5 reasons to love this easy, homemade low-carb steak marinade
- It’s so easy to put together with only 8 ingredients and it packs on the flavor even when marinating steak for as little as 20 minutes.
- The marinade uses coconut aminos, oil, vinegar and spices so it’s a cinch to make it. If you don’t have coconut aminos, you can use our coconut aminos substitute recipe.
- It’s perfect for any cut of steak, especially tougher cuts like flank steak, flatiron steak, and skirt steak.
- Especially great for grilled steaks, but it can be used when marinating stakes for cooking in the pan or cast iron.
- The simple ingredients are a fit for any diet – keto, whole30, Paleo and gluten-free.
Featured review
This is THEE BEST marinade ever!! I make it every single time I make steak, or stir-fry beef strips, because the family LOVES it! I’ve marinated for 1 hour up to overnight – the longer the better, but it’s even tasty at 1 hour. Excellent!!
Beverly
How to make the best steak marinade (step-by-step)
What cut of steak will this marinade work for?
We use a version of this marinade to flavor a lot of our tougher cuts of steak. It works great for:
- Flank steak
- Skirt steak hanger and
- Flatiron
- Hanger steak
These are perfect cuts for a marinade because they are a little tougher and need some extra flavor. They also happen to absorb the marinade really well because they are a thinly cut steak – not to mention they are cheaper!
Tips from an expert home chef
- Marinating time – The longer you marinate your meat, the more flavor the marinade will impart. However, you can marinate your steak for as little as only 20 minutes and get great results with this marinade.
- Ingredients – If you don’t have apple cider vinegar you can substitute another vinegar or lemon juice. If you don’t have coconut aminos, you can use soy sauce or our coconut aminos substitute recipe.
- Other proteins – This marinade will work for a cut of steak up to two pounds and can also be used on chicken, pork, bison or fish.
Related –> Check out all of our marinade recipes!
More steak recipes
- Quick and Easy Carne Asada Recipe
- Fresh Chimichurri Sauce for Flank or Skirt Steak
- Grilled Coffee Rubbed Steak Recipe
- 35+ Summer BBQ Recipes
We hope you love this recipe as much as we do!
Don’t forget to leave a quick star rating and review below, we read every comment and truly appreciate your feedback. Also, be sure to browse the rest of our grilling recipes to find some other favorites too!
Get the Recipe:
Easy Homemade Steak Marinade (Keto, Gluten-Free)
Made with coconut aminos and only 8 total ingredients, this easy steak marinade takes about 5 minutes to put together and is a basic, flavorful marinade that you can use over and over. It fits about any diet too – keto, paleo, whole30 and gluten-free! Use it for flank steak, flat iron and skirt steak.
Ingredients
- 1/4 cup apple cider vinegar
- 1/4 cup coconut aminos, (see recipe notes)
- 2 tbsp avocado or olive oil
- 2 tsp garlic powder
- 2 tsp black pepper
- 1 tsp onion powder
- 1 tsp paprika
- 1/2 tsp sea salt
Instructions
- Combine all of the ingredients in a small container or jar and mix well.
- Place steak in a shallow dish or zip-top bag. Pour the marinade all over the steak and flip it around to coat the steak completely.
- Cover and refrigerate for at least 20 minutes and up to 24 hours.
- Remove from the container and cook the steak to your liking. You can baste the steak with any leftover marinade while cooking for extra flavor.
Notes
- This recipe is made to marinate about 2 lbs of meat. It can easily be halved or doubled if needed.
- If you don’t have any coconut aminos on hand, you can make your own using our DIY coconut aminos substitute recipe.
Calories: 60kcal, Carbohydrates: 4g, Fat: 5g, Saturated Fat: 1g, Fiber: 0.4g
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We love this recipe and have had friends/family ask for it. Can it be used on pork?
Yes, absolutely! It will work with pork or chicken too, we’ve tried it and it’s great.
Delicious flavor!! Will make again.
Thanks for trying it out and coming back to leave a review! 🙂
Found your recipe online when looking for a “clean” marinade for steak & chicken. Being Gluten/Dairy/Sugar/Vinegar free leaves few options. So happy to have found your contribution and will use over and over as it is delicious and so simple…
Be well!!
