How To Make Jerky

INGREDIENTS

INSTRUCTIONS

Like other dried foods, meat jerky--tough, leathery strips of dried
meat--was a staple for pioneers and "mountain men" in times past.
Today, beef jerky is still a favorite among backpackers, skiers and
campers--and a popular snack for armchair sports fans, too. Modern
jerky is prepared in an electric dehydrator or oven; sun drying, the
technique favored in pioneer days, presents too great a risk of
spoilage or contamination.  Turkey-breast jerky compared to jerky made
with trimmed beef flank  steak, it has less fat.  It also has a more
brittle texture, since  poultry is fairly fibrous.  If you like, you
can prepared beef jerky with game instead--but it  you do, freeze the
meat before drying for at least 30 days or at zero  degrees as a
precaution against disease.  The leaner the meat you use for jerky, the
better:  a lower fat  content means a longer shelf life.  As a first
step for any jerky,  trim and discard all visible fat and connective
tissue from the meat;  partially freeze it (to make slicing easier),
then cut it into thin  (1/8- to 1/4-inch-thick) strips about 1 inch
wide. Cut with the grain  if you like a chewy jerky, across the grain
if you prefer a more  tender, brittle product.  Properly dried beef or
game jerky should crack, but not break, when  bent; turkey jerky,
however, will crack and break.  Once the jerky has been dried, let it
cool; then pack it in a rigid  freezer container or plastic freezer bag
and freeze for 72 hours at  zero degrees. Then store it in an airtight,
insectproof container for  up to 3 weeks in a cool, dark, dry place.
Or, to maintain flavor and  prolong shelf life, refrigerate or freeze.
Source:  Sunset Home Canning Posted to MM-Recipes Digest  by "Deborah
Kühnen" <DEBKUHNEN@classic.msn.com> on Feb 13, 98

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