Update 9/23/2020 – I’ve learned a lot about jerky since I wrote this post oh so many years ago and I’ve updated the original recipe to include some safety information.
This post has been one of the most popular over the years… even now.. still I get pingbacks.
I am a sucker for jerky. It used to be that I was the only one who understood the allure of jerky but evidently that’s changed. I’m seeing so much love for jerky lately that it just warms my heart.
Jerky is the perfect food, in my book. It’s portable, it’s shelf stable it will keep for a long time stashed in the freezer or fridge, and it’s loaded full of protein. Awesome for after a work out.
See? Perfect food.
I actually had it for breakfast this morning. Don’t judge.. you just jealous.
I usually get an eye round roast when I see it on sale and clean it up myself with my knife.
Big eye round roast
My idea of perfect jerky is toothsome.. meaning, I have to really rip into it and CHEW. So for that I cut long strips with the grain of the meat.
I usually brine my jerky meat in a apple jalapeno mixture, but this time I wanted to try something a bit sweeter.
So I chopped up some fresh garlic and ginger and poached it in some honey and water until it was soft.
And then I added these:
Then I pureed the crap out of it with my boat motor
And let that cool.. then I smooshed it all over the meat.
Popped that into the fridge overnight and in the morning, I spread it out over my dehydrator trays and let it run at 160 degrees for about 9 hours
You want some? Lemme give you the recipe:
Honey Garlic Ginger Beef Jerky
Course: SnacksCuisine: Asian InspiredDifficulty: Medium10
servings20
minutes8
minutes8
hoursHoney, ginger and garlic combine for a savory sweet, Asian inspired beef jerky
Ingredients
4-5 pounds of lean beef, cut into strips
½ cup of honey
6 cloves of garlic, chopped
2 inch chunk of fresh ginger, peeled and chopped
¼ cup canning or Kosher salt
½ cup water
½ tsp ground cardamom
⅛ tsp ground cloves
Directions
- Put the honey, garlic and ginger is a small sauce pot and heat until just boiling. Reduce heat to a simmer.
- Add salt and water to the pot, stirring to dissolve the salt.
- Simmer for about 15 minutes or until the ginger and garlic are soft.
- Add the cardamom and cloves and immediately remove from heat. Stir
- Puree with immersion blender, regular blender or food processor.
- Allow marinade to cool.
- Add the marinade to the meat and smoosh it with your hands to get every piece covered.
- Put the meat mixture in a plastic bag and allow to marinate over night.
- Put the strips of meat on a dehydrator tray and dehydrate at 160 degrees until dry but still bendy. About 8-9 hours.
- Place the jerky in an oven preheated to 275 degrees and heat it for 10 minutes.
Notes
- Important: if your dehydrator will not maintain a temperature of 160 degrees, you do risk food borne illness. Make jerky at your own risk.
- As of September 2020, the USDA now recommends that raw, marinated meat be heated to 160 BEFORE dehydrating to kill off any food borne pathogens. I have my personal opinions on this, however, I would be remiss if I didn’t provide the information here: https://ask.usda.gov/s/article/How-do-I-dry-jerky
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