Gluten-Free Raspberry Vinaigrette Marinade and Sauce

Raspberry vinegar produces a darker, nicer looking meat when grilled. It helps produce those nice, dark grill marks, which every chef desires. Using a raspberry vinegar is a quick and easy trick. Anything with sugar or fructose (all fruit contains fructose) creates a darker crust on meat, whether fried or grilled. I often use balsamic vinegar, but was attracted to this raspberry vinegar while shopping when I was hungry! Gee, my tastes sure have changed. Years earlier I would have purchased junk food, like chips.

You do not have to spend money on high priced vinegar, though. You can make your own either using concentrated juice or adding a little water to some fresh raspberries to a small sauce pan and cooking on top of the stove, pureeing it in a blender or food processor and then straining it through a sieve. Either way, you then add distilled white vinegar and you have yourself a gourmet vinegar! Making your own with allows you to use a no sodium vinegar, like rice vinegar, for those who are on a low-sodium diet, not to mention if you use fresh fruit it’s healthier!

If you are looking just for a darker color for your meat or some nice grill marks, you don’t have to marinated it for hours, just about 5 minutes. Just pour some in a bowl and flip flop the meat every minute or so. Then preheat your grill or pan and cook until desired temperature.

Traditional Marinade

Otherwise for a more tender meat, marinade for at least 4 hour or overnight, flipping the meat or tossing it in a tightly covered bowl 2-4 times.

Low-carbers get a little sugar, here, but no as much as they would with barbecue sauce, and still have a little extra flavor.

Grilling Tips

• Allow your steak to sit at room temperature prior to cooking. It will cook more evenly this way.
• Do not salt your meat prior to grilling. Salt draws out the juices. Salt and pepper right before it’s done. However, something I just learned, which I have not yet applied, is that salting the sides of the meat helps to pull the juices from the outside, creating a caramelize texture on the surface of the meat.

Meanwhile, find a recipe below for a raspberry vinaigrette marinade. Cook it over the stove and thicken with starch if you desire to serve it as a condiment instead of ketchup.