Ok for you guys that have played with this a little what is the best way to crank this stuff out.

Do you use your Oven, Smoker or Dehydrator?

I have never made any but am excited to try some...

Smokers work good.

I make at least 200 lbs a year as I raise my own beef and ususally have a deer or Elk to deal with.

They all work well. You want to dry the meat not cook it. I built a smoke house so i use that now. I find the commercial cures too salty. I use Tender quick and add whatever else I want as seasoning, Grlic, Lemon pepper, Brown sugar. I also use some oriental Goyza sauce now and then. Add red pepper for some spice as well.

King

Can Tender Quik be bought in most grocery stores?

Used to make the stuff a lot a number of years ago. Always used the dehydrator to make it. Much more effecient and if you want the smoky taste...just add some liquid smoke to the marinade.

For the marinade, I used a combination of low salt soy sauce (regular is a little too salty), brown suger, worchester sauce and pepper as a base. Just make sure you use cheap lean meats like rump roasts, as dried beef fat does not taste very good. As for slicing it into thin jerky sized pieces, most meat counters will slice it for free.

Being that the meat is sliced thin, I never let it marinade longer then 10 min. At first, I would dry a few pieces at a time so you get the right flavor. Don't want to get stuck with a batch of either real salty, or flavorless jerky. Also want to make sure you don't over dry it as well. Good luck.

This works pretty well

For 4 to 5 pounds (Small Chief)
Bottom Round (or whatever) cut into ¼ thick strips
1 ½ cups Red Wine
1 Cup Brown Sugar
¼ Cup Kosher (Coarse) Salt
2 Cups Soy Sauce
1 Cup Water
2 Tbsp Crushed Garlic
1 Tbsp Tabasco (to taste)
2 Tbsp Black Pepper
½ - 1 Small Sweet Onion

Combine all the above. Marinade meat 8 to 12 hours. Multiple batches OK. Sprinkle with Crushed Red Pepper or Cayenne for a little extra kick. Smoke til its done, maybe 8 hours.

I use my smoker. Buy a cheap on sale roast and have the butcher slice it "for jerky" which I believe is against the grain. Myself I like it a bit thicker 1/4 inch or so. Use a scissor to cut off as much fat as you can. Fat goes rancid fast. I marinade in brown sugar, teryaki, white and black pepper, garlic, red peppers because I like it spicy and water. I marinade it for two days in the fridge. Then dangle the slices through the rungs of the grates. Let it dry for about an hour. Then plug in the smoker without wood for about an hour which will dry it some more. Then add mesquite chunks and smoke it for 2 to 4 hours. Not too much or you'll end up with brittle awful tasting stuff. My smoker has a water pan which helps to keep things from over drying.

Thanks for all the help, I like the idea of having the butcher slice it for ya!!! :p

Does jerky freeze well if vacuum packed so you can keep some around and not worry about it going bad?

i'll slice up some elk and deer each year for a batch or two of jerky, but it's much more convenient to buy some meat at the market and have them slice it for you, uniformly....the simplest brine is yoshidas original sauce, i add crushed red and coarse back peppers, and garlic, let sit overnight in fridge, smoke in my big chief......delicious!

Yes it freezes very well.

Tender quick can be found in most grocery stores in the salt section. It is a meat cure, as in a cold cure before smoking. Keeps things from going south on you.

Works great on those little bait clusters as well

Also try burger. Roll it out flat & cut into strips.

LT,

I find tenderquick at Safeway. Using tenderquick you do not have to freeze it .I use the vac sealer.