Happy to hear that David, you’re very welcome!
I didn’t think black pepper and paprika were AIP compliant?
This recipe wasn’t written to be AIP compliant. However, you could omit those and it would still taste great if that’s what you need.
Easy marinade to prepare, great tasting flank steak!
Can I use this with pre cut beef strips? And then would you just cook it in a pan on the stovetop?
Yes, you could definitely use it with pre cut beef strips, and then cook in a skillet on the stove. Let us know how it goes! 🙂
This is THEE BEST marinade ever!! I make it every single time I make steak, or stir-fry beef strips, because the family LOVES it! I’ve marinated for 1 hour up to overnight – the longer the better, but it’s even tasty at 1 hour. Excellent!!
Thank you so much for the great review Beverly!
Best marinade and so easy!!
Wow-this was really good! Quick and easy to whip up!
This marinade is insanely delicious. Discovered while doing the Whole 30, but saving this for lots of future use. Thank you!!
Glad to hear that, thanks for coming back to leave a rating and review!
This marinade was perfect for our ranch steaks from Butcher Box. I was a bit leery of the amount of black pepper in this recipe but stuck to the OP when I made it and I’m so glad I did. It was so delicious and the black pepper did not overwhelm the taste at all.
My only sub was red wine vinegar for the cider but that was only because my bottle was empty. Oops. Now we know it works well in here too though. 😊
Bookmarked this one for sure!!
So glad you enjoyed the recipe Jennifer!
I’ve been using this marinade for a couple of years. It’s AMAZING!
Hooray! So happy to hear this one is favorite! Thank you! 🙂
Delicious!!
Just made this tonight after having a 2.2lb tritip marinate overnight in it. It turned out so delicious! We actually reduced the leftover marinade on the stove top (about 10 minutes simmer, to kill any bacteria) then added some water back to it to make a nice juice. Definitely using this again. I didn’t have aminos and like the recipe suggests, substituting water (and a dash of soy sauce– which admittedly breaks both diets but it worked for us) tasted great! So don’t let the recipe turn you away if you don’t have it all, it’ll still be great!
My kids don’t care for steak and they said this was the best steak they have ever had. It was amazing.
We’re so glad to hear it was a hit for the whole fam! Thanks so much for giving it a try! 🙂
Question: Can you use the marinade, after marinading the steaks, as a braising liquid?
Yes, as long as you heat it to kill any bacteria.
So easy, so good! The juiciest steak I’ve ever had. And can I have an amen for the calculator that allows you to change the recipe for the appropriate amount of meat!?!
Ha, glad the recipe and calculator worked well for you!
I made this last night for some sirloins we grilled. My husband and I have enjoyed it many times, but it was my 13-yr-old’s first time tasting it. He asked what marinade I used, and was very impressed to know I’d made it. (He’s become pretty convinced that if I can eat it [I’m Paleo], then he won’t like it. So, this was a huge win! Plus, it’s easy to mix up. It’s definitely going in my keeper file.
Glad this one was a win for you! Thanks for coming back to share :).
Sooo delicious! Used it on top sirloin marinated for about 5 hours. This one is a keeper! Thank you! The leftovers will make a beautiful Whole 30 steak salad later this week.☺
So glad you liked the marinade Carrie 🙂
Fantastic recipe. Worked amazing on skirt steak last night. Must use…and on repeat!
This marinade could not be more perfectly delicious and simple! I’ve used it several times now – once with flank steak and a couple of times with tri tip and holy cow. Plus, coconut aminos are one of my absolute favorite ingredients so it’s hard to get much better thank this. Thanks for sharing!
You’re very welcome!
I made this yesterday on a flat iron steak. It was DELISH!!
I will use this recipe over and over again!
Can’t wait to try it on chicken too!
I did not have coconut aminos, I used liquid aminos.
Thanks for sharing!!
You’re welcome, glad this one is a keeper!
This was so good! Husband kept saying how good the marinade was! Will definitely use it again, as we grill flank steak often!