I was thinking of soaking some antelope steakes in coke or pepsi for about 2 days in fridge.What seasoning could I put in with this ?If any?any thoughts?Thanks

Can you get Nando's sauces in the USA?
I've tried Nandos hot chilli sauce with 7-up, it works a treat.
Dunno if it would work with a Cola based drink, but could be worth a try?

Cheers, Dave.

quote:

Originally posted by leadtag101:
I was thinking of soaking some antelope steakes in coke or pepsi for about 2 days in fridge.What seasoning could I put in with this ?If any?any thoughts?Thanks

"Mom says to use Coke"

My mother has always told me to use Coke, diet or regular! Then into the crock pot they go, just like beef!

I marinate Venison using a can of Regular Coke with 1/3 cup of Worcestershire Sauce, over night. You may add other seasonings if you wish, but I'd do this after marinating for various cuts of meat.

I've got a bad ass Coke recipe that works on briskets & pork.Never tried it on venison I'm sure it would work.

1 can regular Coke,1 bottle chili sauce,medium white onion chopped fine,as much garlic as you like chopped,as many jalapenos or other peppers you like chopped,one bunch of cilantro chopped.
Mix it all together pour over meat bake @ 350 covered 3 hours.Pour all liquid into sauce pan drain any grease reduce untill thick.Continue baking meat uncovered at lowest setting turning ever 15 minutes for one more hour.

You can add Pace pincante sauce to your sauce to extend it farther.Its really best to add the cilantro to the sauce just before serving as its flavor is greater that way.

Does the coke tenderize the meat the same way it cleans battery terminals...you know... to get the corrosion off?

nope.

OK, then.... what is the point? Are we trying to get coke flavored meat? I'm not trying to be a wise ass, I'd like to understand why we are using coke instead of Sprite or Mountain Dew or something else....just trying to learn...thank you!!

i think they're trying to use it as a tenderising agent,,A lot of goose breast recipies call for a can of coke.I've discarded most of them and have a lemon-honey rosemary sautee for them,thats pretty tasty.Shoot younger deer,,,cut the racks off of the old ones and grind'em into summer sausage Good luck!!Clay

quote:

Originally posted by Lowrider 49:
OK, then.... what is the point? Are we trying to get coke flavored meat? I'm not trying to be a wise ass, I'd like to understand why we are using coke instead of Sprite or Mountain Dew or something else....just trying to learn...thank you!!

I think it was originally just a quick way to add something with more flavor than water as liquid. Where I am from, it is not Coke, but Dr. Pepper that is often recommended. I know of one recipe that uses Dr. Pepper AND pickle juice (that should make you wonder).
Could you do that with a solution of water, sugar, vinegar, and some spices? Sure, I guess. But the Dr. Pepper and pickle juice is *easy* and *repeatable* -- very important considerations.

I'm going to back off a little on my original "nope" about tenderizing. There is some acid in Coke (not as much as in vinegar, mind you) and that *could* make a difference if the meat in question was braised in it. I don't think it would be very much, though.


My opinion is that it is for flavor... just a simple way to add a bit more flavor than cooking in tap water.

As Big Ed said most sodas contain citric acid and phosporic acid they do act as a tenderizer.And that probly is what helps clean the battery terminals,not to mention the white crap on the terminals.

The carmel coloring in colas also acts as a browning agent.Not unlike Kitchen Bouquet.Also the sugars in soft drinks add to the browning of meat.

The fact that some use their marinades as a basting sauce will help in tenderizing from the moist cooking it creates.

There is a popular Central American chicken franchise in Houston that bastes its chicken with Fanta strawberry soda.

Cooking is really pretty basic.If you learn the basics you can apply them as you wish.

Thanks guys!! That all makes sense to me.

I made some navy bean soup today flavored with left over Thanksgiving ham and I added about a cup of coke to the mix and as baboon mentioned, it turned dark which was an interesting twist to my usual soup. Wife and kids thought it was wonderful and I didn't tell them about the "secret ingridient".

Thanks for introducing me to the wonderful world of "cola cooking"...this won't be my last use of it!!

I seriously doubt that pop would actually tenderize very much. Yes it would add sugar and flavour. There is no need to tenderize any meat at all--if it's a naturally tender cut then treat it a certain way ie: grill it, roast it. stir fry it. If it's naturally tough braise it to break down the connective tissue. Don't forget that tenderizers work from the surface in...so you will have a tender/degraded surface meat with a tough interior. A natural tenderizer that works extremely well is of course papaya. It will turn your meat into mush!!! That's what any tenderizer will do. Learn to use the right cut for the right cooking method and forget about tenderizing.

the chef

The acids in marinades are what tenderize the meat .So buttermilk, wine, beer,vinegar, coca cola all have acids .

