This simple marinade recipe feels perfect in the summer with its bright flavors, but also just right for the colder months when we need to find some zing in our cooking. It’s garlicky and gingery and minty and so brilliant and flavorful. And it takes 10 minutes to pull together!

Use it to marinate pork, chicken, shrimp, or fish. Serve that juicy and flavorful meat along with Soy-Glazed Sugar Snap Peas and Mixed Green Salad with Sesame Dressing, as well as a bowl of rice.

Ginger, Mint, and Lime Marinade: This bright marinade with slightly Southeast Asian flavors is a perfect soak for anything from shrimp to chicken to pork.

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Ginger, Mint, and Lime Marinade Ingredients

• Ginger – Make sure to peel it before mincing.
• Garlic – The perfect partner to ginger, in this and any recipe. Make sure your garlic is finely minced.
• Fresh mint leaves – This recipe is a great use for that super-abundant mint in your garden or at the farmers market in the middle of summer.
• Red pepper flakes – These are optional, but I like the kick they bring to this bright marinade.
• Lime juice – Acidity lifts the whole thing up and really makes it pop.
• Extra-virgin olive oil

Variations

• If you wanted to change it up you might add some basil and/or cilantro in place of the mint. If you combined the three, there would be an even more Southeast Asian flavor to it.
• For a spicy version, try adding in a spoonful of chili paste or chili oil. Both generally pack a spicier bite than the red pepper flakes in the original recipe.

How to Make Ginger, Mint, and Lime Marinade

1. Assemble: Put the ginger, garlic, mint, lime juice, salt, and red pepper in a bowl or a jar with a lid. 

2. And the olive oil and mix: Pour in the olive oil. Whisk or shake to combine well. The marinade will last for about 5 days, sealed up in the fridge.

How to Use Ginger, Mint, and Lime Marinade

This is lovely on grilled pork chops or kebabs, chicken, shrimp, and any flaky, thick white fish like haddock or cod. Broil, grill, or sauté, the cooking method is very flexible.

Using a Marinade As a Sauce

Once a marinade touches raw meat or seafood, it has to be either boiled or discarded. But what I sometimes do is take a few tablespoons of the marinade out before I put the meat in (make sure to give it a good shake, whatever it is, so that the marinade is completely combined before you pull some to the side).

Then, after I cook the chicken or chops or whatever, I dribble the reserved marinade on the cutting board before putting the cooked food back on to rest and then slicing. Extra fresh flavor at the end.

This is inspired by Adam Perry Lang‘s ingenious board sauce or board dressing technique. This is how he describes it:  “Once I have grilled a piece of meat, I want to capture the flavors of the delicious juices that emerge on the cutting board when I slice it and then build upon them, so I make what I call a board dressing. I often add some olive oil, or some of the rendered fat trimmings from the baste, or perhaps a little balsamic vinegar, to the juices.”

What to Serve With Ginger, Mint, and Lime-Marinated Dishes

Japanese Cucumber Salad

Thai Green Beans

Clean and Spicy Asian Greens

More Flavorful Marinade Recipes

• Lemon Garlic Chicken Marinade
• Indian Curry Yogurt Marinade
• Spicy Sesame Asian Marinade