Been a Loooooooong Time

Sorry for the super delay in updating folks. I have been really busy at work lately.  Hopefully, it will slow down soon so I can do some quality updating. 

Recently, the hubby and I have been on a beef jerky kick.  It all started when we were watching an old rerun of Good Eats where Alton Brown made beef jerky using a box fan and furnace filters instead of a traditional food dehydrator.  There was something rather MacGyver-esque about this method, so we tried it.

Wow, it was really, really good.  I'm not really a big beef jerky fan, but this stuff is amazing.  We've made it 3 times in the last three weeks.  After tweaking the recipe slightly, I've come up with a sweet and spicy flavor combination that is out of this world.

My take on Alton Brown's Beef Jerky
(This recipe is adapted to suit my tastes from Alton Brown's version.  The method is fully his idea.  You can find the original recipe here.)

• 1 1/2 to 2 pounds flank steak
• 2/3 cup Worcestershire sauce
• 2/3 cup soy sauce
• 3 tablespoons brown sugar
• 1 1/2 teaspoons freshly ground black pepper
• 2 teaspoons onion powder
• 2 teaspoons garlic powder
• 1 teaspoon liquid smoke
• 1 teaspoon ground chipotle pepper or cayenne pepper
• Special Equipment: 1 box fan, 4 paper air-conditioning filters, and 2 bungee cord

Trim the flank steak of any excess fat, place in a zip-top bag, and place it in the freezer for 1 to 2 hours in order to firm up.

Remove the steak from the freezer and thinly slice the meat with the grain, into long strips.

Place the strips of meat along with all of the remaining ingredients into a large, 1-gallon plastic zip-top bag and move around to evenly distribute all of the ingredients. Place the bag into the refrigerator for 3 to 6 hours.

Remove the meat from the brine and pat dry. Evenly distribute the strips of meat onto 3 of the air filters, laying them in the grooves and then stacking the filters on top of one another. Top these with 1 empty filter. Next, lay the box fan on its side and lay the filters on top of it. Strap the filters to the fan with 2 bungee cords. Stand the fan upright, plug in and set to medium. Allow the meat dry for 8 to 12 hours. If using a commercial dehydrator, follow the manufacturer's directions.

Once dry, store in a cool dry place, in an airtight container for 2 to 3 months, but it won't last nearly that long.

This is honestly the best beef jerky I have ever tasted; you should definitely give it try.

Talk to you soon!   

Comments

[Tom L.]

A note on the air filters.

Where I live, grocery and pharmacy stores carry mainly expensive filters that cost a couple of dollars a piece. That's kind of expensive for jerky and buying a HEPA certified filter won't improve the flavor. If you want a cheap pack of filters you will have to go to a hardware store or Wal-Mart.