User:GalBleecker931

Just like most preparation processes developed before the days of canning or refrigeration, jerking meat came about as a way of preserving the meat for times when there was no meat available. Likewise, the preservation principle is to dehydrate the meat and originally using a combination of sunlight followed by salt.

The sunlight method was found to be a bit hit and miss in terms of the quality of the end result and as the process evolved so the drying of the meat started to be done around a fire and nowadays it is done in either a smoker or an oven. Not all of us own smokers so in this guide I'm going to describe the process using your home oven.

To be fair, smoking does add a further dimension to the flavor of jerky but it's not essential. The main flavorings come from the marinade that is used in stage 2 so if we're going to get to stage 2 we'd better get on with stage 1.

Stage 1

Get a 850g (2lb) chunk of lean venison. (Fat in the finished product will turn rancid before the meat so any fat in your jerky will reduce the time for which it is edible). Venison is naturally a lean meat and this is why it is perfect for jerky, if there is any excess fat, trim it off.

Now slice the meat along the grain to create strips that are approximately 40-50mm wide and 6mm thick (1.5-2 inches x 0.25 inches), you can test whether you've done it along the grain by stretching your first strip lengthways, if it continues to stretch then you've got it right but if it tears then try cutting in another profile. You need to get this bit right otherwise your jerky will just fall apart when you come to dry it.

Stage 2

Time to make the marinade. I've written a simple one here:-

1/4 cup of soy sauce 1 tablespoon of Worcestershire sauce 1/2 teaspoon of Tender Quick 1/4 teaspoon black pepper 1/4 teaspoon garlic powder 1/4 teaspoon onion powder 1/4 teaspoon seasoned salt 2 tablespoons of brown sugar 2 tablespoons of liquid smoke

Just mix everything up and you're ready to add your strips of venison. Marinade overnight and then remove the venison ready for stage 3.

Stage 3

This is the drying process and it's in two simple steps but before we start make sure that you have an oven tray in the bottom of your oven to catch any drips. Lay your venison strips on the oven racks and set your oven off on the absolute lowest setting (hopefully about 65 Celsius or 150 Fahrenheit) for 3 hours then raise the temperature to 80 Celsius or 175 Fahrenheit for a further three hours and you've just made your own venison jerky.

Rather than being completely dry and brittle, your venison jerky should be slightly flexible. I think that it tastes better this way and to complete the preservation you can store in the refrigerator or freezer. www.raeucheroefen.info