Hey all- been gone for a while, but on a whim over this weekend, I whipped up a batch of about 4 lbs of jerky using the Bradley and a Hi Mountain seasoning kit. I followed the directions from the kit and got good results, but has the standard Hi Mountain complaint-
Too darn salty. I mean, mouth burning salty. I followed the directions to the letter, and it is close to being a waste.
So, since I have a LEM dehydrator on order, and the LEM Cure packs are highly rated by most people here, I am ordering some of those. However, my Wife wants me to look into mixing my own cures and seasonings. I am more comfortable with a cure than a marinade (to start), so I was hoping to get suggestions on 'starting point' recipes. My current plan is give them a few pucks of smoke on the Bradley, then move it into the dehydrator to finish.
Suggestions? I want to use whole muscle and a cure in the recipe. Is the Hi Mountain suggestion of at least 24 hrs cure time the right way to go?
My personal opinion is that Hi Mtn stuff is crap. You will not go wrong using LEM Backwoods original jerky mix. I prefer the LEM HOT jerky mix as I like heat. The mix comes with cure #1. You need to use 1 tsp of cure #1 per 5 pounds when you are smoking or dehydrating. Use the Cure #1 on whole muscle or GB jerky. Bad stuff grows between 40 and 140 degrees and jerky is normally done at around 150 which is a great temp to grow nasty stuff.
The LEM jerky mix has instructions for whole muscle and for GB jerky. Simple to make and it tastes great. Good luck!
I like lem original but have not tried the hot.
I use the LEM brand all the time and will swear by it. I add about a half cup of freshly ground peppercorns to add additional flavor/ heat.
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If you want to use up any of the Hi Mountain that you have left, I learned by accident that leaving it in the fridge a couple days longer while the cure is doing it's thing, dramatically cut the salty flavor. It's been a while, but I think the saltiness also faded as the jerky aged in a ziploc in the fridge (don't remember for sure on that part though).
I just finished 10-pounds of venison GB Jerky....using LEM's Cracked Pepper on 5-pounds and LEM's Hot on the other 5-pounds. Both great flavors but I will add some heat next time to give it a little more kick...I rolled 3-hours of hickory and finished in the dehydrator.....
I'm with Sailor on the Hi Mtn. Don't like any of it. LEM's has worked well for me. Like Tiny Tim said if you leave it in the fridge for a day after mixing things up it mellows out. The salty taste tones down also after a few days rest.