Guest guest Posted February 4, 2004 Report Share Posted February 4, 2004 >Is there any reason I can't use pork to make jerky? It's not something >you hear about often, and every time I've heard of it or seen recipes for >it, it involved cured ham. But I can't think of a reason not to do it >with non-cured pork ... is that just me? > >Also along those lines, is there a good way to do it with ground meat? Or >am I basically talking pemmican there? (I've never made jerky with >anything other than sliced meat.) > >Thanks! I've never heard of anyone making jerky from pork. For ground meat, you can by a gun similar to those ones used to squeeze out designs on cakes in which you can fill with seasoned ground meat and squeeze out either sticks or flat pieces of jerky. I've never used one but I know some people who do and the jerky turns out okay. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest guest Posted February 4, 2004 Report Share Posted February 4, 2004 >Is there any reason I can't use pork to make jerky? It's not something >you hear about often, and every time I've heard of it or seen recipes for >it, it involved cured ham. But I can't think of a reason not to do it >with non-cured pork ... is that just me? I tried it ... didn't like it. It had an off taste. >Also along those lines, is there a good way to do it with ground meat? Or >am I basically talking pemmican there? (I've never made jerky with >anything other than sliced meat.) I made it with hamburger mixed with kefir and spices ... came out good. A lot of traditional jerky makers are using ground meat now. It may be more iffy in regards to ecoli, so using a good probiotic in the mix might be worthwhile (the bulk of jerky makers use nitrates for this reason). -- Heidi Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest guest Posted February 4, 2004 Report Share Posted February 4, 2004 At 04:09 PM 2/4/04 -0800, you wrote: >>Is there any reason I can't use pork to make jerky? It's not something >>you hear about often, and every time I've heard of it or seen recipes for >>it, it involved cured ham. But I can't think of a reason not to do it >>with non-cured pork ... is that just me? > >I tried it ... didn't like it. It had an off taste. Did you do it straight, or marinate it? I always marinate when making jerky just for the taste fun. > >>Also along those lines, is there a good way to do it with ground meat? Or >>am I basically talking pemmican there? (I've never made jerky with >>anything other than sliced meat.) > >I made it with hamburger mixed with kefir and spices ... came out good. >A lot of traditional jerky makers are using ground meat now. It may >be more iffy in regards to ecoli, so using a good probiotic in the mix >might be worthwhile (the bulk of jerky makers use nitrates for this >reason). Okay, can you be more specific about this? Bear in mind that I currently possess three dehydrators, two of which have excellent temperature control, so I wouldn't have to play games with quirky ovens. So does that disqualify the probiotic idea? And just as a matter of interest for the newbie, please define probiotic in that context. So for specific starters ... how much hamburger to how much kefir? And how did you form it? Mix it up and slice it (as much as ground meat WILL slice)? Or squirt it somehow (i.e. the suggestion about using a pastry squirter - personally, I prefer using a spritz-cookie squirter, sounds like that might work for ground stuff?) MFJ It's finally happened. I'm slightly mad. Oh dear. ~Queen Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest guest Posted February 4, 2004 Report Share Posted February 4, 2004 >>I tried it ... didn't like it. It had an off taste. > >Did you do it straight, or marinate it? I always marinate when making >jerky just for the taste fun. I always marinate jerky. Pork just doesn't taste right to me. Unless it is bacon. >Okay, can you be more specific about this? Bear in mind that I currently >possess three dehydrators, two of which have excellent temperature control, >so I wouldn't have to play games with quirky ovens. So does that >disqualify the probiotic idea? And just as a matter of interest for the >newbie, please define probiotic in that context. I wrote a whole chapter on it ... it is in the files section for download, titled " Jerky " . The kefir-marinade just makes it taste wonderful, sort of like pepperoni. Also tenderizes it. The hamburger version isn't in the PDF tho. I don't know that the probiotics survive the dehydration ... maybe they do, maybe not. But my definition of " probiotic " in that context is that kefir kills bad germs in general, and since jerky CAN become contaminated with say, ecoli, and it doesn't get hot enough to kill the ecoli, using a kefir marinade adds some measure of safety. A dehydrator filled with hamburger is a great incubator for bad germs, if there are any in the hamburger. So I fill my hamburger with kefir. Now there are folks here who eat raw hamburger anyway, so you pays your money and makes your choices. > So for specific starters ... how much hamburger to how much kefir? And >how did you form it? Mix it up and slice it (as much as ground meat WILL >slice)? Or squirt it somehow (i.e. the suggestion about using a pastry >squirter - personally, I prefer using a spritz-cookie squirter, sounds like >that might work for ground stuff?) I mix in some Penzy's sausage spice (their measurements: 1 T per lb) and some kefir (kefiili ini my cause) til it looks good. Then put it in a tray that comes with my dehydrator ... just pat it in there. It is a tray for making fruit leather, so it doesn't leak. When it is dry I cut it into strips with kitchen shears -- some people form it with these little jerky-squirters but that seemed like too much work. I don't like work. Any flavor of Penzy's sausage seasoning tastes good to me. But salt/powdered garlic /pepper mix is good too. -- Heidi Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest guest Posted February 5, 2004 Report Share Posted February 5, 2004 At 08:31 PM 2/4/04 -0800, you wrote: > I wrote a whole chapter on it ... it is in the files section for download, > " " . The kefir-marinade just makes it taste wonderful, sort > of like pepperoni. Also tenderizes it. The hamburger version isn't in the >PDF tho. Oh, sure, now you actually want me to do my HOMEWORK? <g> Cool, thanks!! MFJ It's finally happened. I'm slightly mad. Oh dear. ~Queen Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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