Homemade Beef Jerky
Because paying $14 for six sad little strips of meat in a resealable bag feels like a personal attack. Make your own damn jerky.
INGREDIENTS
2 lbs eye of round, top round, or bottom round, trimmed of visible fat
½ cup soy sauce
¼ cup Worcestershire sauce
2 tbsp brown sugar
1 tbsp liquid smoke
2 tsp coarse black pepper
1 tsp garlic powder
1 tsp onion powder
1 tsp smoked paprika
½ tsp red pepper flakes (more if you enjoy consequences)
½ tsp kosher salt
DIRECTIONS
GET YOUR MEAT SITUATION UNDER CONTROL. Trim off as much visible fat as possible. Fat is delicious in basically every other situation, but here it's the asshole that makes jerky spoil faster.
Pop the beef in the freezer for 30–60 minutes. You're not freezing it solid—you're just firming it up so slicing it doesn't become an episode of Kitchen ER.
SLICE THAT BITCH THIN. Slice the beef about ⅛–¼ inch thick. For chewier jerky, slice with the grain. For easier-to-eat jerky, slice against the grain.
Choose your own adventure.
MAKE THE MAGIC MEAT BATH. Whisk together the soy sauce, Worcestershire, brown sugar, liquid smoke, black pepper, garlic powder, onion powder, smoked paprika, red pepper flakes, and salt.
Toss in the beef and make sure every piece gets thoroughly coated.
NOW LEAVE IT THE HELL ALONE. Cover and refrigerate for at least 6 hours, but 12–24 hours is even better. This is not the time for instant gratification. Let that meat marinate in its glorious little flavor jacuzzi.
DEHYDRATOR METHOD: Remove the beef from the marinade and pat off excess moisture with paper towels. Arrange the strips in a single layer on your dehydrator trays without overlapping.
Dehydrate at 160°F until properly dried, usually around 4–6 hours, depending on thickness and your dehydrator.
OVEN METHOD: Arrange the strips on wire racks set over foil-lined baking sheets. Dry at your oven's lowest suitable temperature, ideally around 170°F, until done. Timing will vary, so start checking around the 3–4 hour mark.
THE BEND TEST. Proper jerky should be dry and leathery but still have a little flexibility. When you bend it, you should see small cracks—but it shouldn't immediately crumble into beef confetti.
IMPORTANT FOOD-SAFETY SHIT
Homemade jerky isn't something to freestyle when it comes to temperature. Beef should reach an internal temperature of 160°F as part of the jerky-making process to destroy harmful bacteria. If your dehydrator doesn't reliably bring the meat to that temperature, use a USDA-recommended heating step in conjunction with dehydration.
Once it's finished, let it cool completely before storing it. For homemade batches without commercial preservatives, I prefer keeping it refrigerated in an airtight container, especially if there's any question about how thoroughly it was dried.
Want It Spicier?
Add 1-2 tablespoons of sriracha or your favorite hot sauce to the marinade.
Want It Sweeter?
Add another tablespoon or two of brown sugar or honey.
Want It Peppery AF?
Press extra coarse black pepper onto the strips right before dehydrating.
And congratulations - you've just turned $20 worth of beef into approximately $147 worth of gas-station jerky.
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