Roe jerky

[devon deer stalker]

I think I have this nailed, and this is only my second attempt, one whole haunch of roe deer, it made exactly 1lb of spicy jerky.

Cheers
Richard

 

[deerstalker.308]

not fair to post that without your secret recipe!! C'mon! share!!

 

[wytonpjs]

Indeed - I NEED to know! Looking to do something different with the current carcass in the fridge

 

[devon deer stalker]

Sorry I should have said, plenty of clips on Youtube.
Separate all the muscle groups in the haunch, remove as much sinew and silver skin as possible, cut really thin (5mm or less) strips ACROSS the grain of the meat.
Then soak for 24 hours in your marinade, I use 1/2 bottle Worcester sauce, around the same of Soy sauce, 2 tablespoons brown sugar, then it's down to you, whatever you want, but I like it spicy, so tablespoon of Paprika, Garlic powder, chill flakes and lastly cayenne pepper, not enough to blow your head off but around 2 teaspoons of the pepper.
Make sure every bit is covered and mix it up, and and again a couple of times during the 24 hours.
Spread out the strips on kitchen roll, and press down with more roll, to remove as much liquid as possible.
Lay over racks (I used the wife's cooling racks over tins to stop spillage into oven) making sure they don't touch each other, then into preferably a fan oven at no more than 75c, don't close the oven door, leave a little gap, keep an eye on it, you want to dry it out, not burn it, equally it shouldn't be like leather, you will know when it's time, takes around 1 1/2 - 2 hours, remove, test, and enjoy!
Last tip, don't take it along to a pheasant shoot, at lunchtime my first batch was destroyed by other shooters!
Very popular.
Keeps for around 6 weeks.
Cheers
Richard

 

[Swedish]

Jerky is such a great snack and that sounds like a nice recipe. Over in Colorado there is a company called "Climax Jerky", snigger snorf snorf! Worth a look for inspiration.

 

[devonair]

That's spooky, just got in to make roe jerky myself. Got a bresaola to start too

 

[Woodsmoke]

Looks great!!! I use a very similar marinade and technique, except I also add Cure1 to the mix to prevent any nasties appearing

 

[RTreble]

My marinade is Soy sauce, black treacle, pepper and crushed coriander seed.
I never lasts long enough for nasties.

 

[Woodsmoke]

I never lasts long enough for nasties

The thought of botulism scares the hell out of me, to be honest. And for the sake of a 1/4 teaspoon of Cure1/lb I like to play it safe

 

[devon deer stalker]

My marinade is Soy sauce, black treacle, pepper and crushed coriander seed.
I never lasts long enough for nasties.

Black treacle, sounds good!
That's true, that is why I made some more, it went too quickly.
The recipes I looked at didn't mention using a cure, If it makes people feel safer then go for it, it was my understanding that because it was devoid of moisture then the bacteria can't grow, I have some venison salami curing, for the cure I used red wine as it contains nitrates, so far so good, the outside has white mould, i.e penicillin which is good.
If you don't hear from me again I got it wrong!
Cheers
Richard

 

[Woodsmoke]

my understanding that because it was devoid of moisture then the bacteria can't grow

I use it because the transition period worries me. Once it's dried it's fine. It's that protracted period in the danger zone temperature-wise that I consider a risk.

As for your salami? You're right in that red wine contains nitrates, and these will convert to nitrite over the development of the salami. I still think it's a bit of a risk though, as the conversion takes time. Cure2 contains both nitrate and nitrite, which gives immediate protection against the formation of botulism spores, as well as longer-term protection through the conversion of nitrate to nitrite. You can't see botulism forming, and the formation of safe moulds isn't an indication that it's not there. I just think it's too much of a risk not to use cure, especially as the panic over it being carcinogenic has been shown to be completely unfounded. That's only my approach though

 

[devon deer stalker]

I use it because the transition period worries me. Once it's dried it's fine. It's that protracted period in the danger zone temperature-wise that I consider a risk.

As for your salami? You're right in that red wine contains nitrates, and these will convert to nitrite over the development of the salami. I still think it's a bit of a risk though, as the conversion takes time. Cure2 contains both nitrate and nitrite, which gives immediate protection against the formation of botulism spores, as well as longer-term protection through the conversion of nitrate to nitrite. You can't see botulism forming, and the formation of safe moulds isn't an indication that it's not there. I just think it's too much of a risk not to use cure, especially as the panic over it being carcinogenic has been shown to be completely unfounded. That's only my approach though

So where would I purchase the cure if in the future I decide to follow your advice, if I live that long
Thanks
Richard

 

[delta wolf]

Looks great!!! I use a very similar marinade and technique, except I also add Cure1 to the mix to prevent any nasties appearing

Is cure 1 not for meats that will be cooked such as bacon or ham? Is jerky effectively dehydrated rather than cooked so would you use cure 2?

 

[User00047]

DDS, say you were to whack an elk in the USA, would it be at all feasible to make a batch of Elk jerky and then post it to your home in the U.K. ? Or is that sort of thing not allowed these days?

 

[devon deer stalker]

DDS, say you were to whack an elk in the USA, would it be at all feasible to make a batch of Elk jerky and then post it to your home in the U.K. ? Or is that sort of thing not allowed these days?

I looked into it and its a big no-no.
A real pity but the guy I left the last Elk with made good use of it all.
I'm getting peckish now, time for another piece of jerky!
Cheers
Richard

 

[User00047]

I guess they’re worried about the potential for spread of diseases, what with all the CWD and EHD problem in the USA

 

[Woodsmoke]

So where would I purchase the cure

It's readily-available online. Tongmasters, Butcherssundries, etc. Even if you just type it into eBay's search bar. It's pretty cheap, and you just add it as a percentage of your overall meat weight, depending on the recipe

 

[Woodsmoke]

Is cure 1 not for meats that will be cooked such as bacon or ham? Is jerky effectively dehydrated rather than cooked so would you use cure 2?

Cure2 is for extended drying periods for the likes of salami, etc. It works by converting nitrate to nitrite over a period of weeks, rather than hours, but has a nitrite content so it offers protection from the beginning of the process. Cure1 is for immediate protection against botulism and contains pure nitrite, which is why I use it for jerky

 

[Big Mat]

Jerky is something I've never managed to master so far, thus recipie looks better than any I've used.

I've got a dehydrator here, will try it in that rather than the oven

 

[RTreble]

Correct me if i'm wrong, curing of meats was traditionally done with salt / or saltpeter. The salt would draw out all the moisture and thus the meat could be kept longer. Coming the cooking stage, it would then need to bathed in water to draw out the salt before cooking.
When i smoked my mackerel it was always soaked for 24hrs in a salt brine prior to smoking. I understood it was part of the curing process although it always went into the freezer. What i can say is, if it wasn't brined, the finished product was pretty poor.
Thus when it comes to my venison, i use Soy for flavour and the salt, then I dehydrate it, (in a dehydrator). I keep it for weeks in what should be an air tight jar. But the frequency it is open.... I have never had a dodgy stomach from it.