casebeag Posted February 19, 2012 Report Posted February 19, 2012 Stole the idea of the copper grounding wire shamelessly from Firemonkey. Did a test run last weekend to prove to myself that I could keep low temp with lots of air for long time. No problem. n68407 Not the perfect cuts for beef jerky, but it's what I had left from a freind's steer. Venison from local Big Sur buck shot in the fall. Different brine for each. Used Alton Brown's recipe for the beef and preferred it over the sweeter brine/marinade that we used on the Venison. Kept the KK at 150 degrees for 8 hours, wide open bottom vent, and a 1.5 turns on the top hat. Used maple for smoke. Need to do WAY more next time. n68408 n68409
Firemonkey Posted February 20, 2012 Report Posted February 20, 2012 Re: Beef and Venison jerky Yeah, no matter how much you THINK you have, it never lasts long enough!
slu Posted February 20, 2012 Report Posted February 20, 2012 Re: Beef and Venison jerky Better order another steer! BTW, What's the best cut of meat to use and how thick are you slicing it?
Firemonkey Posted February 21, 2012 Report Posted February 21, 2012 Re: Beef and Venison jerky You want to use a lean cut, as the fat will not dry out and let your jerky get rancid. Beyond that, I think it just depends on what you like. My personal favorite is to get a whole sirloin tip roast, which you can find for about $3/lb. Primeats will have to give the rundown of the various cuts in there, but there is some connective tissue inbetween the various muscles that come together to form this roast. I remove all the connective stuff and slice the outside muscles to make jerky, or stew/chili meat, then save the solid muscle in the middle for roast beef or pastrami. I like my jerky dense, and sort of chewy - but still where you can bite through a piece without too much yanking. Sirloin tip comes out like this. I have also used eye of round, because they looked much easier to cut into strips - no connective tissue inside - but the resulting jerky was more like rawhide. I cut the eye of round with the grain, so maybe going against the grain would help. To get end results to my personal preference, I cut about 1" wide strips to about the thickness of a pencil.
Tribeless Posted February 21, 2012 Report Posted February 21, 2012 Re: Beef and Venison jerky Goodness me. Right, Googling jerky ...
slu Posted February 21, 2012 Report Posted February 21, 2012 Re: Beef and Venison jerky Thanks FM. Just happen to have a sirloin tip in the freezer. I'll get at it in a few days.
primeats Posted February 22, 2012 Report Posted February 22, 2012 Re: Beef and Venison jerky Exactly what I use for jerky, sirloin tip, trimmed of any fat( I have to admit it tastes great after drying out) I use a pre mixed brine and add sodium nitrite(pink salt) one ounce for every 25 lbs of meat... .06# for every 25#. I also use a vacuum tumbler unlike most households that could only brine and cure overnite.Really nice set up on the KK by the way, ingenious use of the Coco Coal!
slu Posted February 22, 2012 Report Posted February 22, 2012 Re: Beef and Venison jerky Does the pink salt give you a longer shelf life?
primeats Posted February 22, 2012 Report Posted February 22, 2012 Re: Beef and Venison jerky Yes, and also prevents botulism, which can result from cooking at temps under 200. Botulinum may or may not be present in the meat you are using, but with such a simple"cure", why take a chance!
mguerra Posted February 22, 2012 Report Posted February 22, 2012 Re: Beef and Venison jerky If anyone can find a documented case of botulism arising from BBQ meat, please post it. Clostridium botulinum is an obligate anaerobic organism that grows in an oxygen poor or oxygen free environment. It is a soil organism so most commonly it's toxic effects are associated with fruits and vegetables stored in an oxygen free environment. Which is basically improperly heat sterilized canned and preserved fruits and veggies. We have a few food poisoning bacteria to concern ourselves with in the BBQ world, but botulism isn't on the list.
primeats Posted February 22, 2012 Report Posted February 22, 2012 Re: Beef and Venison jerky I stand by my statement, when applied to cooking under 200 degrees for extended periods. If not valid why would ALL of the major food processors employ nitrites and nitrates when smoking ham,bacon, sausage etc.? Proven food safety science.
Firemonkey Posted February 22, 2012 Report Posted February 22, 2012 Re: Beef and Venison jerky I've never used the tenderquick for jerky, only to preserve the color in my pastrami. But I have to ask if all the salt (soy), and worcestershire (acid) soaking through thin strips of meat for 12-24 hours wouldn't kill anything alive in there, anyway? Ironic we are having this discussion, while I'm looking forward to getting home and slicing steaks off the roast thats been sitting uncovered in my beer fridge for the last 3 weeks I should probably be concerned there, but I'm gonna eat it and smile!
mguerra Posted February 23, 2012 Report Posted February 23, 2012 Re: Beef and Venison jerky The nitrites and nitrates are certainly applicable to the bacteria which are a threat. Clostridium is last on the list.
Firemonkey Posted February 23, 2012 Report Posted February 23, 2012 Re: Beef and Venison jerky So doc, are the sodium and acids in the marinade enough to do the job alone?
mguerra Posted February 23, 2012 Report Posted February 23, 2012 Re: Beef and Venison jerky Wouldn't count on it. Of course, pickling and salting are methods historically used to preserve foods prior to the advent of refrigeration. I generally adhere to the food safety recommendations. Religously when it comes to poultry and ground meats! All I am saying here is botulism isn't a big concern for us. But other food poisonings are certainly possible. One thing I have said here before has to do with pulling hot sterile meat off the grill with clean implements or gloves and immediately foiling in clean foil. I do violate food safety rules with that. I will let those products come right down to room temp and never worry about any food poisoning. That's my own personal practice which I don't promote to anyone. You can see my previous comments about that here in the forums.
Cookie Posted February 24, 2012 Report Posted February 24, 2012 Re: Beef and Venison jerky So I've been to 4 "hardware" stores here in Singapore and can't find any copper grounding (or even a reasonable substitute) wire to attempt this setup... Since we have at least one doc on the forum, and some engineers (is there a metallurgist that I'm unaware of?) - am I going to die of some kind of toxic poisoning if I use a wire coat hangar to make my rods?
casebeag Posted February 24, 2012 Author Report Posted February 24, 2012 Re: Beef and Venison jerky I guess I didn't look into the effects of copper poisoning before I used the grounding wire. I've checked the toilet, and haven't crapped out any pennies yet... I do have an old (90 yr old) friend who made his living fabricating metal parts, and plan on having him make me a more solid set-up for this. Slu - look for your set after we get this figured out.
slu Posted February 25, 2012 Report Posted February 25, 2012 Re: Beef and Venison jerky Matt, How about using SS all-thread? BTW, The last time I made jerky, it was a disappointment. The venison was poached from the 18th hole at Spyglass. It all tasted like Miracle Gro!
teddysurf Posted February 25, 2012 Report Posted February 25, 2012 n67113 Re: Beef and Venison jerky I just used some galvanized wire that I had left over from stringing some trellis for the backyard grape vines (since removed ... that's a story onto itself). That worked fine, much better than my more recent approach (photo attached). I suspect this new approach didn't work as well as the vertical wire due to airflow issues, but I don't fully understand that since both approaches have a LOT of open space. I also tried the new approach using more CoCo, but still had trouble keeping the fuel going.
Firemonkey Posted February 25, 2012 Report Posted February 25, 2012 Re: Beef and Venison jerky My latest rig is two rods of threaded steel, I clamp them between the bars of basket floor using a couple of big washers and nuts. Much more sturdy than the grounding wire was. I need to see if I can find some threaded stainless rod...I'm using plain steel now.
