Grilled Beer Marinated Steak

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A Perfect juicily grilled beer marinated steak recipe that’s mouthwatering and will make you look like a pro on the grill at your next summer BBQ gathering.

Marinating has been one of the best ways of making everyday food taste and look special. It is the process of soaking meats in a seasoned liquid for some time. 

This seasoned liquid is known as a marinade and usually contains either acidic content such as vinegar or citrus juice, or enzymes as seen in fruits such as kiwi, mango, and papaya. 

The idea is to allow either the acid or enzymes to act on the meats and alter the flavor, taste, and texture. 

This acid or enzyme makes the tissues in the meat weaken on the surface, and this means that the meat cannot be left in a marinade for an extended time. 

If this happens, the meat becomes dry, tough, or mushy. An ideal marinade has the perfect amount and blends of oil, acid, and seasoning.

While there are different seasoned liquids used as a marinade, this recipe will focus on the use of the most unlikely liquid as a focus point for the marinade.

This liquid is beer, most importantly Guinness. We will discuss the Beer Marinated Grilled Steak in this recipe while touching on all of the important aspects of this dish.

Marinating With Beer

We know that the reason for marinating is to enhance the flavor, texture, and taste of the meat. The question that then arises is “Why use beer?” The answer is quite simple. You marinate with beer because of the nature of the beer.

An ideal marinade uses this formula; three parts of fat to one part of acid. This means the ideal marinade should not be too acidic or have a very low level of acidity.

This is where beer comes in to play. Apart from having an exciting flavor, beers are mildly acidic.

This, marinade made with beer has a thinner consistency as well as a higher water content.

As a result of this nature, the beer marinade can penetrate better into the layers of the meat, in the same way that brine does.

For instance, the beer marinade increases the water content of the meat. This makes it juicier during cooking, especially for meat that doesn’t have too much marbling.

It also doesn’t just flavor the surface but also goes a little bit deeper into the steak.

It is important to note that a beer marinade doesn’t tenderize the meat unless an ingredient that contains a protein-breaking enzyme is added to the marinade.

Key & Optional Ingredients For Grilled Steak

The full recipe with the exact measurement is listed in the recipe card below. For now, listed below are some of the key and optional ingredients to make the perfect steak.

Steak

Also known as beef steak, a steak is usually a meat cut across muscle fibers and could potentially include bones.

Steak can be from different animals, including cattle, horses, goats, bison, deer, turkey, zebu, sheep, pigs, ostrich, kangaroo, and reindeers.

You can also get steak from fish such as marlin, shark, salmon, and swordfish. There are different types of steak and all of these numerous types can benefit from a beer marinade.

The difference between these types of steak depends on how the meat is cut in relation to the muscle.

The skirt steak is cut parallel to the muscle fibers, the flank steak is cut from the abdominal muscles while the silver finger steak is cut from the loins and includes three rib bones.

Of these types of steak, the following types are best suited for a beer marinade; hanger, flank, skirt, and flat iron.

Beer

Usually, any type of beer will do for a marinade. However, beer styles such as Vienna lager, Munich Helles, American Craft Lager, Czech Plis as well as the German Pilsner are all perfect for use as a marinade.

These beer styles ensure a balance between the malty backbone and the herbal or hoppy notes in the beer.

For this recipe, however; we used Guinness. Guinness is a stout made of hops, roasted malt extract, barley, and yeast. Guinness is also A.J’s preferred beer to enjoy. So of course, the idea to use it as a steak marinade using his favorite beer was a no brainer.

Guinness is a great candidate for marinating because it enhances the flavor of the meat partly due to the bitterness. Similar to why coffee is a great addition to seasoning a steak. But don’t worry, the bitterness does not transfer on to the meat, quite the opposite effect.

Worcestershire (Optional)

As Worcestershire sauce is not used in this recipe, this ingredient adds to the acidity of the beer as well as adds an umami complexity to the marinade.

Umami complexity can be regarded as the fifth sense of the human body. It is the sense we associated with a savory feeling that is somewhat difficult to describe.

