a spice that I had to hand at the time!
I used Ras El Hanout it’s a Moroccan spice blend that’s widely available in most large supermarkets.
I think that Sumac will also work as well and may try that as well.
Anyway it was so good that the pepper sauce that I also served went mainly untouched.
Are you still haven’t tried it with the Italian herb but the second time I made it for my family I just couldn’t take the chance I’m risking that delicious marinade that I accidentally stumbled upon.
Just like to say thank you for your beautiful recipe it was a perfect 10.
Thank you so much! I am so glad that everything worked out!
Will definitely make again. Used on a cut of meat I had bought on sale that was a little tough first time I cooked it so second time I made it, I decided to try this marinade and steak was delicious. Will definitely keep this on stand by. No teriyaki flavor-just good basic flavors.
Will definitely do this again. Made this on a whim to marinade some steak for kabobs. I put it in the fridge for 24 hours and it was amazing. My family could not stop raving about it.
This is the best marinade I have ever had. My husband says please never use anything but this recipe from now on. Can this be used with chicken as well?
Yes, it can be! That is so nice of your husband. I am glad that you have found something that you both love!
My second time making this, very good. Can’t wait to try it out on my friends.