Jerky: benefits, practicality of a meat snack and pleasure for gourmets

Jerky is dried meat, which is prepared from raw marinated meat by drying it at low temperature in a special way. The word “jerky” originates from the Indian word “ch"arki,” which translates as “dried meat.” South American Indian tribes dried meat in the sun or over a fire, preserving nutrients and vitamins.

Since there were no refrigerators, this was also a way for them to preserve excess meat. Nowadays jerky is especially known and appreciated in the USA and Western Europe. Since 1996, jerky has been included in the diet for NASA astronauts due to its low weight and high calorie content.

Jerky (dried meat) was invented when there were only a few known ways to keep food fresh. The main things were drying and salting, which was applied to jerky. Corned beef was not very convenient for nomadic tribes, as it completely retained its volume and weight. And the jerky could easily be taken on the road. Drying fatty meat was practiced in South America, while North American Indians smoked lean meat, which had a characteristic aroma of campfire smoke.

This simple and uncomplicated, but very useful method of preparing dried meat was brought to Europe by the Spaniards, who borrowed it from the South American Quechua tribe when they arrived on the new continent. The Spaniards appreciated the benefits of dried meat for long sea voyages. The settlers who set out to conquer the New World laid thin slices of meat on top of the cart, and the jerks were dried under the scorching sun for at least three days.

And now there are a lot of fans of dried meat. These include lovers of hiking, picnics in nature, and those who simply love beer, because dried beef, turkey, and venison perfectly complement the taste of the foamy drink. Today's selection of jerky in stores makes it easy to purchase a pack of jerky. However, like any industrial product, it has a serious drawback: preservatives, flavor enhancers, dyes, and too much salt are added to such meat. That is why for lovers of high-quality and tasty jerky, the best option would be to prepare jerky yourself using an Isidri dryer. When drying meat at home, you can marinate it with the addition of your favorite spices to get the perfect product to taste.

Cooking features

Jerky is a great snack option. It consists of a single piece of meat, is stored for a long time, and has a spicy, islandy taste. The product will not lose its nutritional properties and at the same time has very small dimensions. The main thing in the process of preparing jerky is the removal of moisture from the meat, that is, dehydration. You can prepare jerky in this way in industrial ovens at a low temperature; at home, an electric frying cabinet or oven is quite suitable. It would be an ideal device for making dried meat. Due to slow drying at a low temperature and excellent air circulation in the dryer, jerky acquires a rich meaty taste and a very beautiful color, and is stored for a long time.

The taste of jerky may vary depending on the components added to the marinade. You can add honey, liquid smoke, Tabasco sauce, Dijon mustard and any seasonings that are suitable for meat. Therefore, the tastes turn out to be salty-smoked, tart, and maybe a little sweet. The temperature and drying time for jerky vary, you can choose the recipe depending on your taste. The traditional recipe includes a piece of meat and a marinade consisting of soy sauce, garlic powder, black pepper, Worcestershire sauce, onion powder, smoke nut salt. In general, jerky is considered a product made from a variety of meats, but preference is given to beef marinated in various spices and seasonings. Of course, it is better to cook jerky yourself. Moreover, it is not that difficult to do.

The choice of meat is the determining factor in cooking jerky. Any lean meat is suitable: beef, elk, venison, turkey. But pork should be used with caution, since fat interferes with the evaporation of moisture. The ideal meat for jerky is a cut of the carcass without films or fat. If there are any, then the fat and films need to be removed. Salt helps inhibit the development of bacteria and accelerates the release of moisture in the meat. But you can replace it with a combination of sauces (Worcestershire and soy), add a mixture of dry garlic and onions. Then the jerky will acquire a very rich piquant taste.

An important factor in preparing jerky is proper air circulation in the dryer. This promotes uniform drying and gradual release of moisture from the meat during the prolonged drying process. The Isidri dryer will ensure optimal air circulation and the jerky will turn out incredibly tasty. The thinner the strips of meat, the longer they can be preserved.