Try this--take 2 pieces of identical meat from the same cut. Marinate one in vinegar and water, don't marinate the other. Cook them on the bbq-not in the oven because the braising will skew your results. There will be very little difference in tenderness. Unless you have added an actual tenderizer either enzymatic (papazain from papaya) or chemical. Marinades are used to add flavour and moisture. Never marinate a good piece of meat, always marinate crappy meat to change the taste. Just like chicken fried steak- it's always the less tender cuts and it's often pounded to tenderize it. If you marinate a roast in wine then cook it in the oven you achieve tenderness by using moist heat-braising.

Ways to tenderize:
-mechanical-slicing thin or pounding
-Chemical
-With enzymes
-To a much smaller degree marinating
-Braising

the chef

Chef,

We only keep the best parts of the steer...the rest is called hamburger...that which is not tender in the hog is called sausage...deer muscle that isn't worthy of the grill is called jerky or meat sticks....and so on.

I mix coca cola with Toivo and Eino's pasty sauce( http://www.pastypower.com ) for a quick barbeque sauce. You can also use ketchup

I know a guy who uses Coke as a marinate. He has a bar-b-que every spring and cooks up 3 or 4 types of wild meat. Usually deer, elk,moose and buffalo. After its marinated you can't tell what your eating. I don't use it for that reason.

Excellent opinion snowman, meat should taste like tha animal it came from.

the chef

Chef,

My point exactly!! I always thought marinade was supposed to complement the flavor of that which is marinated. I'm confused...then...why does pu$$y taste like tuna some times and cherries at others...must be the marinade!!?

Vinegar is only dilute acetic acid, while coke contains dilute phosphoric acid. Phosphoric is much more powerful an acid (even tho' dilute) than acetic. Phosphoric, by the way, is the active component of "naval jelly", so named because of its historical use in removing heavy rust from sea-going ships. The "tenderizing" [actually mainly an effect of hydrolysis of proteins (digesting/splitting of the long chains of amino acids of which proteins are constructed)] by phosphoric acid is very effective.

quote:

Originally posted by Lowrider 49:
Chef,

I'm confused...then...why does pu$$y taste like tuna some times and cherries at others...must be the marinade!!?

Because one-eyed Jack went a peeping in a seafood store!!!

Don't forget that carbonated beverages have
carbonic acid also. Phosphoric is the most effective in red meat with all its iron content.

Coke is great on a half of a grapefruit. The sweetness neutralizes the acid of the grapefruit and visa versa. My cook Kazula,in one of the safari camps, used it and I thought it was some kind of caramel sauce until he told me what it was.

VBR,

Ted Gorsline

Ted,

Glad to hear there is a good use for Coke besides
cleaning car parts.

I've used cola in place of water with some of the packaged (powdered)teriyaki marinades. It is especially good if you add some type of hot chili sauce to the mix. Sprite works just as well. Add a touch of lime juice if it is too sweet for you.

quote:

Originally posted by mete:
The acids in marinades are what tenderize the meat .So buttermilk, wine, beer,vinegar, coca cola all have acids .

OK --

Now we're getting into the chemistry of food preparation!

Marinades are generally acidic. The idea of a marinade is to tenderize a tough cut of meat, and also to add some flavor.

Acid tenderizes -- Coca-Cola, but also beer, wine, vinegar. ("Vin aigre" -- "vinegar" is French for "sour wine.")

If you're going to use vinegar, you should bone up on "vinegars" generally. There's White, apple cider, red wine, balsamic -- for starters. Balsamic vinegar, at about $10/litre or more, all comes from Modena, Italy -- Just like Champagne comes from Champagne, France.

Good balsamic vinegar goes great on vanilla ice cream. Really! Or you can just sip it from a shot glass.

-- So to paraphrase Tommy Lee Jones, in US Marshalls, "Get rid of that chome plated Coca-Cola shit and get yourself some real marinade."

Sugar in a marinade will "carmalize" for color, and also helps the marinade to "stick" to whatever it is coating. In this sense it becomes a "sauce" -- Like "Teriaki Sauce" which is NOT a marinade in the true sense, but rather a sugar coating of soy sauce, caramel, and salt.

You can "brown" with butter -- That's the French approach. You don't need sugar, and sure as hell don't need Coca-Cola.

I usually link to Google for references. But in this instance I think you want the Food Network.

Have a search for "marinade."

Our cook in RSA used to marinate the game meat in TAB (older diet coke). She only did it for about 45 minutes so, I assume it was to add flavor to the meat. Everything she cooked was great and I do enjoy GOOD beef without any "doctoring".

it sure cleans bug off the windshield

if you will just mix your coke with rum you wont care weather your meat has ben marinated or not you can just eat your dinner and fall asleep in front of the tv

Why?