Name: Mediterranean Herb Marinade
Prep time: 5 min
Total time: 5 min
Yield: 4 servings
Cuisine: Mediterranean
Ingredients: 100 ml Olive Oil; 1 Lemon; 2 tbsp Red Wine Vinegar; 4 cloves Garlic; 1 tbsp Oregano; 1 tsp Thyme; 1 tsp Kosher Salt; 1 tsp Whole Black Peppercorns

Mediterranean · Marinade · All year

Mediterranean Herb Marinade

4.6 · community

Prep

Cook

Easy

Level

110

Energy

Olive oil, lemon, oregano, and garlic — the taste of every good Greek taverna, ready for chicken, lamb, halloumi, or a pile of vegetables.

What you need

Ingredients

Servings

Before you start

Mise en place

Yield: Enough for 800 g

Equipment

Bowl or jar

Whisk

Zip-top bags

Prep checklist

Lemon — zest and juice

Whole Black Peppercorns — cracked

3 steps

Method

Whisk everything. Smell it. That's the Aegean.

Marinate chicken or lamb 2–12 hours; halloumi, zucchini, and peppers need only 30 minutes.

240 min — timer available in cooking mode

Grill over real heat and finish with extra lemon — the fresh squeeze over the char is the actual secret.

From the pass

Chef's notes

Taste before serving and adjust salt and acid — the last 30 seconds of seasoning matter more than any single ingredient.

Afterwards

Keep, reheat & pair

Storage

Unused marinade keeps 5 days refrigerated. Once it touches raw protein, discard it — or boil 3 full minutes to serve as a sauce.

Freezing

Freeze protein IN the marinade: it seasons as it thaws. 2 months.

Reheating

Marinades aren't reheated — but boil any used marinade for 3 full minutes if you want to serve it as a sauce (it touched raw protein).

Make ahead

Mix up to 5 days ahead and refrigerate; marinate proteins in zip bags so cleanup is nothing.

Wine pairing

Follows the finished dish.

Beer pairing

Follows the finished dish.

On the plate

Serve it with

Sides

Applies to whatever you marinate

Garnish

Reserve a spoonful (before it touches raw meat) to finish the cooked dish

Taste map

Flavour profile

Sweet

Salty

Sour

Bitter

Umami

Heat

Per serving

Nutrition

110

kcal

protein

carbs

11g

fat

fiber

520mg

sodium

Asked and answered

Questions

How long should I marinate?

Acidic marinades: 30 minutes–4 hours for thin cuts (acid "cooks" the surface mushy past that), up to 12 for thick cuts. Yogurt and enzyme marinades: 4–24 hours. Salt-forward soy marinades: 1–24 hours. Seafood: 15–30 minutes only.

Can I reuse the marinade as a sauce?

Only after a hard 3-minute boil — it touched raw protein. Better habit: reserve a clean portion before the meat goes in.

Just for you

Your notes

Understand it

Lessons behind this dish

Keep exploring