{"id":6403,"date":"2026-09-09T21:48:57","date_gmt":"2026-09-09T21:48:57","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.diningandcooking.com\/chefs\/6403\/"},"modified":"2026-09-09T21:48:57","modified_gmt":"2026-09-09T21:48:57","slug":"i-asked-3-chefs-if-you-should-poke-holes-in-steak-before-marinating-it-and-they-all-said-the-same-thing","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.diningandcooking.com\/chefs\/6403\/","title":{"rendered":"I Asked 3 Chefs if You Should Poke Holes in Steak Before Marinating It, and They All Said the Same Thing"},"content":{"rendered":"

Marinades are magical things: they infuse flavors into proteins of every kind and can turn a tough cut of meat into a succulent one. That alchemy is at work whether you\u2019re using a homemade marinade or making store-bought salad dressing work the double-shift.<\/p>\n

But marinades are bound by a stubborn rule: most seasonings are fat soluble, meaning they only penetrate a few millimeters into a steak\u2019s surface. Knowing that more surface area means more flavor, poking holes into a steak should help marinade travel deeper. So why does it feel like taking a pitchfork to something you\u2019re supposed to pamper with a basting brush? I asked three chefs and meat experts whether poking holes helps. Their answer: a unanimous, slightly exasperated no.\u00a0<\/p>\n

Meet the Experts<\/p>\n

Robert Irvine: Grilling expert and celebrity chef from \u201cRestaurant Impossible\u201d<\/p>\n

\"Credit:<\/p>\n

Credit: Simply Recipes \/ Getty Images<\/p>\n

What Poking Holes Does to Steak<\/p>\n

Poking holes doesn\u2019t open a path for marinade\u2014it opens a liability. \u201cWhile you can create physical divots for the marinade to sit in, it won\u2019t diffuse it further into the meat,\u201d Pryles says. \u201cSo you can really brutalize the texture of your steak for no reason.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n

Irvine agrees, and highlights what those punctures do once the steak hits the heat. \u201cPiercing the meat creates channels that let natural juices escape during cooking, which can leave you with drier results,\u201d he says. \u201cOn a good cut of steak you\u2019re basically creating leaks, which is the last thing you want.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n

Borghesan explains, \u201cThe vast majority of the flavors will remain trapped outside anyway, and now your meat has holes in it. Those holes will allow fat to escape as it renders, and serve to dry out your cut.\u201d Poking holes doesn\u2019t solve the fat-soluble seasoning problem\u2014it just gives the juice you\u2019re trying to keep an exit route out the back.<\/p>\n

The Best Way To Marinate Steak<\/p>\n

According to Irvine, \u201ca well-balanced marinade with acid (citrus, vinegar, yogurt), salt, oil, and aromatics does the work on the exterior without compromising the interior moisture.\u201d He places the meat in an air-tight container or zipper-lock bag to ensure it\u2019s fully coated, flipping and massaging the meat occasionally. He lets tougher cuts like flank, skirt, and hanger steaks sit overnight.<\/p>\n

Pryles encourages restraint, especially when dealing with tender, pricier cuts that need less intervention: \u201cToo much acid or too much time can give the exterior an unpleasant soft or almost mealy texture.\u201d She adds, \u201csmaller or thinner pieces need much less time than large cuts, and highly acidic marinades should generally be used for shorter periods.\u201dAnywhere from 30 minutes to a few hours gets the job done. If you add fresh pineapple to the mix (a fruit packed with the tenderizing enzyme bromelain), consider 30 minutes your max marinade time.<\/p>\n

Irvine\u2019s best advice: \u201cKeep it simple, respect the protein, and don\u2019t over-manipulate it. That\u2019s how you turn everyday steak or chicken into something really memorable.\u201d<\/p>\n

Read the original article on Simply Recipes<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Marinades are magical things: they infuse flavors into proteins of every kind and can turn a tough cut of meat into a succulent one. That alchemy is at work whether you\u2019re using a homemade marinade or making store-bought salad dressing work the double-shift. But marinades are bound by a stubborn rule: most seasonings are fat<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":6404,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[2],"tags":[5],"class_list":["post-6403","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-chefs","tag-chef"],"share_on_mastodon":{"url":"https:\/\/vive.im\/@dnc\/117243288187731717","error":""},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.diningandcooking.com\/chefs\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/6403","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.diningandcooking.com\/chefs\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.diningandcooking.com\/chefs\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.diningandcooking.com\/chefs\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.diningandcooking.com\/chefs\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=6403"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.diningandcooking.com\/chefs\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/6403\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.diningandcooking.com\/chefs\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/6404"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.diningandcooking.com\/chefs\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=6403"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.diningandcooking.com\/chefs\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=6403"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.diningandcooking.com\/chefs\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=6403"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}