How to Make Jerky

Contrary to popular belief making your own jerky is quite simple. With just a few items you can make the best jerky you have every tasted. Food dehydrators have become quite affordable, and you can make a whole list of cheap and healthy snacks with them. You can use just about any meat you like to make jerky. A few examples are turkey, beef, pork or even venison. It takes about 8 hours to make jerky in a dehydrator after you let your meat marinade overnight. The following is a list of ingredients and directions to make your own beef jerky.

Things you will need:

Food dehydrator

2 lbs. beef (partially frozen to slice thin, any cut will do e.g. round steak, flank, brisket)

Liquid smoke flavoring

Soy sauce

Brown sugar

All purpose seasoning

Directions

Step 1

Cut steak in thin strips about 3-4 inches long.

Step 2

In a large bowl mix, mix one bottle of 12-14 ounces soy sauce, ¾ cup brown sugar, and 2 ounces liquid smoke flavoring. Mix until sugar is dissolved.

Step 3

Add the sliced meat to the mixture and refrigerate overnight.

Step 4

In the morning, drain the marinade from bowl, and add the pieces of meat onto the dehydrator racks.

Step 5

Turn on the machine and leave it for at least 6-8 hours.

Step 6

Remove your jerky from the dehydrator, and put it into plastic bag. Sprinkle with all purpose seasoning and shake the bag well enough to coat the jerky with seasoning. Enjoy your jerky; your family will thank you for the treat!

Tips

Substitute the beef with another type of meat if you prefer.

Warnings

Beware of under-dehydrating and over-dehydrating your jerky; 6-8 hours of dehydration ensures a perfect jerky.