Can You Freeze Marinade?

Last updated on August 16th, 2022 at 02:58 pm

Marinade is a sauce made of oil, vinegar, spices, and herbs. Meat, fish and other food are then soaked in this sauce before they are cooked, softening them and making them more flavorful.  

A marinade can also make the meat more tender. 

How long to marinate something all depends on the type of meat. Seafood only needs about 15 to 30 minutes in the marinade. Chicken needs about 2 hours. Pork loin needs 4 hours. Lamb needs 8 hours. Beef needs 24 hours. 

Marinade enriches the flavor of whatever meat is soaked in it. If you end up with leftover marinade after using it for meat, or just have too much of it, can you freeze it?

You can freeze marinade that is new or has been used. However, there is a specific way to do it if it has already been used for meat. 

Freezing is a way to preserve foods so that they don’t spoil and you can use them weeks or months later. If you have a lot of marinade and want to save it for later, freeze it! 

More than likely you will be freezing marinade after you have already soaked some meat in it. Being thrifty you decide to freeze it and use it for another time. You will want to make sure you are doing it correctly. 

To freeze used marinade, boil it immediately for five minutes (has to be actively boiling for five minutes) after you remove the meat from it. Then store it in the freezer for up to 3 months. Used marinades stored in the fridge will last for a week.

You can also freeze meat that is already marinated to get both done at the same time, saving time and effort in the future when you want to cook the meat. Who doesn’t want their job of marinating, thawing, and cooking the meat to be easier? I will explain how exactly to freeze marinated meat later on in this article. 

For now, think about how great it is to know that you can freeze marinade to use again!

Can You Freeze Used Marinades? 

When you need to store some marinade for a long period of time, freeze it. If the marinade has been used for meat already, can you still freeze it?

You can freeze used marinade. This is a good idea if you are trying to save time and money because you can get more meals out of the marinade.

To freeze used marinade, just boil it immediately after removing the meat (again, needs to be actively boiling for five minutes) and then put it in a freezer bag and store it for up to 3 months. If the marinade has been in the freezer for longer than 3 months, then toss it out and get some more. 

You can also store the used marinade in the fridge if you plan on using it in the upcoming week. Marinade stored in the fridge will last for a week, after this it is best to throw it out. 

If you really want to keep the marinade and aren’t sure if you will use it in a week, freeze then thaw it. 

Thawing is easy. Just remove the marinade from the freezer and place in the refrigerator to thaw overnight. The next day you will have thawed marinade. 

You can then soak meat in the marinade adding in flavor while also softening it.When done right, you can freeze used marinade and use it again.

Can I Marinate My Meat And Then Freeze It? 

You can save marinade by freezing it and then thawing using it on meats later but what if the meat is packaged in marinade already or what if you already did the step of marinating it? Can you freeze it now?

You can freeze marinated meat. Marinating the meat beforehand will actually save you time and effort in the long run.

If you have meat that is already marinated, this can also be frozen. Sometimes the job of thawing and marinating meat can take up alot of your time so why not do yourself a favor and do most of the work ahead of time? 

All you need to do is place the meat and marinade in freezer bags, seal and label them. Then you can freeze them until you want to cook them. If you have already marinated the meat and decided to freeze it, make sure its temperature has not gone above the safe zone of 40 degrees Fahrenheit (5 Celcius) and you can freeze it until you are ready to use it.

To thaw, just pull the bag out of the freezer and place it in the refrigerator. Now, it will thaw and marinate at the same time. This will save you time and effort in the long run.

The website Truebites, gives some tips on freezing marinated meat. They state, “For quality purposes we would recommend that marinated meats are kept in the freezer no longer than 3 months. When you wish to use your meat it should be defrosted in a fridge and used within 24 hours…

Always make sure your meat is cooked safely to a minimum core cooking temperature of 75C.” 

While we are on the subject, the process of brining is very effective when it comes to marinating meats. Brining is to soak the meat in a saltwater solution so it will absorb the salt water and make the meat more moist and taste better. 

Brining also prevents the meat from drying up when it is cooking. You can freeze meat that is already marinated to save you work when you want to cook it weeks or months later.

Final Thoughts

In conclusion, you can freeze marinade to use in the future. Whether you have leftover used marinade, or you want to marinade and freeze the meat at the same time to save time you can.

By freezing the marinade and the meat together, when you’re ready to thaw it, it will also soak while it defrosts. Plus when you save the remaining marinade after using it, you are getting more use out of it for more meals. 

Marinade makes meat taste flavorful and tenderizes it. Freezing marinade is a great way to save you time and effort.