# Getting rid of excess marinade



## cosmovore

Is it OK to wash/rinse excess marinade off a chicken breast before searing/grilling? Or should I just be more patient and let it drain longer? I feel like I've been leaving too much marinade on and it burns on the gril.


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## Linux

cosmovore said:


> Is it OK to wash/rinse excess marinade off a chicken breast before searing/grilling? Or should I just be more patient and let it drain longer? I feel like I've been leaving too much marinade on and it burns on the gril.



Generally I pat the marinated meat dry with kitchen paper first, before consigning it to the pan. Otherwise, it would take long to brown as the liquid steams off.

The marinade if it's got wine in it, or just smells rather nice can be reduced down and made into a sauce with any lovely meat juices from the pan.


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## Dumpandstir

If you are burning then I would think a couple of things are happening.  Too much sugar in the marinade and/or the grill is too hot.  

If your chicken is thick and not cooking through before it burns the I would suggest cooking the chicken until it is the right color and then finish it in the oven.  If there is no oven available then cut the chicken into a more manageable thickness for the grill.  

I would never rinse a chicken after marinating.


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## bigdaddy3k

High sugar marinades are like bbq sauce. Sometimes a little black makes it better. But if you are really concerned you can just put your coals over half the grill and then put the chicken off to the cooler side to get it most of the way done and then finish on the hot side.


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## Dumpandstir

Many of my marinades don't include sugar.  I can then take the marinade and add some sugar for a BBQ sauce used at the end of the cooking time. If you use the marinade that was on the chicken you have to cook it first.  This gives me the chance to reduce the marinade and thicken it if necessary.


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## Andy M.

cosmovore said:


> Is it OK to wash/rinse excess marinade off a chicken breast before searing/grilling? Or should I just be more patient and let it drain longer? I feel like I've been leaving too much marinade on and it burns on the gril.



Any meat you intend to grill or pan sear should be dry.  Whether it's just moist from release of natural moisture or still coated with residue of brine or a marinade.  Simply dry it off with some paper towels and proceed.

The point of grilling and pan searing is to place the meat onto a HOT surface to quickly heat the meat's surface to a high enough temperature to cause quick browning.  Surface moisture prevents that as the heat must first evaporate any surface moisture before the heat can be effective in heating the surface of the meat.


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