Beef Jerky

Beef Jerky

I inherited my parents Excalibur that they bought to dry fruit and make beef jerky….It gathered dust until I moved back to Hong Kong 2 years ago! They never made beef jerky. The search for good protein and fat snacks for the kids that dont contain nuts (school is nut free) led me to beef jerky. Finally I have actually made dehydrator beef jerky!

It is GOOOOOD!

Here’s how I did it- with some process pics to follow!

A delicious snack- packed with protein and fat. Fermented using apple cider vinegar and kefir then dehydrated to retain the probiotic goodness

1. 500g of sliced beef ( I used the hot pot beef- but you can use any cut- grass fed organic is ideal and slice really thinly)
2. 1 tbs liquid amino's or coconut amino's (see below on where to buy these)
3. 1/4 cup of apple cider vinegar (see below for the link to my homemade one)
4. 1/4 cup of water Kefir (flavoured or not. I use coconut sugar to make my water kefir)
5. 1tsp grated fresh ginger root
6. 3 cloves of garlic crushed
7. Juice of half a lemon
8. 1tsp mustard (I used Dijon)
9. 1tbs stewed apple (optional)
10. 1 1/2 tbs coconut sugar
11. pinch black pepper
12. Other optional extras;
13. Fennel seeds, cloves, cinnamon, coriander seeds, cumin

1. Prepare the marinade by mixing all the ingredients together in a bowl. Keep the meat separate first.
2. Taste the marinade and adjust if necessary.
3. Add the meat and cover. Allow the meat to marinade for between 10-24 hours.
4. Use baking paper and coconut oil to rub the sheets to try and reduce sticking (like you would grease a baking pan)
5. Cut the strips into bite size pieces and add to the dehydrator sheets
6. Dehydrate at 113 Fahrenheit or 45 degrees Centigrade. This is to keep the probiotic quality of the apple cider vinegar and kefir. (you can also do it in your oven on the lowest setting for 6-12 hours) at for between 12 and 24 hours until the desired crispyness. Flip the jerky if necessary.
7. Store in an airtight container to retain freshness. Does not need to be kept in the fridge.

1. In my house beef jerky goes pretty quickly! I add it to my kids and husbands lunch box and is a really filling snack for them. Moreish!
2. You can do this for any meat. The thin steak I used was so thin that the fat on it was thin enough to go crispy however fat does not really dehydrate well so it is better to trim the fat.
3. The ticker your meat the longer it may take to dehydrate
4. Also put a tray underneath the jerky with some baking paper or silicon sheets to catch and drips

Here is where you can buy liquid aminos and here for Coconut amino’s or try here for both

Here is my Apple Peel Cider Vinegar

Here are the photos to help you make it…

Beef in thin slices

Add Marinade

After 24 hours it is ready to dehydrate

Going in the dehydrator

After 12 hours in the dehydrator

Here are some great resources that helped me come up with my recipe and directions;

http://ohlardy.com/how-to-make-beef-jerky

http://www.homemademommy.net/2012/03/beef-jerky.html

http://friskylemon.com/2010/08/25/homemade-beef-jerky/

http://dehydratorbeefjerky.com/beef-jerky-faq.html

http://moderncaveman.org/projects/beef-jerky/how-to-make-beef-jerky.html

If you love fermenting come and check out my collection of inspiration from around the web. Full of drinks, foods and everything bacteria! Let me know if you would like to be a contributor.

Original article and pictures take loulanatural.com site