recipes

[Douglas]

Looking for a recipe for good dried beef.Would like to know what cut of beef works best,and how to prepare it.
Thanks
Douglas

[oguard]

Douglas
Welcome to the forum.Were you looking for a beef jerky recipe?
Don't be a stranger tons of good info here and a wealth of experience.
Keep on smokin[:D]
Mike

[jaeger]

Douglas,
The best cut of meat IMHO is a denuied top round. If you are not familiar with this term, it is a top round with the cap taken off. You could also use an eye of round.
First thing you would do is trim off any fat. Next you would use your favorite brine and pump the meat at 10 % of its weight. Use a uniform pattern as you pump as to evenly distribute the cure. Next step is to rub the entire outside of the meat with the cure dry. Just like a rub. If you are using an eye of round let this cure refrigerated for about 4 days. If you are using a larger piece of meat like a top round, I would let it cure for 7 days.
  After this curing period rinse off the cure very well with cold water and then let it soak for at least an hour in fresh cold water. Your meat is now ready for the smoker. Smoke for 2 hours and let cook to an internal temp. of 155 degrees.
After it is done, cool completely and slice thin for your favorite recipes!!!
I usually use a maple sugar type cure for this type of meat.

Good Luck!
Let us know if you have any other questions!!!

Doug

[Chez Bubba]

See Douglas, I told you. This is the place to ask the questions in order to get an expert answer.[8D]

Kirk

http://www.chezbubba.com
Ya think next time I check into a hotel & they ask "Smoking or Non?" they would mind?

[tsquared]

Good post Jaeger! I have a question,tho.
 <blockquote id="quote"><font size="1" face="Verdana, Arial, Helvetica" id="quote">quote:<hr height="1" noshade id="quote">After this curing period rinse off the cure very well with cold water and then let it soak for at least an hour in fresh cold water. Your meat is now ready for the smoker. Smoke for 2 hours and let cook to an internal temp. of 155 degrees.
After it is done, cool completely and slice thin for your favorite recipes!!!
<hr height="1" noshade id="quote"></blockquote id="quote"></font id="quote">
Do you then slice it and dry it for jerky? I am a jerky rookie and am interested in trying it but I always assumed that you sliced it and then smoked/cooked it.
Tom

[jaeger]

Tom,

The procedure that I described was for dried beef. This is a whole muscle meat that is cured and smoked and then sliced. It is not the same procedure you would want to use for beef jerky.  You're right about the procedure for jerky. Slice the meat first, then season/cure it and then smoke it.
  For beef jerky I like to use a bottom round. It is lean, you can look at them and pick out a good one, and they are usually not as spendie as a top round.(Which is preferred choice)
  If you want to try making jerky you should consider also making turkey jerky sometime. I like to use turkey tenderloins for this meat.
  Also another good item is a ground (hamburger/ground chuck roast)jerky. Again you can choose a piece lean enough to your liking and they go on sale a lot. (Or check with your supermarket full service meat department just before the meat department closes for the night and one of the butchers may give you a deal on some lean ground beef.)
   Let us know when you are ready to give it a try!!![:D][:)][:D]


Smoke On!!!!

Doug

[tsquared]

Thanks for the info, Doug. That clears it up. I've currently got 15 lbs of king salmon in the smoker using Kummok's recipe(for the Superbowl)but when I get that dealt with, I wouldn't mind trying some ground jerky. I bought a beef quarter from some friends of mine and I've got a lot of good quality ground to use up. What's your recipe/method?
Tom

[jaeger]

Tom,
I usually use premixed seasonings for a lot of the sausage that I make. I have several stores in the area that have a pretty good selection of brands. I have had good luck with High Mountain for regular jerky. I picked up some Original from Eastman Outdoors for the ground jerky that I have been making. It is really pretty good. I usually add mustard seed to anything that I can and I usually add a little garlic powder and onion powder, maybe a little black pepper. I usually grind the meat through the coarse plate and then the fine plate for a second grind. I then mix seasoning with the meat and add a little water also. Normally I would prefer to wait one day before smoking but I have found it is much easier to run the strips through my jerky cannon when it is just a little on the wet side. Not to much though. The tip on the jerky gun was round so I put it in a vise and made it a little more of an oval shape. Probably not necessary.
  When I cook/smoke jerky I will rotate the racks top to bottom - front to back at about the one to one and a half hour mark. I usually have a quarter pound left (that last little bit that won't go through the stuffer) and I make a pattie and during one of the rotations I will use this piece for the temp probe. I like to make sure I hit 165 degrees with ground meat. (My 8 year old daughter is my official taste tester)
   If some of the pieces don't look quite done when I hit temp I will take off the pieces that are done and let the rest cook a little longer.

Total smoke cook time is around 3 hours approx.

 If you have a stuffer you should try some beef sticks. Here is a pic I took of the beef sticks.
http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v244/xcelsmoke/Grinding.jpg
http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v244/xcelsmoke/BeefSticks.jpg
http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v244/xcelsmoke/FinishedProduct.jpg



Good Luck......Let us know how it turns out!!!![:D][:p][:)]

Doug
             

[tsquared]

Damn, Doug--those pics are making my mouth water and I haven't even had breakfast yet! Thanks for the info--I think I will have to go get a jerky cannon. 1 more toy...[:)]
Tom

[jaeger]

Tom,
Just to clarify... I used a stuffer on the sticks in the picture. I use the jerky gun for ground jerky.....

Keep smokin!!!

All is quiet for a Saturday night. Just a few varieties of cheese cold smokin in the box...[:D][:)][:p]


Doug

[smokinrookiejr]

hey does anybody have any good recipes for smoked deer jerky[?]

smokin in the boys room!

[jaeger]

I use High Mountain

They have some nice varieties. Easy and fast. Consistent.


Doug