Jerky is also prepared from minced meat. You can use a piece of meat, but mince it before marinating. You can also purchase ready-made lean minced meat, but it must be of good quality.

In this case, the cooking process is slightly different. Minced meat should not be frozen for long, as it freezes faster. Next, the minced meat is deposited onto paper using a pastry bag with a flat nozzle and placed in the dryer to cook. The process of preparing jerky from minced meat and from a whole piece of meat is completely identical, but it is important not to forget to turn the jerky from minced meat to the other side when half the drying time has passed.

There are several little secrets for cooking jerky:
1. Before slicing meat, it should be placed in the freezer for a short time. You should not overcook it so as not to turn it into an ice block; the meat should only be slightly frozen for easier slicing.
2. The meat should be cut across the grain, otherwise it will be very difficult to chew.
3. The thicker the pieces of meat, the longer it will take to dry.
4. After mixing all the ingredients for the marinade, the meat is immersed in it, leaving to marinate in the refrigerator for 12 hours or a day. After this time, you can start drying the jerky.
5. Proper jerky should not be dry, it bends softly and a slice can be easily broken off. When jerky comes out of the dryer, it begins to harden quickly.
6. After drying, leave the jerky at room temperature.
7. You can store jerky in an airtight container for up to six months.

Beneficial features

Meat is necessary for the human body to replenish the amount of protein, which is a building material for the cells of our body. This nutritious and healthy product is indispensable for humans. For this reason, people try to preserve its distinctive taste. Jerky is a very filling and highly concentrated source of nutrients. As a result of uniform, many-hour exposure to low temperature during drying, it retains all the proteins, vitamins, and amino acids that were in raw meat. Jerky protein is easily absorbed by the human body.

Jerky is an excellent source of proteins, vitamins, iron, and zinc. They are made from lean meat, so these snacks are healthy and very tasty. Jerky can replace sports protein shakes and bars, but the product does not contain gluten or preservatives. That is why more and more people are starting to prefer dried meat every day. The absence of preservatives is an important factor for people leading a healthy lifestyle. A long shelf life makes jerky popular among tourists, and its excellent taste and piquant aromas, which are unique only to dried meat, attract lovers of a foamy drink and quick “snacks” to the group of jerky fans. This meat product can be enjoyed without harming your figure.

Jerky is the best option for a hike

Meat is a necessary product for tourists. It quickly saturates the body and helps to recover faster after physical exertion, which is important during a long journey. But meat is the most problematic from the point of view of its preservation during a long hike. It quickly loses its freshness, and the stew is quite difficult to carry with you, and finding a quality product is quite difficult now. Meat snacks prepared in the Ezidri dryer are an excellent option to overcome this situation.

To provide a person’s daily requirement of protein while camping, you need 200 grams of beef stew or 150 grams of sausage, only if the product meets all quality standards and has a protein content of at least 10%. You only need 50 grams of dried meat. Such meat is taken on the road in plastic containers or in fabric bags. And at rest, you can simply chew the meat as a snack, or add it to porridges and soups. When it boils, it will look like fragrant meatballs. In the fresh air by the fire, jerky will go great. This is a real find for tourists. In addition, preparing it yourself at home is quite possible. All you need is the meat itself, your favorite spices and an Ezidri meat dryer, with which even a beginner can cope with cooking jerky.

Dehydrated meat has a small mass (a kilogram of raw product yields only 240 grams of dried meat), its shelf life increases to six months. In the absence of water, bacteria do not multiply in the meat and the product will not spoil. All this makes jerky a good option for long treks and travel. Sausage, ham, and cutlets are not profitable to take on a hike; they take up a lot of space in your backpack and need to be eaten as quickly as possible. Uncooked smoked meat is stored longer, but it is very expensive and contains a lot of preservatives and fat. The stew will also need to be eaten at one time, because it cannot be packed back into the jar.

