any beef jerky people?

[lordoffire]

I am looking to make some beef jerky sometime in the near future. Has anybody had great success in making it themselves?

Use a kit or make your own stuff?
Dehydrator vs. Oven?
Which meat(s) do you prefer?

Any tips/ideas/recipes would be great.

[AggieMom]

Step one:
Go to http://beefjerky.tamu.edu/

Step two:
Place order.

Step three:
Enjoy!

[lordoffire]

Quote from AggieMom : Step one: Go to http://beefjerky.tamu.edu/ Step two: Place order. Step three: Enjoy!

....WOW....they have a "Meat Science & Technology Center" where they make jerky.....I knew there was an ice cream school, but this is nuts!......or rather TASTY!......but pricey; $23.50 for ONE 1/2 LB bag....

[mattman688]

my uncle uses a dehydrator...and he used to sell his recipes on ebay..let me ask him

[lordoffire]

Quote from mattman688 : my uncle uses a dehydrator...and he used to sell his recipes on ebay..let me ask him

cool.....I am looking at getting a bundle kit for now, somethin like this:

http://www.amazon.com/Nesco-Ameri...722&sr=8-2

[Zoe Moon]

I just used the fridge. After stringing up the meat, I'd dip it into some boiling salted water just for a few seconds. Then I would dip it in some Wrights Liquid Smoke making sure to coat it well. Then sprinkle on some cracked pepper and hang the pieces on a wooden spoon and hang them up in the fridge for a few days to age. If you don't have the grill type of shelves, you can just stick tall cans or boxes in the fridge and lay the spoon across them. I would do a test taste after a few days to see how much longer they needed to age.

One warning though, your whole fridge will smell of the liquid smoke while you're doing this so keep any cheeses and butter well wrapped so they don't absorb the smell.

Oh and you can add a little brown sugar to it if you like your jerky sweet.

[z2g]

Quote from Zoe Moon : I just used the fridge. After stringing up the meat, I'd dip it into some boiling salted water just for a few seconds. Then I would dip it in some Wrights Liquid Smoke making sure to coat it well. Then sprinkle on some cracked pepper and hang the pieces on a wooden spoon and hang them up in the fridge for a few days to age. If you don't have the grill type of shelves, you can just stick tall cans or boxes in the fridge and lay the spoon across them. I would do a test taste after a few days to see how much longer they needed to age. One warning though, your whole fridge will smell of the liquid smoke while you're doing this so keep any cheeses and butter well wrapped so they don't absorb the smell. Oh and you can add a little brown sugar to it if you like your jerky sweet.

Is this safe? I thought that making jerky involved drying in slight heat or warm temps. In the fridge, it's dry but cold.

[hammondc]

i have a dehydrator and a jerky gun. Really depends on what kind u like. Jerk gun makes flat jerky like flat slim jim type stuff. I use 87% ground for that, I also have a snack stick attachment to make regular slim jim type stuff. Thirdly, u can use stew meat, fajita meat or sliced flat steak to make thicker jerky.

[Zoe Moon]

Quote from z2g : Is this safe? I thought that making jerky involved drying in slight heat or warm temps. In the fridge, it's dry but cold.

I never had a problem with it. By dipping it in the boiling salted water, you kill any bacteria that's on the outside of the meat. Then the meat cures in the dry fridge. I always used thin slices, not more than a 1/4 thick so it wouldn't take so long to cure.

[wingrider]

I've used the seasonings from Hi Mountain [himtnjerky.com] with good success on beef, lamb, and venison. It works in the oven pretty good.

[AggieMom]

Quote from lordoffire : ....WOW....they have a "Meat Science & Technology Center" where they make jerky.....I knew there was an ice cream school, but this is nuts!......or rather TASTY!......but pricey; $23.50 for ONE 1/2 LB bag....

It is really tasty. We were there a few weeks ago and picked up 3#. No shipping ftw! They ship it overnight on dry ice.

[n19htmare]

Quote from lordoffire : ....WOW....they have a "Meat Science & Technology Center" where they make jerky.....I knew there was an ice cream school, but this is nuts!......or rather TASTY!......but pricey; $23.50 for ONE 1/2 LB bag....

They should describe their shipping method to justify the high shipping cost.

[z2g]

Quote from AggieMom : It is really tasty. We were there a few weeks ago and picked up 3#. No shipping ftw! They ship it overnight on dry ice.

If it's beef jerky, why the need for dry ice?!?!?

[Peachyum]

<-- Beef jerky people person

Nesco, to me, is the best for seasoning. There are brands that you can buy at the grocery store as well but they just aren't as ... permeating of the meat, I guess you could say, with the flavor no matter how thin or thick the meat is sliced. You can buy the Nesco seasoning either through Amazon like you're doing for the dehydrator or through Nesco's own site. We bought a meat slicer from Nesco last year that is over 150 amps so it cuts cleanly and thinly. Prior to that we were buying either round steak and having the butcher run the meat through the tenderizer twice, or brascioli which is uber thin already so you just need to slice it once into the width you want it at. When I make jerky, I usually make about two full gallon sized ziplock bags full. We take it on trips for a quick snack but wherever we have it at, it never lasts long. It's addicting.

[dayv]

Quote from lordoffire : I am looking to make some beef jerky sometime in the near future. Has anybody had great success in making it themselves? Use a kit or make your own stuff? Dehydrator vs. Oven? Which meat(s) do you prefer? Any tips/ideas/recipes would be great.

i did it in the oven.

used a recipe i found online. soy, teryaki, brown sugar, black pepper and i added some meat tenderizer.

if you do it in the oven make sure you put something on the bottom to catch any drippings. i neglected to do that and i made a pizza the next day and smoked myself out of the kitchen.
d-ave