A marinade is an easy way to add flavor to a thick and juicy cut of steak, such as New York strip. Steak doesn't need a long soak to sponge up the flavor of a good marinade. Give your New York strip a 30-minute bath, then broil, pan-saute or grill to your personal satisfaction. If you should lose track of time, however, your steak can happily sit in your marinade of choice for as long as two hours.

This is not only a quick marinade, it's an easy one. Make a homemade version of Italian dressing with wine vinegar, olive oil, garlic, oregano or Italian herb blend, salt and pepper. Or simply open a bottle of your favorite store-bought salad dressing and use that as the marinade.

Red wine and steak are a classic pairing on the dinner table, which makes red wine an excellent marinade base for red meat. Open a new bottle of red wine for this purpose or use leftover red wine from a previous dinner. Mix in a little sugar, salt, oil, garlic and rosemary, then stir until the sugar is dissolved.

Soy sauce adds a rich Asian-accented flavor to steak. For a marinade, add lime or orange juice for acid, honey or hoisin sauce for a sweet note and to enhance browning, and fresh ginger and garlic for their aromatic qualities. For extra flavor, add sesame seeds or sesame oil, diced shallots or scallions, fish sauce or Worcestershire sauce or mustard to taste.

A cup of brewed black coffee adds a strong, highly aromatic and slightly bitter flavor to the meat soaking in it. Add mustard, red wine, Worcestershire sauce, garlic and a touch of brown sugar to the coffee base. A small amount of ground cinnamon or a cinnamon stick broken into pieces adds a subtle dimension to the taste.

The brown sugar in a bourbon marinade helps the steak to achieve a crisp brown exterior. Bourbon helps diffuse the flavors through the meat. Add some mustard and a dash or two of hot sauce to finish the marinade. Use rum and lime juice for a Caribbean twist.

Stout is a dark, slightly bitter and also somewhat sweet beer that happens to make a fine marinade for meat. Simply add aromatic herbs, such as tarragon, thyme and basil, plus garlic and shallots or onions. A small amount of oil to help thicken the marinade is the last ingredient.