Meat has a very short shelf life, and if you are planning a long trip to sparsely populated areas, then you should take care of food preparation. After all, dried meat has an almost endless shelf life, and restoring it after drying is as easy as shelling pears. Pour a handful of meat into the porridge or soup you are preparing, and after a few minutes it will become as before again - juicy and aromatic.

If you really need meat for long-term storage, then choose meat that is not fatty, without veins or skin. Beef, lamb, venison and horse meat are suitable for drying.

Trim the meat from the bone and cut it into small slices across the grain.

Try to keep the sizes of the plates more or less the same, so the meat will dry more evenly.

The next step is marinating the meat. Do you like kebab? So, here you need to prepare exactly the same marinade, with the same spices. Pour the marinade over the meat and leave it in the refrigerator for a day.

When the meat is marinated, you need to drain the liquid. You can simply put the meat on a sieve and wait, or forcefully squeeze it out under pressure.

Place the pieces of meat on the electric dryer racks, set the temperature to 70 degrees, and turn it over from time to time. In principle, after 3 hours the meat can already be eaten, but for long-term storage it still needs to be dried until all the moisture has evaporated.

You can also dry the meat in the oven, at temperatures up to 70 degrees and with the door ajar.

Meat dried in this way is very tasty, but not everyone can handle it, so let’s consider another method of drying meat. It is called “African”, although many nations attribute to themselves the primacy of the invention of this dish.

Dried meat in the fresh air.

In Africa, they simply rub the meat with spices and hang it outside. The hot sun and wind do their job in a couple of days.

The method is good, but not suitable for our housewives. Huge drying cabinets, where you can dry meat not in plates, but in larger pieces, are expensive. But if you use your ingenuity, you can make a drying cabinet from what you have at hand.

A plastic box, a computer cooler, and a grill, that’s all you need for a drying cabinet.

The drying method is the same as when drying meat in slices, but since this meat is not intended for long-term storage, it can be marinated in wine rather than vinegar. You can use poultry and not very fatty pork. Hang the pieces of meat on hooks or place them on a wire rack and turn on the fan.

Dried meat is a very nutritious product that can be stored for a long time if it is well packaged. One piece of such a product is enough for a person for half a day. The meat gradually swells in the stomach and is digested, the feeling of hunger does not appear for a long time. But you will feel slightly thirsty due to the process of absorbing liquid, although there is nothing to worry about.

Dried meat

This meat is a wonderful product for lovers of hiking and extreme conditions, athletes. It is very easy and quick to have a snack on the go, and at the same time it will provide you with a quick surge of strength and energy. And this means a lot in traveling conditions.

In addition, dried meat can be easily turned into regular meat. To do this, just fill it with hot water and leave for an hour until it returns to its previous state. Or you can simply add a piece of this product when cooking soup.

How to cook dried meat

It is quite easy to prepare at home. It's a simple process. Lamb is good for this and it’s better not to use it. It does not make a normal product.

Of course, the meat must be fresh. This is the main condition. In addition, it should be completely non-greasy, without streaks.

The beef needs to be cut into pieces. It is better if their thickness is no more than one centimeter. But even if you end up with thicker pieces, that’s okay. The cooking process will just take longer.

The thinner you cut it, the faster your meat will dry out. Even when preparing, you need to consider for what purpose you are preparing such a product. If you use it at home, feel free to make thick pieces. But if you are going to take it on a hike, then the pieces must certainly be thin. This will make it easier to use it on the road. Agree that a thick piece will be difficult to chew.

Dried meat: homemade recipe

The meat must be cut across the fibers so that later they do not interfere so much during the eating process. We put the prepared pieces into a bowl, and we ourselves begin to prepare the brine, which we will need later.

To prepare it we need a mixture of peppers. You can purchase a set of a combination of several types: red, black, white, green. But you can also obtain such a mixture yourself by grinding individual types in a coffee grinder. The result will be no worse. We will also need salt, bay leaf, soy sauce, sugar and boiling water.

