JERKY HELP !!!

[Moosie]

So, I've been makin' Jerkey with all these ducks I'm getting. But don't know if I'm doing it right. My highest setting is 145Deg. I cut the meat up as thin as I can get it and then put it in the Dehydrator for like 9 hours.

Here's my question. When do you know it's done ? I always tend to leave it so it's dry and hard. But sometimes there is Meat that is still "MEAT" looking and chewy. Is that part done ? I jsut don't know if it would go bad on my if I don't dry it totally out so I always do. The problem is it's alot harder to chew when it's like Cardboard ?!?!

HELP, When is it done ?~??~?

 

[ktc]

Moosie,

I am jerky pro now! I bought some HiMountain jerky cure from the store they also have a website. www.himtnjerky.com It does not need to be "cooked" like a hard petrified piece of cow chit. The salt cures it. So if it is kinda chewy and meaty you won't wake up feeling

like crap. Ya don't even need to slice it too thin.

Look at the website. I think they even make a cure for that flying liver ya kill.

 

[JLG]

Moosie, I make dove & duck jerky, but I don't slice it thin. I debone all my meat and grind it up. I have what they call a jerky shooter it's basicly a chaulking gun that you fill with ground meat. I also use Hi-mountain products and I like them. If you use ground meat with the jerky shooter you get a more uniformed product and than you can also dry it out more uniformed as well. As it drys you can sample it occasionally until you get to a chewy or dryness you like, than call it good. The main thing is not to start it later at night because I always forget to check it and when I wake up in the morning I can resoul my boots with it. My last batch of jerky was turkey jerky, it turned out great, didn't last long either. I also refrigrate my jerky afterwards to avoid any potential spoilage problems. I have never got sick from chewy jerky. Good Luck, JLG.

<FONT COLOR="#800080" SIZE="1">[ 11-23-2003 10:33: Message edited by: JLG ]</font>

 

[ktc]

JLG, isn't that HiMountain stuff great. Good taste, good instruction, and the final product is yummy.

Moosie, when I did my deer this year I tried the oven and the dehydrator. The oven at about 120 took about 4 hours. The dehydrator to similar doneness took about 20 hours. I bagged mine in freezer bags and froze it. JLG makes a good point about keepin it cold. If ya freeze it you can nuke it for 15-20 seconds and its ready to eat. You can read the instructions on the website I provided. They warn ya to not overcook!

 

[tnctcb]

i am not a pro and ive only made jerky once but it seemed to go over well with the guys in wyoming.i dont like cardboard jerky so i left mine a little moist.i took the meat off as soon as it was the texture i wanted

 

[Elkhunter]

Tim's jerky was delicious and not too moist and not too dry. Thanks for the treat Tim.

 

[tnctcb]

my dehydrator only takes about 4 hours any longer than that and its like cardboard

 

[Elkhunter]

Well all I know is the jerky Tim made was great. Not too dry, not too moist and very flavourful.

 

[pawclaws]

What JLG said up there Moosie. Plus +++ when you use ground meat you can add your seasonings and preservatives without worrying about a marinade. Plus +++ if you want instead of salt you can use Potassium Nitrate as a preservative. You'll really, really like it!!