Asian cuisine, with its rich diversity of flavors and techniques, places great importance on texture, and meat is no exception. Tender meat is essential for dishes like Chinese beef with onions or caramel pork.
Tender meat not only delivers a better eating experience, it also helps the spicy, aromatic marinades typical of Asian cuisine penetrate more deeply.
Traditional tenderizing methods across Asia
- Marinating: Marinades based on soy sauce, rice wine, ginger, and spices are commonly used to tenderize meat while adding deep flavor. Technically, the meat sits in an acidic solution (vinegar or lemon juice) or an enzymatic one (pineapple or papaya juice). These agents help break down muscle fibers and connective tissue, making the meat more tender.
- The “velveting” technique: Popular in Chinese cuisine, this method coats the meat with baking soda or starch (such as cornstarch), then quickly blanches it in water or oil. This yields a soft, velvety texture—hence the name. Examples include Cumin Beef and my Chicken Fried Rice.
- Steaming: Certain Asian traditions, such as Cantonese cuisine, rely on steaming to achieve tender meat without drying it out.
The baking soda method: a surprisingly effective technique
Using baking soda to tenderize meat is a widely used trick in many Asian dishes.
Unlike other methods, baking soda works quickly—ideal for the high heat of Asian stir-fries. The chemical reaction it triggers helps prevent meat proteins from contracting, leaving the meat incredibly tender.
In Asian cooking, it’s common to mix baking soda into marinades, such as soy sauce, to both tenderize and season the meat. This technique is especially effective for thin slices of meat used for stir-fries or grilling.
It works on everything: beef, chicken, pork … pure magic!
Ingredients
Method for large cuts of meat
- 1 meat (any weight)
- 1 percent of the meat’s weight of baking soda
Method for small cuts of meat
- 1 thinly sliced meat
- 140 ml water
- 1 teaspoon for every 140 ml of water needed to cover the meat
Instructions
Method for large cuts of meat
- Sprinkle the baking soda over the meat and rub it in with clean hands.
- Refrigerate the meat for a few hours or overnight.
- Before cooking, rinse the meat well to remove any excess baking soda.
Method for small cuts of meat
- Mix the baking soda with the water.
- Let the meat soak for 15 to 45 minutes.
- Rinse well before continuing with the rest of the recipe (whether cooking or marinating).