For two kilograms of beef, the amount of ingredients will be as follows:

1. Two full teaspoons of table salt.
2. Also two teaspoons of pepper mixture.
3. Fifty milliliters of soy sauce will be enough.
4. A teaspoon of granulated sugar.
5. A few chopped bay leaves.
6. You can also add some herbs for the meat.

Mix all these ingredients in one bowl and pour a glass of boiling water. The resulting solution must be stirred so that the salt is completely dissolved.

Next, pour brine over our meat, mix everything so that each piece receives its own portion of salt and spices. Cover the pan with a lid; no excess air should enter it. And we put it in the refrigerator for three days. During this time, the meat will soften and become saturated with salt and spices.

Sugar makes meat taste more tender, enhancing its aroma. Salt provides protection against the development of microorganisms. And soy sauce gives it a special flavor. It makes dried meat at home much tastier.

Drying the meat

There is a special meat dryer that will facilitate the cooking process at home. After the beef has been in the brine, it can be placed in the dryer. You can also cook dried meat using the oven. In any case, the result is good.

If you have a meat dehydrator, place the beef pieces on wire racks. The bottom layer of meat can be laid from larger pieces, since it dries out faster.

Oven drying

If you decide to cook dried meat in the oven, then this is done as follows.

The oven must be preheated to seventy degrees. Beef should be cooked until completely dry. During the process, you need to keep the oven slightly open, since the moisture will need to escape somewhere.

Remember to dry the meat with the gas turned off. Periodically, the baking sheet with beef must be taken out and the oven preheated. Then return the meat to its place.

You will spend about a day drying. If you cook the meat less, it will simply lose some of the moisture, but will not dry out completely. You will receive It will not last very long. Although quite suitable for a two-week trip. At first it can be eaten without additional cooking, but after a week and a half it is better to use it for making soups or frying.

For long-term storage without refrigeration, the meat must dry out to a stone state. The optimal temperature for the cooking process is seventy degrees. You shouldn’t exceed it, but you shouldn’t reduce it either. At high temperatures, meat can cook to an unacceptable state.

Dried meat should be stored in a dry place without access to air in the dark. This is a very important condition. The best option would be to pack it either in plastic bags or glass jars.

• Thinly sliced ​​meat dries faster and is more convenient to eat while hiking.
• The finished beef can be kept on paper for about a day before packaging. This is done so that the moisture evaporates. Experience shows that this increases the shelf life of meat without refrigeration. And in weather conditions this is very important.
• While in the oven, you can place a baking sheet under the rack. This will help keep it clean. In addition, the entire oven will have to be washed, since it retains the smell persistently.
• Gnawing on ready-made slices of dried meat is very tasty. But you need to be careful and take care of your teeth.

Instead of an afterword

Many people want to learn how to cook dried meat. However, not everyone knows what such a product is called. This meat is called basturma. Currently, it is considered almost a delicacy, although it was originally invented as a traveling food option for shepherds and hunters who did not return home for a long time and were forced to take a supply of food with them. And such meat was very convenient to store and quite high in calories.

Today we will tell you how to make jerky at home. By choosing the most suitable cooking option for yourself, you can ensure that your table has the most delicious, and most importantly natural, meat delicacy without any additives.

Homemade jerky - recipe

Ingredients:

• pork neck – 1 kg;
• ground red pepper;
• ground black pepper;
• allspice peas;
• bay leaves;
• coriander;
• rosemary;
• caraway;
• paprika;

For the brine:

• purified water – 1 l;
• non-iodized salt – 140 g;
• granulated sugar – 30 g;
• bay leaves – 2 pcs.;
• allspice peas – 5 pcs.;
• cloves – 1 pc.

Preparation

First, let's prepare the brine for the jerky. To do this, pour purified water into a container suitable for marinating, add salt, granulated sugar, throw in bay leaves, allspice peas, a clove bud and put on fire. Heat the marinade to a boil, stirring until the salt and sugar dissolve, and let cool completely.

