Your Pork Chop Marinade Needs A Splash Of This Flavorful Drink

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Pork chops are a great addition to any BBQ, but they also have a tendency to toughen as they cook quickly. Because of this, a good brine or marinade is vital to getting tender, juicy meat. One way to get tenderized pork chops every time is to add soda to your marinade, particularly ginger beer. Not to be confused with ginger ale, ginger beer is a fermented drink made from ginger, rather than using ginger-flavored syrup. Its unique flavor and ingredients actually make ginger beer one of the best marinade bases around.

Make sure the bottles of ginger beer you select contain real ginger. There are also boozy versions to be aware of if you're abstaining from alcohol, though it should mostly burn off while cooking. Pour a small bottle per every 1-½ lbs of pork chops onto your meat, with other preferred components, like mustard. Let the meat marinate in the refrigerator overnight, flipping your chops halfway through. Then grill, bake, or even slow-cook them as desired. Feel free to add any additional spice or dry rub you'd like before cooking. What you end up with has a pleasing, gingery taste that will be deeply tender.

While you can go with this simple marinade, that doesn't mean you can't add some complexity to the flavor. Consider throwing in a little fruit juice or jam, such as cherry, for a sweet finish. Strong citrus flavors like lime, as well as Asian components like soy sauce, can elevate tartness and umami. Apple and ginger taste great together, so consider adding a little apple butter to your pork chops right before cooking. If an ingredient complements ginger, whether savory or sweet, it'll probably be a great addition to this marinade.

Using a marinade as a way to tenderize tough meat is nothing new, but ginger beer is one of the more effective methods. To understand why it works so well with pork chops, you must first understand the science behind the soda. Natural ginger beer has three things that make it an excellent tenderizer: carbonation, acid, and proteolytic enzymes. Carbonation and acids help break down muscle fibers in meat, turning tough cuts into tender pieces.

Naturally-fermented real ginger also adds something extra to the party, though, in the way of an enzyme called zingibain. This is a strong tenderizer that begins breaking down meat at room temperature, but stops tenderizing once your chop is cooked. On top of tenderization, ginger beer has a fair amount of sugar in it. This sugar helps the pork chop caramelize when it cooks, which gives the meat that little bit of crispy exterior. That caramelization adds an extra complex flavor that would be absent with less sugary marinades.

All this science means that you can also use ginger beer to marinate other pork. It'll help you get fall-off-the-bone ribs and pork tenderloin soft enough to cut with a butter knife. It also works with both chicken and beef. Given that pork chops can be difficult to perfectly sear without drying them out, ensuring they have a great marinade is important. And for that, ginger beer is definitely where it's at.