Rubbing it in: marinades and rubs not only help make meats, fish and vegetables more flavorful, they also help to tenderize them. Consumers are showing a growing interest in further flavoring their meats, and manufacturers who present products that are tasty and simple to use will be rewarded

Prepared Foods, May, 2004 by Wilbert Jones

Less than a decade ago, restaurant patrons were happy with just an herb-roasted chicken breast or a piece of salmon flavored with teriyaki sauce at a fine dining restaurant. That was also when many large food manufacturers played it safe by producing basic food products, flavored to meet mainstream expectations, which helped guarantee good sales because consumers were familiar with the flavors. Popular flavors included Lemon Pepper, Italian, Cajun and Barbecue.

It was mostly smaller food manufacturers that produced uniquely flavored products, which were distributed and sold regionally across the country. They were marketed as specialty or gourmet products. Smaller companies could be more innovative and respond more quickly to the needs of the market. Their products tended to be more adventurous.

Today, many of these specialty and gourmet products are produced by some of America's largest manufacturers, and can be found in large grocery chains. Products such as French's (Del Rio, Texas) line of GourMayo, a gourmet-flavored mayonnaise, can be used either as a condiment or a base ingredient in salads such as tuna and chicken. Flavors include Chipotle Chili, Wasabi Horseradish and Sun Dried Tomato.

McCormick & Co. (Hunt Valley, Md.) has launched a line of seasonings called "1 Step Seasonings Flavors." These products come with a simple recipe featuring 1 Step Seasoning as the main flavoring component, and take less than 30 minutes to complete. There is not even a need for salt and pepper. Product flavors include Chicken (with a Jambalaya Express recipe), and Beef (with a Simple Spaghetti Meat Sauce recipe).

Marinades

The use of marinades to prepare meats and vegetables is a trend that continues to grow in sales with large manufacturers. If food producers can bridge the gap between high-end flavored menu items served in popular restaurants, and basic prepared food entrees sold in the retail grocery store, this would yield premium-quality products. As history has proven, consumers are willing to pay higher prices for what they perceive to be good-quality, good-tasting foods.

A marinade is a seasoned liquid usually containing an acid, herbs and spices. Foods are soaked in marinades to absorb flavors, and they become tender. This process also prevents food from drying out. The acid ingredient used in a marinade can be vinegar, wine, line, lemon or orange juice. It is the acid that makes the food tender. In North African and Middle Eastern countries, plain yogurt is used as an uncooked marinade. The enzymes in the yogurt act as a tenderizer. This also happens when buttermilk is used as an ingredient in a marinade. There are two main types of marinades, raw and cooked marinades.

Raw Marinades

Raw marinades are used on tender foods such as fish or chicken, which require only a short time to marinate. There are many varieties of recipes that use marination to cook food raw. The classical example is a lime juice marinade used with fish or shellfish to make the popular South American dish seviche, made with fresh fish or shellfish, lime juice, white onions, jalapeno peppers, salad oil, oregano leaves, bell peppers and cilantro. Soy sauces and fruit juices can also be used as base ingredients for raw marinades.

Cooked Marinades

Cooked marinades are used to give strong flavors to beef and game foods. Red wine and many commercial retail products fall into the category of cooked marinades. One chef who uses marinades to fully flavor his foods is Chef Marcus Sameulsson, who last year won the James Beard award for being the best chef in New York, for his Swedish/American-inspired concept, Aquavit. Recently, he opened the restaurant Riingo, also in New York.

Riingo (which means apple in Japanese), takes a modern approach by combining the best of American and Japanese dining. Executive Chef Johan Svensson works with Sameulsson to create one of the most talked-about menus in The Big Apple. They have presented items such as Roasted Chicken with Sweet and Sour Sauce, Buffalo Skewer with Smoked Chili Sauce and Beer Braised Short Ribs with Apple Puree. Chef Svensson has created a line of condiments with the same American-Japanese influence evidenced in all of the house-made sushi, as well as his herbed fries, potato pancakes and cheeseburgers with duck bacon. Condiment sauce flavors are Tomato Ginger, Jasmine Tea Vinaigrette, Yellow Tomato Sweet and Sour, Smokey Chili Sauce, Black Soy Glue and a Yuzu Miso Dressing.

Morey's Seafood International (Motley, Minn.) has a line of packaged, marinaded salmon in six flavors. Cooking the two fillets (6 oz. each) per package has been described as "fool proof," requiring only 15 minutes to cook, and there is a pop-up timer attached to the fillets. The products also are low in carbs and high in protein. Flavors are Hickory, Teriyaki, Twelve Pepper Medley, Garlic Cracked Pepper, Lemon Dill and Seasoned Grilled.

Lawry's Foods Inc. (Monrovia, Calif.) recently launched a line of 12 marinades. Some popular flavors are Ginger with Mandarin Orange Juice, Havana Garlic & Lime with Lemon Juice, Thai Ginger Marinade with Lime Juice, Caribbean Jerk Marinade with Papaya Juice and Hawaiian Marinade with Tropical Fruit Juice.