Pork neck marinated in Coca-Cola. An unusual combination that works surprisingly well

Coca-Cola is usually used as a sweet drink. But its sweetness, acidity, and strong flavor make it a great marinade for meat. For pork neck, it helps create a fragrant surface, promotes caramelization when baking or grilling, and gives the meat a slightly sweet flavor. But you have to use it correctly.

Pork neck in marinade

Marinating is not just a way to flavor pork or other meat. The marinade helps create a layer of flavor on the surface and, depending on its composition, can also affect the texture of the meat.

Marinating pork neck is particularly interesting. It is a meat with a natural amount of fat between the muscle bundles, which does not dry out as easily as leaner cuts during prolonged cooking. The marinade also adds additional flavor and aroma to the surface.

Because the marinade doesn't penetrate deep into the entire piece of meat, you should use one that makes the biggest difference on the surface and creates a flavorful juice.

Why Coca-Cola is perfect for colds

The neck is one of the fattier parts of pork. The fat helps keep the meat juicy during cooking and also works well with strong marinades. The sweet marinade also blends beautifully with the seared surface. When grilling or baking, the contrast between the juicy meat inside and the dark crust on the surface is created. This is where Coca-Cola comes in. It contains several ingredients that are useful for marinating. First of all, it is sweet and slightly acidic.

Sugar helps with the browning and caramelization of the surface. It gives the neck a beautiful dark, shiny, and fragrant crust when baked or grilled. This is why sweet marinades are often used with meat prepared on the grill.

The acidity of the drink, in turn, contributes to a gentle effect on the surface of the meat. However, this is not a miracle way to turn a tough piece of meat into perfectly soft. For neck meat, its natural texture, fat content and proper heat treatment are more important. Coca-Cola has a strong taste, which becomes even more pronounced when heated. Therefore, it is suitable for more pronounced salty and spicy ingredients.

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How long to marinate the neck of the pork

For neck meat, it is not necessary to leave the meat in the marinade for several days. A few hours in the refrigerator is usually more than enough. Prepare the marinade, coat the meat thoroughly in it and store it in a sealed container or bag in the refrigerator. Then let the excess marinade drain before cooking. This is especially important when grilling. Large amounts of sweet marinade can quickly burn on a hot grill.

Coca-Cola, as is well known, contains quite a lot of sugar. If you place the meat directly on a very hot grill and leave a thick layer of marinade on it, the sugar can quickly caramelize and burn. It is better to lightly brush the meat with the marinade again during cooking, but only when the surface is sufficiently cooked.

When baking in the oven, the risk of burning is lower, but you should still monitor the color of the surface.

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Grilled pork neck in cola marinade

Grilled pork neck in a marinade combines strong flavors. The cola in the marinade contributes to caramelization and, thanks to phosphoric acid, softens the meat fibers. Pork neck contains more fat, which ensures juiciness of the meat when grilled.

To prepare the dish you will need: 500 g pork neck and sunflower oil. For the marinade: 1 onion, 2 cloves of garlic, 100 g butter, 150 g ketchup, 3 tablespoons of full-fat mustard, 70 ml white wine vinegar, chili flakes to taste, 1 tablespoon of soy sauce, 1 tablespoon of ground paprika, 300 ml of Coca-Cola, salt and ground black pepper.

How about this?

Finely chop the onion and fry in butter together with the pressed garlic until golden brown, set aside.

Mix ketchup, mustard, vinegar, chili, soy sauce, ground paprika and cola. Mix everything together, season with salt and pepper.

Marinate the meat for at least 2 hours and let it rest. Then remove it from the marinade and brush with oil if necessary, grill on a hot grill for about 8 minutes on both sides.

When serving, season the slices with salt and pepper to taste, and serve with grilled vegetables, pastries, potatoes, croquettes or fries, for example.

You can use the pleasantly warm autumn to grill. In our photo gallery you can see interesting tips for marinated and cooked meat.