Richard J. Epley and Paul B. Addis. "Processing Meat in the Home" (PDF). Minnesota Extension Service. {{ cite journal}}: Cite journal requires |journal= ( help) If you are using fresh meat, working in a clean kitchen, marinate your beef in the refrigerator (34-38 F), and then dehydrate at a temperature at or above 160 F + using a well-cleaned dehydrator, you are already doing a lot to reduce the risk of bacteria. Modern manufactured jerky is often marinated, prepared with a seasoned spice rub or liquid, or smoked with low heat (usually under 70°C/160°F). Store-bought jerky commonly includes sweeteners such as brown sugar. a b Salvá, Bettit K.; Fernández-Diez, Ana; Ramos, Daphne D.; Caro, Irma; Mateo, Javier (January 2012). "Chemical composition of alpaca (Vicugna pacos) charqui". Food Chemistry. 130 (2): 329–334. doi: 10.1016/j.foodchem.2011.07.046.

Theobald JL, Spoelhof R, Pallasch EM, Mycyk MB. The Beef Jerky Blues: Methemoglobinemia From Home Cured Meat. Pediatr Emerg Care. 2018;34(7):e122-e123. doi:10.1097/PEC.0000000000000917 When encountered by the Spanish, the Inca Empire supplied tampu ( inns) along the Inca road system with llama ch'arki for travelers. The Inca used a freeze drying process that took advantage of their cold dry mountain air and strong sun. [ citation needed] See also [ edit ] Your jerky is done when you can bend a piece without breaking it. Ours was ready after 7 hours in the food dehydrator and weighed in at 7 ounces — a little under half of our starting weight. What beef looks like after being dehydrated for ~7 hours Step-by-Step InstructionsStore the jerky inside an airtight plastic container, Ziploc bag, or airtight glass jars. Properly dried jerky will keep at room temperature for about one week. Refrigerate or freeze for longer storage. Either way, it’s as easy as can be: just combine all the marinade ingredients in a container and mix well. Marinade for Original beef jerky To save time, you can make the marinade while you’re waiting for the beef to freeze. Or you can whip it up fresh right before adding the beef — it’s up to you. F is the temperature where nearly all food-borne bacteria are killed off. But since dehydration takes time and the beef doesn’t immediately rise to that temperature once you turn on the dehydrator, there is a chance (very small) that the beef could become contaminated during that time.

For this step, you have three options. You can dry the beef in an oven, an electric smoker, or a food dehydrator. Jerky is an ancient food that was originally used because it vastly improved the shelf life of meat by drying and salting it. Today, the jerky-making process is similar, but on a more industrial scale. After being cured and salted, the meat is dried. There are various ways of doing this, Poncia says, including smoking, or in a dehydrator or oven, and even by laying it out in the hot sun. After that, it can be seasoned and is ready to eat.Not to be confused with Jerk (cooking). Jerky Orange-marinated beef jerky Meat drying to make jerky. Gandhola Monastery, Lahaul, India Jerky is ready-to-eat, needs no additional preparation and can be stored for months without refrigeration. To ensure maximum shelf-life, a proper protein-to-moisture content is required in the final cured product. [4] Adventurous cooks will tell you that you can use any cut of beef to make your beef jerky. And jerky purists will tell you that only the finest, leanest cuts should be used. Ch'arki ( Quechua for dried, salted meat, [1] Hispanicized spellings charque, charqui, charquí) is a dried, salted meat product. Andean charqui, made in Peru, Bolivia and Chile, is from alpaca, llama or alpaca-llama cross-breeds. Peru is the world's largest producer with approximately 450 tons produced per year. Brazilian charque is made from beef. [12]