OK so I'm about to try some jerky. I used cabellas jerky kit and had it in the fridge over night. I am heating the bos to 150 and plan on using 5 pucks for the smoke, then plan on pulling the water pan out for the rest of it. I think i need to keep the temp around 150 for the duration, does that sound about right?
(http://i54.photobucket.com/albums/g108/janedegroot/0ea232cf44_zps84d45b10.jpg)
I tend to start out at 140 without smoke for the first hour - until the pucks hit the hot plate - to help dry it out, then 140 to 150 for 5 or 6 pucks then 160 to speed up the operation but 150 all the way through should be ok if you have the patience to wait for it to finish :)
Dang, I had started the smoke right off. I hope it doesn't affect the turn out. I will definitely take that advise on the next run.
You will be fine if you started the smoke right off. Not to worry. Personally I do my jerky at 150 from start to finish and I apply smoke as soon as the door is shut from loading it. No right or wrong way to do things. Everyone does a smoke a little bit different. That is what makes it fun. Keep a log of how you do a smoke so when you hit the home run you can duplicate it ;D
Is cabelas jerky kit a brine or dry rub. Sometimes if your meat is sopping wet from the brine and you add smoke right away you will get a creosote taste on the jerky. Only happened to me once in a bradley smoker and I assumed it was how wet the meat was when I added smoke. Could be wrong again :)
It was a brine and I just looked at it and it has kind of an oily look on it. The pieces bend but i don't think they are done yet. although they are stiff. Any thoughts?
I usually start taking the thinner ones out first and usually the thicker ones come out within the next hour. I just go by look, kinda hard to explain. My last batch to 13 hours but it was 40 deg
Outside.
well i think it's done. my temp stayed around 160ish the whole time. I started it around 8 this morning. Some of the pieces were a little dry and broke but most of them bent and cracked. there were a few thick ones that felt very rubbery so i left them on for a bit. But really i don't think it would matter or make anyone sick as long as its not completely raw, right? Next time i think i need to trim some more of the fat though.
(http://i54.photobucket.com/albums/g108/janedegroot/ebd6d916c1_zps1960834c.jpg)
Looks Good. You always want to get as much fat off as you can. Put it in a paper bag or butcher paper for a couple days and it will remove a little more moisture and soak up the grease. Plastic bags just make it sweat in its own juices.
You did excellent for your first time!!
Thanks for the advise. This site is pretty awesome :)