This sense is used to describe the feeling gotten from seared meat, and it has its origin in Japan.

The term itself is a combination of the Japanese characters for taste and delicious and was discovered in the early 1900s by a scientist at the University of Tokyo, named Kikunae Ikeda.

Dijon Mustard (Optional)   

Dijon Mustard originated from the French town of Dijon. This is another optional ingredient that you can use to further enhance the flavor of your dish.

The town was popular for being the center of mustard making in the 17th century.

Therefore, it is no surprise that the spicy, tangy, and delicious mustard powder is named after the town. 

Dijon mustard is usually pale brown and has a tangy, sharp but spicy taste and flavor. The powder is made with mustard seeds, wine vinegar, salt, and water.

Dijon mustard is a bit acidic, but many commercial recipes use ingredients with lower acidity and this makes the potency of the mustard seeds shine through in the powder.

Flavor

All the other ingredients! Cloves are added to intensify the beer flavor. We also added parsley flakes for an earthy flavor.   

When Should You Marinate Steak?

You should use this marinate option when cooking costs effective steaks to help enhance the taste. More expensive steaks seldom need much enhancement, but certainly would complement it.

You do not want to lose the quality and taste of a good expensive steak.

Grilled Steak Temperature

Keep the following Steak Temperatures in mind for best results when gilling steaks. 

• Rare (cool red center): 125 degrees
• Medium rare (warm red center): 135 degrees
• Medium (warm pink center): 145 degrees
• Medium well (slightly pink center): 150 degrees
• Well done (little or no pink): 160 degrees

Charcoal Grill Temperature

Your charcoal grill temperature should be between 450 degrees to 500 degrees for steaks.

How To Grill Steak

Step 1: Marinate your steak with the ingredients in a bowl. Add the steak sirloin or steak of your choice in a bowl, then top with the remaining ingredients. For this recipe, we used one 11.2 ounce Guinness Extra Stout Beer. Mix well to combine.

Step 2: Cover with plastic wrap and marinate for a minimum of 2 hours but best overnight.

Step 3: About half an hour before grilling, remove the steaks from the refrigerator and let it sit on the counter (covered). The steak will slowly become room temperature.

Step 4: Bring the grill temperature to high. When ready, place the steaks on the grill and cook until golden brown and slightly charred, 4 to 5 minutes (close the lid). After about 5 minutes, turn the steaks over and continue to grill 3 to 5 minutes for medium-rare (an internal temperature of 135 degrees F), 5 to 7 minutes for medium (140 degrees F) or 8 to 10 minutes for medium-well (150 degrees F). At this point you can also add your desired vegetables.

Step 5: When the steaks are done, transfer the steaks to a cutting board or platter, and using an aluminum foil, tent loosely over the steaks and let rest 5 minutes before slicing. Serve with your desired vegetables.

Frequently Asked Questions (FAQ)

Pro Tips For Grilling Steak With Beer Marinate

• Ensure that you poke holes into your steak using a fork. This will allow the beer marinade and seasonings to seep through and penetrate the core of the meat.
• The advisable timeframe for marinating is 4 hours. For best results, you can marinate overnight. The longer the steak stays in beer, the tender it will be after grilling.
• Before grilling, it is advisable to preheat the grill for some minutes at medium-high heat.
• After grilling the steaks, flip them over and drizzle some of the marinades over the steaks. Ensure that the marinade is not too much as you don’t want to drip the liquid over the flame of the grill.
• The average grilling time to doneness is about 7 minutes. Thus, ensure that you turn the steak over at 45 degrees every 3 and a half minutes.

Storing Your Steak

You can store excess beer marinated steak in the fridge.

However, you need to ensure that it is well wrapped to prevent the marinated juices from leaking out. If you can, use a sealed airtight container.

You also need to ensure that the steak is not brought into contact with any contaminant.

More Recipes To Try

If you loved this beer marinated (grilled steak) recipe, try this Grilled Whole Red Snapper, and this air fryer grilled chicken fajita skewers next.

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