Marinade Parade

Barbecue and grilling season is revving up! More and more New Yorkers are getting vaccinated, the weather keeps warming up, and it’s hard not to want to drag the grill out (or drag yourself over to a friend’s rooftop with a grill). The best cuts of meat, especially from our esteemed whole animal butcher counter, need little help in the taste department. The boys of Letterkenny might have a lot of opinions about how to cook a steak, though none of them involve much more seasoning than salt, pepper, and perhaps some garlic and herbs. But marinades are such an easy way to infuse meat of all kinds, whether top tier or a little less choice, with flavor and juiciness. From pork chops to chicken breasts to fish filets, there’s a marinade for that

Secret Aardvark Drunken Jerk Sauce

Kicking things off with a spicy bang, Drunken Jerk Sauce is Secret Aardvark’s twist on jerk sauce, adding soy sauce and rum for a tangy, complex addition to the classic. Habanero peppers keep things spicy, though if you’ve always been a little afraid of jerk sauce heat, this sauce will treat you right, don’t worry. This is one we recommend for pork, but chicken will like it, too. 

Momo Shiso Dressing

Ostensibly a salad dressing, Momo’s Shiso Dressing works surprisingly well as a marinade for fish! Momo makes all their dressings with fresh ingredients in Sunset Park, and we’ve been big fans of theirs for years. Shiso is a common Japanese herb, with a clean and bright flavor that falls somewhere between basil and tarragon. You might want to pick a different Momo dressing for the side salad! 

Xilli Mole Poblano

Mole is a classic when it comes to flavoring chicken, with prehispanic roots in its name that means “sauce” in Nahautl. Everyone’s mole recipe is different, averaging 20 ingredients, which can even include chocolate, and Xilli’s Mole Poblano has a whopping 30, taking a minimum of five days to make. That’s why at Mexican tianguis, or open air markets, vendors will sell bags of premade mole, and do good business at that. 

Looking to get truly lost in the sauce? Check out Five Sauces That Love Chicken!