How to Prep Your Barbecued Beef to Prevent Carcinogens

You’ve been warned for some time now about the carcinogens lurking in various meats when they’re cooked. Grilling or pan-frying steaks may lead to the formation of chemicals called heterocyclic amines, which are precursors to carcinogens, such as epoxides.

Portuguese scientists, writing in the Journal of Agricultural and Food Chemistry, have found that marinating beef in beer or red wine before cooking significantly reduces the levels of heterocyclic amines. They put beef samples in beer or red wine for 6 hours before pan-frying, and compared the results with unmarinated samples. Beer reduced the suspect amines by 88%, and wine by 40%, compared with those in unmarinated samples. And beer marinating for 1, 2, and 4 hours produced significant reductions, too. But after 2 hours, there was deterioration in odor, color, and taste. However, beer-marinated beef tasted better than wine-marinated beef – almost as good as the unmarinated meat.

This news comes in good time for the summer barbecuing season. Plenty of time, in fact, for you to experiment with the two methods and the marination time, to see which you prefer. To say nothing of which marinade you can drink with pleasure after use!