You JERK(y)!

[Old Ironsights]

I just did this post for some guys on Leverguns and thought I's cross-post it here..

Making Oven-Jerky.

It's not really complicated or fancy, but it works. It DOES work best in the dead of winter on a beastly cold and dry day though becase you are leaving your oven door open... keep that in mind.

Gas ovens work best. Electric just doesn't dry as well or circulate the air as well. They work, but they require a bit more tweaking.

Here is the Jerky Block I use to slice whole-tissue into .375 thick slices. The back side is routed to aid in slicing off particularly annoying silverskin.
http://i5.photobucket.com/albums/y180/MrMisanthrope/IMG_5813.jpghttp://i5.photobucket.com/albums/y180/MrMisanthrope/IMG_5814.jpg
Simple enough to make and wildly handy. Lay a hunk-o-meat in the trough and run a fillet knife down the rails. Instant Jerky Slice.

I make my Jerky Marianade mostly by Guess and by Golly to a highly acidic taste, but DO include commercial sodium nitrate to aid in the cure process. I do NOT use water in my marianade. I use only Booze, Vinegars and acidic/capsacianic Juices. Tap Water is crawling with bugs & chemicals I don't want on my meat. (yes, capsacian is an alkaloid and counters some of the acidity, but I think it helps ballance the blend...)

Here is my Meat Slices soaking in Jerky Brew. It has been like this at 38deg & mixed about once a day for the last week.
http://i5.photobucket.com/albums/y180/MrMisanthrope/IMG_5817.jpg
Before placing the meat strips on the drying rack(s) you need to "milk" the excess Jerky Brew off the strips - otherwise you will be burning juice & humidifying the oven as much as drying meat. Layered on a Drying Rack:
http://i5.photobucket.com/albums/y180/MrMisanthrope/IMG_5819.jpg
I sprinkle Ground Pepper on both sides of each strip.
Ready for the Oven:
http://i5.photobucket.com/albums/y180/MrMisanthrope/IMG_5820.jpghttp://i5.photobucket.com/albums/y180/MrMisanthrope/IMG_5822.jpg
Crack the door open:
http://i5.photobucket.com/albums/y180/MrMisanthrope/IMG_5825.jpg

Try to keep the ambient in the oven around 150-160deg. DO NOT TRUST THE OVEN TEMP GUAGE/SENSOR. Get a thermometer you can put inside and see through the cracked open door.

After 2hrs I pull the racks out and turn all the meat:
http://i5.photobucket.com/albums/y180/MrMisanthrope/IMG_5826.jpg
Then do it again every Hour.

I find it takes anywhere from 4 to 6 hours to sufficiently dry the jerky in my oven.

5 Trays of Strips will condense down to 3 or 4 trays as you rotate the trays & turn the strips.

More later when the Jerky is done...

[garandsrus]

Ironsights,

I make jerky in the oven also. I skewer a strip of meat with a bamboo skewers and hang the meat from the top rack of the oven instead of laying it on the rack. You can dry three or 4 times the jerky that way. I have had over 100 pieces drying at a time.

John

[Old Ironsights]

I'm not sure that would work quite as well for the length of strips I have.... maybe for about 1/2... but I've thought about it.

I get about 6lbs of ready-to-eat jerky off of each batch of 5 trays.

[carpetman]

OI---nice looking set up and work. Clean looking environment (didn't see any cats crawling around on the counter). Good idea on the slicer. I do question using the oven vs getting a dehydrator---costs more to operate an oven--would think that the dehydrator would soon pay for itself. Ever use soy sauce as the liquid? Also have you tried ground meat with a jerky gun? I have done it both ways and I guess it's like bottom pour or ladle--pretty much individual preference--I like the jerky gun better.

[jawjaboy]

http://i56.photobucket.com/albums/g194/jawjaboy/IM000330.jpg

http://i56.photobucket.com/albums/g194/jawjaboy/IM000334.jpg

[Old Ironsights]

OI---nice looking set up and work. Clean looking environment (didn't see any cats crawling around on the counter). Good idea on the slicer. I do question using the oven vs getting a dehydrator---costs more to operate an oven--would think that the dehydrator would soon pay for itself. Ever use soy sauce as the liquid? Also have you tried ground meat with a jerky gun? I have done it both ways and I guess it's like bottom pour or ladle--pretty much individual preference--I like the jerky gun better.

When I get done with the whole meat I have 45# of ground to turn into SlimJims...

Yeah, I know the oven costs more than a dehydrator, but I don't have a lot of space/countertop. I live in a small condo... that's also why I only make Jerky in the winter... so the heat from the oven gets used in the house rather than just getting wasted.

Soy is one of the additives I use on occasion - if I feel I need both more liquid & salt.

[John Boy]

Try making Jerky from goose or duck bre*sts (The real word is blocked) - works the same way and good eating

[Old Ironsights]

Duck breasts vs Foul boobies? Gotta love technology... :roll:

Edit: ...^^^... See? Not blocked. :mrgreen:

[Four Fingers of Death]

What part of the animal do you make jerkey out of. I fancy roasting or stewing the tender bits and making the jerkey out of the chewy bits. Is this sound?
Four Fingers.

[Old Ironsights]

As most people can probably attest, I'm a bit odd.

I don't "butcher" an animal in the traditional sense as much as disasemble it into component muscle groups.

I keep the Loins and a few choice bits as steaks, but I'm not one for sawing bones.

Out of a typical deer where you keep, say, 50lb of edible meat I will only keep about 8 lb in steaks, and maybe one 3 lb roast. All of the rest of the low-tendon-ratio meat gets sliced into jerky and the ballance gets ground up for about 5 lb of ground & the rest in Sausage/meat sticks.

Currently I'm sitting on 45# of steaks/roasts and 15# ground...

This year's batch of 35# of jerky slices came from 2 deer + 10lb that was mislabeled as "grinders" from last year. I made up about as much last year, and half that amount the year before.

I'm working on prepping a big batch of snack sticks next, from 45 lb of clean 1/8" ground... the ballance of the 5 deer & 1 fawn taken over the past 3 years.

(rough numbers...)