Ridiculously Delicious Homemade Beef Jerky

My Nesco was packed.

One of my favorite snacks from as far back as I can remember is beef jerky. Spicy, teriyaki, smoked, original...didn't matter. I'm pretty sure I could survive on jerky and water for as long as necessary.

I bought a dehydrator that I found via CraigsList last year and have used it to dehydrate fruits and veggies.  My first season of gardening (last year), I was doing very well with some jalapeno type peppers.  I hadn't perfected the art of making salsa and didn't want the peppers to go to waste so I started dehydrating the peppers for future use.

Nesco Jerky Gun & Kit

I had experimented with making beef jerky and the outcome tasted more like a salt lick than a chunk of beef.  I couldn't even pawn it off on the kids.  Somewhere I ran into someone who was talking about their homemade jerky and I asked how they made their own.  That's when I learned about the jerky gun.

I ordered one about a week ago from Amazon and finally got some free time to make my first batch.  I followed a recipe I read in the comments left by a reviewer of the actual jerky gun/kit that I purchased.  The recipe used three pounds of jerky and the results were stunning.  This was as close to store-bought beef jerky as I could imagine.  Same texture, delicious flavor and it only took about six hours in my little Nesco dehydrator.

Last time I bought some jerky it cost around $9.98 for one pound and this was the cheap Walmart "Great Value" brand.  Name brands were much more expensive and less quantity. Imagine my joy when I discovered I could make a pound of ridiculously delicious jerky for $3.17 per pound.  Now I know why I see guys selling this stuff on empty corner lots outside of city limits.  If I caught and butchered the animal myself, I could get the cost even lower.

Spice kit sold separately.

I've gotten to know my local butcher really well and I highly recommend doing that, if you can (getting to know him, that is).  My butcher will greet me when I shop and on occasion come and get me (when I'm shopping) to tell me about current sales.  Store policy is to mark meat down by 30% when it is approaching the "sell by" date which is usually two days prior to the marked date.  Butch, not sure if that's his real name or nickname but it's what everyone calls him, will mark the meat down lower for me and I'll buy a good 30-40 pounds.

I'll admit I'm a bit of a hoarder when it comes to meat but I see the writing on the wall in this economy.  So it serves Butch well to give me a deal because I'll clear out his meat counter in one fell swoop and he doesn't have to dispose of it...or whatever they do with it. My last purchase, which was yesterday, I picked up 73% hamburger for $1.67 / lb.  I know 73% is fatty and I used to only buy 93% or 96% on sale but things are a little different now than they were a few years ago.  No way am I paying $4 / lb for 96% beef.  I'm told fatter meat has more flavor...and that's good enough for me.

My jerky gun kit came with flavor packets and cure packets.  The math says it costs me about $1.50 per pound to season the meat. Add the $1.67 it cost me to purchase the pound of meat and that's where I get the $3.17 per pound to make my own jerky. Here's the recipe I used:

1 packet of Nesco Original flavor + cure packet
1 packet of Nesco Teriyaki flavor + cure packet
1 packet of Nesco Spicy flavor + cure packet
3 pounds of hamburger meat

I mixed it all in a large bowl by hand.  Then Wifey took the hand-me-down 1970's Brady Bunch green electric mixer and mixed the crap out of it.  Warning: old appliances were built to whoop some butt so be prepared for the meat to fling everywhere if you use a powered appliance.  Nevertheless, this stuff was mixed WELL.

I shoved the jerky gun as full as it would get and screwed on the end cap with the two strip adapter.  I squeezed out the meat in strips like you would use a caulking gun.  I filled up my entire Nesco dehydrator and had to start overlapping some meat to get it all to fit.

Marinating tomorrow's batch.

As the meat began to dehydrate, the aroma that filled the living room was heavenly.  Just about everyone was guilty of sneaking a bite here and there towards the end of the dehydrating cycle.  My next batch is already marinating in Panda Express teriyaki sauce.  I split up my five-pound chubs into two quart-sized zip locks so each has roughly 2.5 pounds.  I poured the teriyaki sauce in the bag, sealed it back up, and worked it around in the bag.  I'll let it soak overnight and make it tomorrow.

The Nesco BJX-8 Jumbo Jerky Works Kit w/jerky gun is at Amazon for $14.98.
Nesco BJX-8 Jumbo Jerky Works Kit (makes 6 lbs, includes cure) is at Amazon for $8.79.
I have a dehydrator similar to this but much older. It has five trays.  If you like jerky, I recommend this setup as it makes for terrific homemade jerky. 

Do you have a favorite jerky recipe? Please share!