Making Raw Jerky
FIT_Goat
Posts: 4,227 Member
I don't buy store-bought jerky. It is full of sugar and cooked to death. It's like ordering a well done steak with a sugar sauce on it. Why would I do that?
But, I do like jerky. I can make pemmican from it, in case I need emergency rations. This is also useful for the future, where I might potentially be in a situation where I want to have multiple days worth of food (food == meat and fat only) on hand because the only stuff available to me will likely be carb-heavy.
I recently bought a deli-slicer, specifically so I could make jerky easier. Getting good, thin, slices is always the hardest part. I turned three pounds of raw meat into jerky. It probably made about a pound total. I don't know. I kept eating it as it was finishing. And, now I find myself jerkyless after less than 36 hours. Looks like I will need to be making some more soon.
I make mine by drying the meat at low temps (below 120F), which means it is not "safe" according to the food police. It's basically the same as eating the meat raw. All my friends ask me about recipes and such, but I don't marinate or do anything like that. Just a sprinkle of salt. Then dry it for 16+ hours. I have an electric smoker that can be set at 100F and will just circulate warm air around the meat until it dries out.
I find it amazing. And, with my new deli-slicer, the end result is so thin it is almost crisp. My wife loved it, and she doesn't really like plain meat. Although, she did ask if I would do some with garlic or onion powder next time. We'll see.
This is the guide that got me started on making my own.
http://www.traditionaltx.us/images/JerkyDrierInstructions.pdf
In order to not mislead anyone, I should say that I never actually built the dryer the person describes. I bought an electric smoker which has more precise control over the temps and everything else. It was also about 18 times more expensive, so cost can be a factor. The smoker has other uses besides jerky making though.
I would include pictures, but there's no jerky left to take pictures of. Maybe with my next batch. Now that I have the slicer, I will probably make a lot more.
But, I do like jerky. I can make pemmican from it, in case I need emergency rations. This is also useful for the future, where I might potentially be in a situation where I want to have multiple days worth of food (food == meat and fat only) on hand because the only stuff available to me will likely be carb-heavy.
I recently bought a deli-slicer, specifically so I could make jerky easier. Getting good, thin, slices is always the hardest part. I turned three pounds of raw meat into jerky. It probably made about a pound total. I don't know. I kept eating it as it was finishing. And, now I find myself jerkyless after less than 36 hours. Looks like I will need to be making some more soon.
I make mine by drying the meat at low temps (below 120F), which means it is not "safe" according to the food police. It's basically the same as eating the meat raw. All my friends ask me about recipes and such, but I don't marinate or do anything like that. Just a sprinkle of salt. Then dry it for 16+ hours. I have an electric smoker that can be set at 100F and will just circulate warm air around the meat until it dries out.
I find it amazing. And, with my new deli-slicer, the end result is so thin it is almost crisp. My wife loved it, and she doesn't really like plain meat. Although, she did ask if I would do some with garlic or onion powder next time. We'll see.
This is the guide that got me started on making my own.
http://www.traditionaltx.us/images/JerkyDrierInstructions.pdf
In order to not mislead anyone, I should say that I never actually built the dryer the person describes. I bought an electric smoker which has more precise control over the temps and everything else. It was also about 18 times more expensive, so cost can be a factor. The smoker has other uses besides jerky making though.
I would include pictures, but there's no jerky left to take pictures of. Maybe with my next batch. Now that I have the slicer, I will probably make a lot more.
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I need to do this too. I looked into buying jerky mix at a huge outdoor store, but every single brand of mix had msg and sugar.
As to the safety, since I have been making brine solution fermented veggies, and knowing that the natural lactos bacilli strains that preserve veggies and kill pathogens, I would probably soak my meat in my cultured brine prior to drying the meat at a low temp.
I actually have meat marinating in this type of solution now, but its not the type of meat to dry (its too fatty and bony).
Thanks for posting!
I hope this helps,
Dan the Man from Michigan
Keto / The Recipe Water Fasting / E.A.S.Y. Exercise Program
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Fascinating and intriguing. For now it is too much trouble and equipment I don't have but I can see how it would be useful when travel and such. And it would probably taste better than the (awful) store bought jerky I tried. Maybe someday.
Thanks for sharing!
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The way I do it does require a lot of equipment, but there really is little need for any equipment. Remember that native Americans on the plains were doing this long before any of the tools I use existed. There is a trade-off between ease and cost. It is more costly but easier the way I do it. You can do it with little more than a knife and a place the hang the meat, if you wanted. It would just involve a LOT more work.
My sister cuts the stuff by hand and uses her oven to dry it. I don't like that method, as the meat ends up cooked hotter than I want, but a lot of people do it that way and enjoy it. If it's not your only food, making it at higher temps is probably fine.
My primary concern with the temp is that some of the jerky I make might be turned into pemmican. If it is, that will become a potential "sole" food for an extended period of time. Stefansson knew someone who used over-cooked meat in jerky (http://highsteaks.com/the-fat-of-the-land-not-by-bread-alone-vilhjalmur-stefansson.pdf -- page 90-91 of the PDF, 137-138 by page number) and developed the early signs of scurvy from it. Those eating meat prepared at lower temps have gone months and months on just pemmican without issues. I prefer to be on the safer side, even though I wouldn't be living on this alone for 4+ weeks under the worst circumstance. I wouldn't even have a choice. There's no way I am preparing 40+ pounds of it (which would take approx 60 pounds of fresh meat), which is what I would need to go long enough according to the above-person's experience.0 -
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My sister cuts the stuff by hand and uses her oven to dry it. I don't like that method, as the meat ends up cooked hotter than I want, but a lot of people do it that way and enjoy it. If it's not your only food, making it at higher temps is probably fine.
(...)
This sounds better!
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Do you use smoke? I might give this a try. What cut of meat do you recommend?
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I made my own jerky one year with a food dehydrator, it was awesome!0
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Do you use smoke? I might give this a try. What cut of meat do you recommend?
I do not use smoke. I could, but I worry that it would be overpowering and too intense. Besides, I really like the taste of plain beef.
I use the round eye roast. I buy it at BJ's and it's pretty cheap. It's like $4 a pound. I slice it thin and trim any visible fat off. You want really lean meat with no fat because the fat won't dry properly.0 -
OK, another three pounds is drying now. This batch will last longer! I swear. I want to make some pemmican. I can't do that until I have a big ol' pile of jerky and then pick up some beef fat to render.0
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You can do it! 0
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