Oven Beef Jerky Food

HOW TO MAKE BEEF JERKY IN THE OVEN

Steps:

• A lot of beef cuts come with a fat cap. Trim the fat off and cut the meat into manageable pieces that will be easy to slice. Then put the meat in a plastic bag and put in a freezer for a few hours. Freezing will firm it up and make it a easy to slice evenly.
• When the meat is firm, slice it about 3/16" - 1/4" thick. Thinner sliced meat tends to come out dryer and less chewy. Thicker will take a long time to dry.
• To make the jerky chewy, slice it along the grain.
• To make the jerky less chewy, slice it across the grain.
• Combine all the ingredients for the marinade in a large Ziploc bag and shake.
• Add the meat slices, shake and massage the meat really well.
• Refrigerate for 24 to 48 hours, flipping the bag and massaging the meat every 6-8 hours. Strictly speaking, marination is not necessary, but it makes jerky much more flavorful inside out and tenderizes tougher beef cuts.
• Remove one rack from the oven so you can start hanging the meat slices on it. Meanwhile, preheat oven to 300F.
• Hang the meat on the oven rack. The most efficient way is to hang the meat slices vertically, as shown on the picture below. This way you can have about 5 lbs of meat on one rack, properly spaced out.
• Once the oven is preheated to 300F, bring the meat in, close the oven door, turn the temperature down to 275F and bake the meat for 10 minutes. This will bring its internal temperature to the safe level of 160F.
• Drop the temperature further to the lowest setting your oven can go, e.g. 170F. Crack open the oven door and insert a thick wooden spoon to secure it in that position.
• After about 30 minutes, when the temperature in the oven has stabilized at its lowest setting, turn on the convection fan, if you oven has it. It will expedite the drying process. You will have to find a creative way to keep the button down to activate convection.
• Continue drying jerky until it's ready. The jerky is dry enough when it bends without breaking, while surface develops cracks when you bend it. This will take anywhere from 4 to 8 hours, depending on whether you use convection and the thickness of meat slices.

BEEF JERKY

Steps:

• In a medium bowl, combine the soy sauce, ground black pepper and brown sugar to taste. Mix well and add the steak slices. Place entire mixture with meat into a sealed plastic container and refrigerate for 12 to 24 hours.
• In the oven, place one oven rack on the highest rack setting and one rack on the lowest setting. Place a piece of aluminum foil OR a baking sheet on the lowest rack, to catch any drippings.
• Preheat oven to 160 degrees F (70 degrees C).
• Insert a wooden toothpick through the end of each slice of meat, and suspend each slice from the top rack in the oven, using the toothpick as a support for the slice.
• Bake at 160 degrees F (70 degrees C) with the oven door propped open to allow moisture to escape. Bake for 6 to 8 hours depending on thickness of slices. Jerky should bend, and not snap.

HOW TO MAKE BEEF JERKY IN AN OVEN

Steps:

• Pick you favorite type of beef and trim all visible fat. Place the meat in the freezer for 1-2 hours to partially freeze. This allows for easier slicing and more consistent widths.
• Mix all above ingredients in a container with a tight fitting lid. Whisk marinade until all brown sugar is dissolved.
• Remove beef from the freezer and slice against the grain between 1/8"-1/4" thick.
• Add sliced beef to the container of marinade and shake well to evenly coat the meat. Marinate in the refrigerator for 6-24 hours.
• After marinating, remove and pat dry the strips with paper towels. Either hang from toothpicks or lay the jerky on a cooling rack and place in a 170°F - 200°F preheated oven.
• Prop the door of the oven open with a wooden spoon and bake the jerky for 3-6 hours. Begin checking for doneness at 3 hours.
• The beef jerky will be finished when it bends and cracks, but does not break in half. Allow to cool for several hours before storing in an air tight container.

OVEN-DRIED BEEF JERKY

Steps:

• Trim and discard all fat from meat. Slice meat in long 1/4-inch thick strips (easier if meat is partially frozen). Combine remaining ingredients.
• Add meat strips, coating all surfaces. The meat will absorb most of the liquid. v
• Cover tightly (I use a Ziploc bag) and marinate overnight in refrigerator.
• Drain off any liquid.
• Arrange meat strips together but not overlapping, directly on oven racks.
• Dry meat at lowest oven temperature, 150 degrees to 200 degrees until meat turns brown, is dry and feels hard (about 10 hours or overnight). Cut into 1-inch pieces, using scissors.
• Cool thoroughly before storing in airtight containers. Beef jerky keeps indefinitely at cool room temperature or in refrigerator.

HOMEMADE BEEF JERKY

Steps:

• Cut the meat into strips 1-inch wide and 1/2-inch thick, and spread on baking sheets. In a bowl blend the seasonings. Season the meat strips on 1 side, then turn and season the second side. Refrigerate, covered, overnight.
• Preheat the oven to 200 degrees F.
• Cook the meat until it is completely dried, 6 to 8 hours, turning as needed to dry uniformly. Remove from the oven and allow to cool. Eat as desired, or keep tightly covered, refrigerated, for up to 1 month.
• Combine all ingredients thoroughly and store in an airtight jar or container.
• Recipe from New New Orleans Cooking by Emeril Lagasse and Jessie Tirsch, Published by William and Morrow, 1993.

HOMEMADE BEEF JERKY

Steps:

• Whisk Worcestershire sauce, soy sauce, paprika, honey, black pepper, red pepper flakes, garlic powder, and onion powder together in a bowl. Add beef to bowl and turn to coat beef completely. Cover the bowl with plastic wrap and marinate in the refrigerator, 3 hours to overnight.
• Preheat oven to 175 degrees F (80 degrees C). Line a baking sheet with aluminum foil and place a wire rack over the foil.
• Transfer beef to paper towels to dry. Discard marinade. Arrange beef slices in a single layer on the prepared wire rack on the baking sheet.
• Bake beef in the preheated oven until dry and leathery, 3 to 4 hours. Cut with scissors into bite-size pieces.

OVEN BEEF JERKY

Steps:

• Bake for about 4 hours, or until the jerky is dry to the touch, can be bent, but not break. Check the jerky often since drying times will vary due to oven differences (the process might take as long as 12 hours). Remove from the oven and raise the temperature to 275 F.
• Arrange the strips on a clean baking sheet, fitted with a clean rack, so they are close together, but not touching or overlapping. Bake for an additional 10 minutes.

OVEN-DRIED BEEF JERKY

Steps:

• Prepare a large baking sheet with a wire rack to fit on baking sheet.
• Put the flank steak in the freezer for 30 mins, or until firm, but pliable.
• Slice the steak very thinly across the grain, about 1/8-in thick; or ask your butcher to slice the meat at time of purchace.
• In a small bowl, combine the soy sauce, honey, lemon juice, garlic, Worcestershire sauce, onion powder, salt and pepper; mix well.
• Mix and coat the beef strips with the sauce mixture.
• Refrigerate for 2 hours.
• Preheat the oven to 180F.
• Place the strips on a wire rack on a baking sheet.
• Bake for 12 hours, or until meat is dried (it should bend, but not snap).
• Store in an airtight container when cool.