In the meantime, prepare the meat. The ideal option for pickling and drying would be an oblong, not very thick piece with small layers of fat. This meat will be well salted and when finished it will not be dry and moderately juicy. We wash it in cold water, get rid of large veins and films, immerse it in brine and put it in the refrigerator for twenty-four hours. If you want to get a saltier result, you need to soak the meat in brine for two or three days. Another important point. There should be enough brine to completely cover the meat, so if necessary, you need to prepare one and a half or double portions of the marinade.

Remove the marinated piece of meat from the brine, pat it thoroughly from moisture with paper towels and place under a press for one hour.

While the remaining liquid is removed, let's deal with the spices. The ideal option for rubbing meat would be a freshly ground mixture prepared by grinding peas, grains and leaves in a mortar, but you can also use ready-made ground spices. Mix all the spices in a separate bowl, paying special attention to ground red pepper, because it is an excellent natural preservative. You can replace some spices with others to suit your taste or add a little more salt. Thoroughly rub the meat on all sides with the spicy mixture, wrap it in a clean cloth folded in several layers of gauze or parchment paper and place it in the refrigerator for seven days.

After the time has passed, we update the layer of spices by breading the piece of meat again, place it in a fabric bag and hang it in a well-ventilated place for two weeks.

After time, the delicious meat delicacy will be ready. Bon appetit!

Dried meat in the dehydrator

Ingredients:

• any meat (pulp);

For the marinade:

• - taste;
• olive oil - to taste;
• granulated sugar - to taste;
• lemon juice - to taste;
• - taste;
• salt - to taste.

Preparation

You can dry any meat, including sirloin, in an electric dryer. To do this, wash it in cold water, wipe it dry, cut it into layers up to one centimeter thick and soak in the marinade for one hour. To prepare it, mix soy sauce, olive oil, add granulated sugar, lemon juice, Dijon mustard and salt. Don't forget that soy sauce is already quite salty.

Place the marinated meat slices on the tray of an electric dryer and keep at 60 degrees for six to eight hours. Halfway through the cycle, turn the meat over to the other side once. Depending on your preference, you can dry the meat a little longer and get a firmer, drier texture in the finished jerky.

You can cook jerky in the oven in a similar manner by placing it on a lined baking sheet and keeping it at the same temperature until it reaches the desired degree of drying. The oven door should be slightly open during the cooking process.

Wikipedia tells us that jerks are pieces of dried meat, dried under special conditions (using special means, yeah). They also write that NASA astronauts eat it with great pleasure, since it is very nutritious and weighs little. We don’t care about this, since it’s simply very tasty and convenient to take on the road. Or you can even chop it finely and brew it into a camp porridge

For cooking you will need:
1) Meat - beef (and I also took chicken)

2) Sauces - soy sauce, Worcestershire sauce, Tobasco, liquid smoke.

3) Seasonings – pepper (ground black, red, garlic), garlic powder or squeezed/chopped garlic, barbecue seasonings (the marinade for the chicken also had some curry in it)

First we cut the meat. We will need to cut it into thin plates (strips), about 2-4 mm thick (the main thing here is repeatability, otherwise during cooking some of the meat may dry out and some may not dry out)

Marinade. This is where the difference between the recipes lies - I usually add the following marinade base by eye: 60% soy sauce, 40% Worcestershire sauce. The base should cover all the meat located in the container. Then I add some peppers (strong preference for red), some other seasonings, a few drops of Tobasco, a tablespoon of liquid smoke. The mixture of base, seasonings and meat is mixed and covered with film to prevent access to air. All this is put in the refrigerator for 6-8 hours. Then I just put the meat in an electric dryer overnight at 70 degrees.

Next, you will need to remove it, cut/tear it into pieces and store them in a dry place, isolated from air. Depending on the storage method, meat can usually last about a week before it spoils (I must admit that I have never had it for that long...). This product has a fairly strong taste and satisfies hunger quite well. It also goes well as a snack with light alcoholic drinks (beer and red wine). You can (and should) experiment with spices.