Tender Ground Meat Jerky

I double this recipe, because if I'm going to make jerky, I make jerky! ;) It tastes wonderful, and is a great snack or a lunch on-the-go.

Course Snack

Cuisine Traditional

Prep Time 45 minutes

Dehydrating Time 18 hours

Servings 16 servings

Calories 162 kcal

Author Wardee Harmon

Ingredients

3 pounds grass-fed ground beef or venison, or lamb, or buffalo...
1/4 pound ground liver optional
2 teaspoons sea salt use 2 tablespoons for longer-term keeping
1/4 teaspoon ground black pepper
2 teaspoons garlic powder or granulated garlic
2 teaspoons ground cumin or more!
pinch ground cayenne pepper

Instructions

Blend all the ingredients together in a big bowl. Use clean hands.
Taking a portion at a time, press the meat mixture into about 1/8 inch thickness on a piece of natural parchment paper that is the same size as your dehydrator tray. Or use the ParaFlexx sheets that go with an Excalibur dehydrator.
You could also use a rolling pin to spread it out, but I find I can never get the thickness consistent, so I prefer to take extra time and press the balls out into a sheet myself.
When a sheet is full, square up the edges to your liking, using your fingers.
Then use a butter knife to score the meat into jerky-size pieces. Don’t use a sharp knife or you’ll cut through parchment paper or Paraflexx sheets!
Transfer the whole shebang to a dehydrator tray and put the tray in/on your dehydrator.
Repeat until you’ve spread out all your meat mixture.
This recipe fills 4 to 5 trays of my 9-tray Excalibur dehydrator, depending on the thickness I achieve.
Or use a jerky gun to make sticks!
Set the dehydrator’s temperature to 145 or 150 degrees Fahrenheit.
Depending on thickness, expect total drying time to be 12 to 18 hours.
Flip over mid-way, which is usually when the jerky is curling up from the bottom and not sticking to the tray’s liner any more.
You have to play with how much it “cooks” — and keep in mind that coming out of the dehydrator it is going to be much softer than it will be when it cools. I look for no more pink and try to get it out of the dehydrator while it is still really soft. It always surprises me how much it hardens up once it is out.
Tear apart the pieces and put them in a bowl or tray to cool fully.
Then store in a cool, dark place in an airtight container. Or in the refrigerator if not using up within 2 weeks.

Recipe Notes

Don't Have A Dehydrator?

If you don't have a dehydrator, you can use the oven instead.

Follow the directions above, yet lay out strips of meat on baking trays.
Set oven to 150 degrees Fahrenheit, or as low as your oven will go (propping the door open with a wooden spoon if necessary).
Turn the tray multiple times until jerky is dry, with no pink in the middle and desired texture.

Nutrition Facts

Tender Ground Meat Jerky

Amount Per Serving (1 Ounce)

Calories 162 Calories from Fat 81

% Daily Value*

Fat 9g14%

Saturated Fat 4g25%

Cholesterol 75mg25%

Sodium 352mg15%

Potassium 304mg9%

Carbohydrates 1g0%

Fiber 1g4%

Sugar 1g1%

Protein 19g38%

Vitamin A 1201IU24%

Vitamin C 1mg1%

Calcium 13mg1%

Iron 2mg11%

* Percent Daily Values are based on a 2000 calorie diet.