How long does it take to make jerky in the sun?
When drying beef jerky in the sun, how long does it take? Place the beef slices on a drying rack and hang it for one day in direct sunlight. If drying the beef in the oven, place the slices on a baking dish and bake for 4.5 hours at 185 F or 85 C.
Place the beef slices in a drying rack and hang the rack where it is directly exposed to the sun for 1 day. If drying the beef in an oven, arrange the slices on a baking tray and dry at 185 °F or 85 °C for 4.5 hours. Whichever method you choose, make sure each piece of beef is not on top of another one.
Although sun-drying is a time-honored technique, it is not recommended for jerky, except for very lean beef, young lamb, or venison. Unless it is heavily salted, sun-drying is also not recommended for fish. Avoid this method altogether when making jerky from any kind of poultry.
Step 4: Dry the Meat!
If the maximum temperature is less, plan on longer drying times. Plan on drying time of between four and eight hours, depending on the thickness of your meat. If you're using the "Desert Sun" method, you would put the meat out as soon as the outside temperature reaches about 100°F (40°C).
When fully dried, homemade beef jerky is chewy, has a slight crack to it when bent, and is quite dark in color. Traditionally beef jerky was sun dried in the open air, but for sanitary reasons we'll forgo that method here and I'll discuss how to dehydrate beef jerky and how to make beef jerky in the oven.
Traditionally, jerky was made using the sun, wind and smoke from fires to preserve and extend the shelf life of meat. Drying and smoking results in meat products that have a long storage life, allowing for the preservation of large amounts of meat that could be stored and consumed later.
We cut the meat (deer, squirrel, beef from the grocery store) into 1/8″ or thinner strips, douse it with some spices or hot sauce, place it on a drying rack in the sun for somewhere between eight to 16 hours, and voila-the best jerky you'll ever taste.
When it was not possible to build a smoke hut to cure the beef jerky, cowboys would use the power of the sun and wind to dry their meat. However, the preparation process was far more efficient when fire could be used to dehydrate the meat.
Survival Skills: How to Make Your Own Jerky - YouTube
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RECOMMENDED TREATMENT BEFORE DRYING.
Water | Salt |
---|---|
5 | 810 |
6 | 975 |
7 | 1 140 |
8 | 1 300 |
Can you survive off jerky?
Feeding the entire planet on beef jerky for a year would require 15x the current number of cows alive on Earth. This is partially because jerky is such a dense preparation of beef. One could theoretically survive for an extended period on jerky alone.
Is a cure necessary when making jerky? For safety, yes. Using a jerky cure will inhibit bacteria growth and prevent botulism or other foodborne illnesses, as jerky is dried at low temps, not cooked. Cured jerky will also lengthen the shelf-life of your product.
Homemade beef jerky, on the other hand, should last one to two months if you store it in an airtight container after making it. If you store beef jerky in a Ziplock bag in your pantry, it'll last about a week. And, if you store your beef jerky in the fridge, you can expect it to last one to two weeks.
Homemade Beef Jerky .. what is the best way to make it? - YouTube
Jerky is a fully cooked product. It is never raw. Of course, merely cooking meat does not preserve it. Jerky can last so long without spoiling because it contains so little moisture.
When raw meat or poultry is dehydrated at home — either in a warm oven or a food dehydrator — to make jerky which will be stored on the shelf, pathogenic bacteria are likely to survive the dry heat of a warm oven and especially the 130 to 140 °F of a food dehydrator.
After simmering or baking the meat to 160ºF, place the strips in a single layer on drying racks. Avoid overlapping or touching pieces. Dry the strips at 140°F in a dehydrator, oven or smoker. Maintain a constant dehydrator temperature of 140ºF during the process.
Survival Skills: How to Make Your Own Jerky - YouTube
Low and Slow Beef Jerky - YouTube
Instructions. 1. Rub meat with salt on all sides. Place in a bowl or glass baking dish, cover and refrigerate for 2 days (3 days for thicker meat), turning once a day.