On food and cooking the science and lore of the kitchen ( PDFDrive ) 305

beenusedsinceRenaissancetimes,whentheir
primaryfunctionwastoslowspoilageandto
provide flavor. Today, meats are marinated
primarily to flavor them and to make them
more moist and tender. Perhaps the most
common marinated meat dish is a stew, for
which the meat is immersed in a mixture of
wineandherbsandthencookedinit.
Theacidinmarinadesdoesweakenmuscle
tissueandincreaseitsabilitytoretain
moisture.Butmarinadespenetrateslowly,and
cangivethemeatsurfaceanoverlysour
flavorwhiletheydoso.Thepenetrationtime
canbereducedbycuttingmeatintothin
piecesorbyusingacookingsyringetoinject
themarinadeintolargerpieces.
Meat Tenderizers Meat tenderizers are
protein-digesting enzymes extracted from a
number of plants, including papaya,
pineapple, fig, kiwi, and ginger. They are
availableeitherintheoriginalfruitorleaf,or


purified and powdered for the shaker, diluted
insaltandsugar.(Despiteloretothecontrary,
winecorksdonotcontainactiveenzymesand
don’ttenderizeoctopusorothertoughmeats!)
The enzymes act slowly at refrigerator or
roomtemperature,andsomefivetimesfaster
between140and160ºF/60–70ºC,sonearlyall
the tenderizing action takes place during

cooking.Theproblemwithtenderizersisthat
they penetrate into meat even more slowly
thanacids,afewmillimetersperday,sothat
the meat surface tends to accumulate too
muchandgetoverlymealy,whiletheinterior
remains unaffected. The distribution can be
improved by injecting the tenderizer into the
meat.
BriningThetendencyofmodernmeatstodry
out led cooks to rediscover light brining, a
traditional method in Scandinavia and
elsewhere. The meats, typically poultry or
pork,areimmersedinabrinecontaining3to