jerky ?'s

[BrandNewSmoker]

 OK all you masterminds,
          I recently purchased a Cabelas season pack for jerky there are like 5 kinds (flavors) i am going to pick up a flank steak and pick one to work with. My questions are, 1) smoker or oven. 2) if smoker do i add smoke flavor ( and what flavor) or just heat for hours.
3)  if anyone has used these flavors how did it turn out? flavors are,

a)Mandarin teriyaki blend
b)pepperoni blend
c)sweet & spicey blend
d)inferno blend
e)pepper blend


All suggestions welcome as usuall
     Thanks
P.s.  I don't have a dehydrator.but i am wondering if i should buy one.

[GusRobin]

Smoker or oven is a personal choice. if you are going to add smoke then yes you need the smoker. if not you can use the oven if your oven goes to the lower temps needed.
I haven't used any of the mixes.
I would see how you like the jerky making before I would buy a dehydrator.

[Consooger]

Where did you get this pack? Is this a mixed jerky pack? Reason I ask I live right across from the Hamburg Cabela's and I "frequent" the establishment and I have yet to see this mix jerky pack. If it is indeed a jerky mix pack I am ntrigued and will have to stop by this week.

As for the seasoning packs I have used the sweet & spicy, however I add my own cure to the mixture as well as some other spices. When I use this I use London Broil as my meat of choice and with the Sweet & Spicy I use apple wood. I have yet to try it with hickory but that's on the list. I normally use hickory with jerky but will sometimes use Apple and mesquite.

As for the dehydrator, I would use the bradley at first and see how you like it. I make jerky on a regular basis and I like to do fruit as well so I bought a Cabela's 80L and it works great, but you can most definately use the Bradley to do your jerky. That's how I first started and then made the dehydrator jump because it lets me run 2 batches at the same time.

Hope this helps!

John

[BrandNewSmoker]

  yes i picked it up at the Cabelas in Hamburg,it was upstairs buy all the other jerky spices. think i picked it up a few months ago,its in a pentagon shaped box and it says variety pack.

[Consooger]

Is this Hi Mt. Jerky spices or a Cabela's name brand?

I'm gonna take a run up there tomorrow after work.

Thanks,

John

[BrandNewSmoker]

Is this Hi Mt. Jerky spices or a Cabela's name brand?

I'm gonna take a run up there tomorrow after work.

Thanks,

John

oops my bad it is hi mountain. I didnt even look at the box.

[Consooger]

Yeah I went up this evening and saw it. Hi Mt makes good stuff. I wanna try the inferno batch but I already have the other ones. I think I'm gonna tweak their original next time around and add some ghost pepper to it. That'll spice it up a little bit I think  :o

HAH

John

[BrandNewSmoker]

Yeah I went up this evening and saw it. Hi Mt makes good stuff. I wanna try the inferno batch but I already have the other ones. I think I'm gonna tweak their original next time around and add some ghost pepper to it. That'll spice it up a little bit I think  :o

HAH

John

YA THINK?  Glad i wont be there i might do something silly and try it...lol

[Consooger]

how did your jerky turn out?

[BrandNewSmoker]

how did your jerky turn out?

have been working last few days. i put the rub on it last night, going to put it in either late tonight or early on Friday morning.
I used the Mandarin teriyaki blend,on a london broil, due to the fact it worked out to be cheaper then flank steak.
i am not sure I cut the meat right so it may turn out all crumbley it was a pretty thick cut so we will see.

[BrandNewSmoker]

how did your jerky turn out?

have been working last few days. i put the rub on it last night, going to put it in either late tonight or early on Friday morning.
I used the Mandarin teriyaki blend,on a london broil, due to the fact it worked out to be cheaper then flank steak.
i am not sure I cut the meat right so it may turn out all crumbley it was a pretty thick cut so we will see.

ok due to heavy rain,winds,and lightning,in N.E. PA, I am thinking Friday morning would be my first chance

[Consooger]

Where in NEPA? We got hit hard down here too. I use London Broil all the time. If you cut it thick you'll need to monitor the time on it and if you must when you rotate flip the thicker pieces. I normally pull out the thinner pieces when I test them and keep the bigger pieces in there. If you must take a knife or poultry shears and cut the thicker pieces in half and see what they look like in the middle. You don't want to burn and completely dry it out. WHen I cut my London Broil I will cut it sometimes 2 ways depending on the texture of the jerky I want, if you don't over cook it you shouldn't have to deal with the crumbling.
It has worked for me when I am doing thicker jerky. Don't go above 160-165 when doing it. How big is the batch you are doing?

Best of luck on the smoke tomorrow. POST PICTURES!!!

John

[BrandNewSmoker]

Where in NEPA? We got hit hard down here too. I use London Broil all the time. If you cut it thick you'll need to monitor the time on it and if you must when you rotate flip the thicker pieces. I normally pull out the thinner pieces when I test them and keep the bigger pieces in there. If you must take a knife or poultry shears and cut the thicker pieces in half and see what they look like in the middle. You don't want to burn and completely dry it out. WHen I cut my London Broil I will cut it sometimes 2 ways depending on the texture of the jerky I want, if you don't over cook it you shouldn't have to deal with the crumbling.
It has worked for me when I am doing thicker jerky. Don't go above 160-165 when doing it. How big is the batch you are doing?

Best of luck on the smoke tomorrow. POST PICTURES!!!

John

Wilkes Barre area.  the London broil started at just under 4 lbs. so cleaned probally about 3-3.25 lbs. I tossed the idea around about going late tonight but I am thinking i will just do it tomorrow after I drop my son off at his friends.

[Consooger]

I would hold off on doing it at anytime if you cant hang around to monitor the progress. Plus depending on the amount of smoke you put on it you'll need to pull the spent pucks and water out of the smoker. I never leave to go anywhere when I'm smoking jerky unless its for a short amount of time. The price of making jerky I guess.

[BrandNewSmoker]

finished








have some mac & cheese in smoker as we speak.