When it comes to cooking meat, one of the most basic and most important skills you can cultivate is the ability to put together a marinade. Essentially a brine with additional flavors, a marinade is designed to add long-lasting flavor to whatever you're cooking, be it chicken, or beef, or pork. A good marinade can make the difference between just another grilled meal and something very special.
One of the most common types of marinade is a one based around vinegar, citrus juice, or other acidic liquids. While conventional wisdom might hold that this acid breaks down the meat and tenderizes it, in reality the liquid is only there for flavor - the actual chemical tenderization process would require a much stronger solution and much more time than most marination applications. An acidic liquid gives a nice tangy flavor to the meat, and serves as a base for the notes provided by herbs and spices.
Another thing to consider is the length of the marinade; red meat stands up to the process well and should be marinated longer than most other types of meat, often overnight. Chicken, on the other hand, should rarely be marinated for very long at all - too long in the solution can affect the texture of the meat, rendering the final dish mealy and generally unsatisfying.
Finally, make sure to thoroughly rinse off your marinated meat before cooking. A marinade should be very strongly flavored and is often high in salt. Leaving the solution on the surface of the meat when cooking can produce a bitter, overly-strong crust that will render even the finest cut of meat unappetizing.
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