The Jerky Thread

I've been experimenting and making beef jerky for a couple months - have gone
through a fair number of batches getting it dialed in to perfection. So I thought
I'd start a thread in this section to share Jerky recipes - Beef, Venison, Chicken,
whatever your favorite is.

Here's how I do my beef jerky - no, not a secret homemade recipe at this point.
I use Nesco Original Jerky Spice that I buy on Amazon:

http://www.amazon.com/Nesco-BJ-6-6-Pack-Original-Flavor/dp/B0000CFPI2/ref=sr_1_3?ie=UTF8&qid=1317526302&sr=8-3

It's FABULOUS IMO, and everyone who tries my jerky loves it. A 4 pound piece of
meat (before drying) barely lasts a week around here!

So here's how I do mine:

1. Meat: I buy the leanest beef round rump roast I can get - usually wait for
the "Buy one get one" at Albertson's. Have the butcher trim all the outside fat
and then put it in the slicer. You want THIN slices. 1/8" seems to work best.
It takes them a good 10 minutes to do, but I've yet to have them mind the effort.

2. Trim: Using a sharp knife, trim ever spec of fat you can. Fat won't dry, and will
turn rancid in a week even though the rest of the meat is preserved. It's a pain
to do this, but you'll be glad you did.

3. Season: Use one Nesco cure/season pack per pound of meat, with 1/3 cup of
water. I usually buy a 4 pound roast and therefore use 4 packs. (I then use a
5th pack of just the seasoning the next day - see below). So figure 5 packs to
do 4 pounds of meat. Once the seasoning/cure/water is mixed up, add the meat
and toss it thoroughly.

4. Add seasoning: I now add 2 caps each of Dales Seasoning and 2 caps of
Stubbs Liquid smoke. I get the Dale's here: http://www.amazon.com/Nesco-BJ-6-6-Pack-Original-Flavor/dp/B0000CFPI2/ref=sr_1_3?ie=UTF8&qid=1317526302&sr=8-3

5. Marinate: After the meat is totally saturated, I dump the whole mess into a
large freezer zip-lock bag to marinate overnight. Don't short the marinate time or
it likely won't cure enough.

6. Tray it up: After 24 hours in the fridge, I take the 5th pack of seasoning
(without the cure packet) and thoroughly toss the meat with this additional
seasoning. Then place the meet strip by strip onto cooling
trays set over foil on a cookie sheet. My oven fits 2 full sheets. Be SURE to put
down a double layer of foil over the cookie sheets - the drippings are nearly
impossible to clean after hours of drying in the oven. You're wife will thank you.

7. Oven dry: Set the oven to about 140 degrees - no higher. On our oven, that's
just a hair above "WM" on the dial. I use a thermometer to be sure, so that future
batches will be easily repeatable in results.

8. Timer: For 1/8" slices, in my experience, 1.5 hours is just about right. But you'll
have to gauge for yourself - 1/4" slices will take 3 hours. Assuming 1/8" slices, at
the end of 1.5 hours, pull out a typical slice. LET IT COOL!!! Don't try to judge
it while hot. Once cool, it should bend easily and not be brittle, with zero pink
in the middle. Repeat as needed for all of it - I have to run 2 full batches to do
the 4 pounds of meat (2 pounds per 1.5 hour round, in other words).

9. Done: Properly dried as above, you shouldn't need to refrigerate the jerky. But
I do anyway - since I can never get every stitch of fat off the meat, I don't want
to chance having it go rancid in the cupboard. Regardless, around here it never
lasts long enough to care. We love to do a batch before a long road trip for a
fantastic road snack.

Give it a try if you haven't! And if you have a better (i.e., make it yourself) recipe
for the seasoning and cure, by all means post it up in this thread.

Enjoy!



Jedi
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Wow that looks awesome. I've always wanted to try making it but it seems pretty time intensive. Good jerky is readily available so I buy it locally at the farmer's market or order it in from Big John's.

 

Thank you. But try it! The stuff I make as described above just beats the
pants of ANYTHING I've ever bought. There's really no comparison in flavor.
Yes, it's fairly time consuming - but it's really just "waiting time" for it to dry
in the oven. It's really not that much work on a Saturday.

Jedi

 

No other jerky folks here??

Was hoping to find some new recipe for the next batch, and not use
the bought-in seasonings. Lots of web recipes but thought some other
F-Chatter would chime in with something fun to try.



Jedi

 

BIG Jerky fan, but NEVER made my own...you just inspired me, I will try this.

I once watched Alton Brown make his own bacon - that's also high on my list, but this looks alot easier.

Thanks for posting!

 

I'll have to find my recipe, usually make it over the winter a few times. Make my own marinade, basically steak sauce. I'll get it out and post. I make regular, pepper and habanero. Also a dehydrator works even better than the oven. Take longer but tastes better.

Try london broil sliced in 1/4" slices. too thin of a slice defeats the purpose of making your own.

 

Please post! I would love to try this out...

 

Thanks for that pointer to Big John's.

You've cost me $150 since you posted that!

Really tasty stuff. I think I'm addicted!

 

I generally use Luhr Jensen jerky brine and sometimes spice it up a bit. I tried Cabella's brines last year but I think I like the Luhr Jensen better. I usually make a regular batch and then a peppered batch. For the peppered I just add red pepper to the brine and fresh ground black pepper to the jerky before smoking. I think I'm going to try adding some sambal sauce next time though for a little more heat.

I've done both in my smoker and in the oven. The oven is probably quicker but I like the real smoke flavor from the smoker. I usually only do one pan of chips for jerky or it gets to be too much though.

Yours looks really GREAT!!

Along similar lines I do smoked salmon that is really simple. I do a dry brine of three parts sugar to two parts salt (I prefer pickling salt) and add in some powdered garlic powder and black pepper to taste. Brine for no more than 6-8 hours (too long and it gets too salty), rinse off and sprinkle with dehydrated onions. Let dry on the racks for an hour or so then just smoke until done to the desired "firmness". I prefer it more on the moist side than dry like some folks do. I do at least three pans of chips for the salmon sometimes more if I feel like it or need a bit more heat if it's cold outside. Cool down and enjoy. It keeps for a LONG time if vacuum packed and frozen too!!

 

Oh, and thanks for the tip on the meat. I have always used flank steak but, besides getting more expensive ever since Fajitas have gotten popular, it also seems to have a lot more fat than it used to. Makes it a real pain to get it all cleaned out and ready to use.

I'm also going to check at Cash & Carry next time I'm there to see what they have. You can get some great deals on meat if you don't mind buying a BIG package of it!

 

The marinade:

1 cup ketchup (Heinz works best)
1/2 cup soy sauce (the real stuff)
1/3 cup of worsterchire (i put in a tad more)
1 and 1/2 tsp garlic powder

like a steak sauce but saltier. Don't be scared it's all good when you're done.

Mix into the bowl with your trimmed meat and refrigerate over night

I use all kinds of beef for jerky, but lean is what you want. I typically get two 3 lbs roast (forget what kid exactly but top round sounds familiar, whatever it is its not expensive)

trim all fat off and all connective tissue
slice with the grain into strip that are no less than 1/4" thick 3/8" is fine. It helps if you put the meat into the freezer for a bit prior to that part
Those slices you can then cut into smaller sticks if you'd like

Following day:

get out my dehydrator trays
pull strips out and shake or wipe excess marinade with your fingers (it's not an exact science)
Lay on tray so that they do not touch
for pepper jerky - grind pepper over strips (enlightening I know)
Habanero - grind up dried habanero and sprinkle (be careful here, but it does tste great)
Regular - dont do nothing

On high in the dehydrator 140 deg, about 7 to 9 hours depends.

Enjoy!

I made this over the holidays and unfortunately didn't take pictures. I'll do it again before the winter is gone, I'll take pics then.

Additional tip. If you're going to be doing a lot of drying meats, fruits veggies whatever...get an Excalibur dehydrator. Best one out there for home use. Drys well and evenly and has multiple temp settings that actually work.

 

y/w it's awesome stuff for sure! (just saw your post)....

 

I have about 5 pounds of jerky finishing up in my 5 tray dehydrator right now. Well about a pound by game time.

I am using a homemade "classic" sauce... 12 hours in the juice and then into the dryer for about 12-18 hours. I run the dryer at 155F for jerky. ( i like the thicker cut meat with a touch of water in them for a chewer mouth feel.)


We (wife and I ) also make banna chips, dried figs, apple slices, etc etc.

Your jerky looks very tastey. We use the same meat. I also use eye-round, skirt, flank, and sometimes ribeye or filet for fun. Talk about a different and tender taste and texture.

 

What's the cost like to make your own jerky? I usually buy some to snack on but it's usually pretty expensive for how little you get. Flavor is hit and miss as well. I'd love to make my own.

 

Jerky is fairly inespensive depending on what kind of meat that you use.

I saw this recipe on Food TV a home made dehydrator that is very inexpensive.

I have made it in the oven (but my oven only goes down to 175) or I have made it on my smoker, both turned out good but not great


Ingredients
1 1/2 to 2 pounds flank steak
2/3 cup Worcestershire sauce
2/3 cup soy sauce
1 tablespoon honey
2 teaspoons freshly ground black pepper
2 teaspoons onion powder
1 teaspoon liquid smoke
1 teaspoon red pepper flakes
Special Equipment: 1 box fan, 4 paper air-conditioning filters, and 2 bungee cords
Directions
Trim the flank steak of any excess fat, place in a zip-top bag, and place it in the freezer for 1 to 2 hours in order to firm up.

Remove the steak from the freezer and thinly slice the meat with the grain, into long strips.

Place the strips of meat along with all of the remaining ingredients into a large, 1-gallon plastic zip-top bag and move around to evenly distribute all of the ingredients. Place the bag into the refrigerator for 3 to 6 hours.

Remove the meat from the brine and pat dry. Evenly distribute the strips of meat onto 3 of the air filters, laying them in the grooves and then stacking the filters on top of one another. Top these with 1 empty filter. Next, lay the box fan on its side and lay the filters on top of it. Strap the filters to the fan with 2 bungee cords. Stand the fan upright, plug in and set to medium. Allow the meat dry for 8 to 12 hours. If using a commercial dehydrator, follow the manufacturer's directions.

Once dry, store in a cool dry place, in an airtight container for 2 to 3 months.

 

probably the best Jerky I've ever had as a texan (mail order after watching on the foodnetwork)

http://stores.jandjmeats.com/StoreFront.bok

Sent these puppies out as Christmas gifts 2 years ago.

Definitely going to try some of your guys recipes above!

 

I am a huge beef jerky fan and have even gone through the entire process from slaughtering the cow to hanging it up in a barn to dry. Nothing beats jerky for a satisfying and nutritious "on the go" snack.

I'm gonna try your recipe Jedi, sometime soon, and send some to my dad and my brother. I'm also a big fan of the Teriyaki flavor.

 

I make South African Biltong.

Its a type of jerky, but you simply dry it and never heat it up.

So basically I have a box that has a fan in it. I leave it in there for 3-4 days and eat afterwords.

Its simply amazing.

 

Has anyone tried one of those food dehydrators??