So I bet a lot of you get tired of eating nuts for a snack when on the go, I know I sure do! I have a freezer full of amazing grass fed beef and a lot of times I just don’t know what to do with some of the more economic cuts. So today I am going to share with you this amazing beef jerky recipe and also show you how easy it is to make your own beef jerky right out of your home. Jerky does not need to be refrigerated so this makes for a great protein packed snack that is great to take on the run. Add a piece of fruit and you have a wonderfully balanced snack.
So there are several things I want to mention first. Try to get your hands on some grass-fed meat, but if you can’t then organic is your next best option. For this recipe, you can use eye of round or round steak, and flank steak. If this is your first time making jerky then I would recommend using flank steak. It is a long cut of meat and it is easy to see the grain of the meat, which will make this process a lot easier for you as I will show you later in the recipe.
The other thing I want to mention is that you can use soy sauce (which is fermented soy), or you can use liquid aminos or coconut aminos. I will put a link below on where you can purchase some liquid aminos. It is great for stir fry recipes and other recipes that call for soy sauce. If you are looking for a soy free jerky then try Coconut Secret Raw Organic Vegan Coconut Aminos 8 Fl Oz. This recipe also has Worcestershire sauce. Be sure to buy the “all natural” Lea & Perrins Worcestershire sauce because it is the only one that I could find that didn’t have high fructose corn syrup in it. If you find another brand that has healthy ingredients then that is fine to use that as well.
Finally, I want to talk to you about a dehydrator. I will put a link at the end of this post showing you where you can purchase a dehydrator. Now there are all sorts of price points out there….but for me, the important factor was the price. I spent around $65 and I love it. I use it for my soaked nuts/crispy nuts, to make sweet potato chips (recipe to come), for this beef jerky recipe, and for many other recipes that I will share in the upcoming months. So in my opinion, you don’t have to spend a lot (some of these dehydrators are around $500) to get a quality product.
So let’s get to this recipe. It really is quite easy, it just takes some time to marinate and then to dehydrate it, but your efforts are well worth it when you taste the finished product!
The first thing you want to do is get a 1 1/2-2 pound flank steak. It is best to have the steak partially frozen, it will make it much easier to cut thin strips. If your meat is not frozen, place it into the freezer for about 45 minutes and then pull it out and cut your meat then. You want to cut the meat along the grain. Cut them into 1/8 inch thick strips. If using a flank steak your strips will be about 8-12 inches long, but very thin. If you are using a round steak (like I did for this recipe), you will have shorter strips of meat, but still 1/8 inch thick. Here is what your meat should look like once it is cut up.
Now put together your marinade by placing the following into a small bowl. 2/3 cup soy sauce or liquid aminos, 2/3 cup “all natural” Worcestershire sauce (make sure it is “all natural”, they do not use high fructose corn syrup in the “all natural” version, 1 tbsp raw honey (melted slightly), 2 tsp black pepper, 2 tsp onion powder, 1 tsp paprika, and 1 tbsp of liquid smoke. Mix together well. Place the meat into a gallon size plastic bag or a dish and pour the marinade on top of meat and seal up. Place in refrigerator for 3-6 hours. I marinated mine for 3 hours and it was just right and wasn’t too salty.
After you are done marinating your meat, take the meat out of the marinade and place on a paper towel. Blot the meat to dry it off a bit. Line the meat on your individual trays of your dehydrator or if you do not have a dehydrator then you can put them on a cookie sheet and place them in the oven. Dehydrate the beef pieces for 4-8 hours or until desired consistency. I dehydrated mine at 165 F for 4 hours and it was perfect.
If you are using the oven, turn the meat over every hour. Place the temperature as low as your oven will go. Ideally, it is best not to go above 185 F but if your oven doesn’t go any lower than 200 F, you will just have to start checking it after a few hours to see if it is done.
Once your beef is done dehydrating, you will have the best beef jerky! Store in an airtight container and grab a few when you are in need for a quick snack. If you should have any questions, feel free to leave them in the comment section below.
Homemade Organic Grass Fed Beef Jerky Recipe
Prep Time: 3 hours 20 mins
Cook Time: 4 hours
Total Time: 7 hours 20 minutes
Yield: 6 servings 1x
Category: snacks
Method: dehyrdrator
Cuisine: american
Description
This amazing beef jerky recipe shows you how easy it is to make your own beef jerky right out of your home.
Ingredients
- 1 1/2 – 2 pound grass fed flank steak or round steak
- 2/3 cup soy sauce, liquid aminos or coconut aminos
- 2/3 cup “all natural” Worcestershire sauce
- 1 tbsp raw honey, slightly melted
- 2 tsp black pepper
- 2 tsp onion powder
- 1 tsp paprika
- 1 tbsp liquid smoke
Instructions
- See instructions above in the post.
You Can Purchase Products & Ingredients Here
mmmm, I want to try a piece 🙂
I’ll bring some down 🙂
This sounds like a great whole foods alternative to a classic recipe. Would you mind if I shared your recipe, with links of course, on my upcoming nothing-but-jerky website?Thanks again for your recipe, time, and spot-on photos.Michael
cajebo1 Hi Michael,I have no problems with you sharing this recipe on your up and coming site. Be sure to come back and tell us about it when you launch it. I saw you became a fan on our facebook page…feel free to stop by when your site is up and running and share your site with us. Welcome 🙂
yummy
Bragg’s liquid aminoes is made from soybeans.
Sue1776 Thanks You for pointing that out…for some reason I thought it was not, but you are right. I will have to check the ingredients of my coconut aminos next. Thanks again for pointing this out 🙂 ~Halle
Coconut aminos do not have soybeans and it taste fantastic! Like soy sauce only better.
Their COCONUT Liquid Aminos are not, however.
Thank you for your submission on <a href=”http://www.nourishingtreasures.com”>Nourishing Treasures'</a> Make Your Own! Monday link-up. Check back tomorrow when the new link-up is running to see if you were one of the top 3 featured posts! 🙂
Loved this post! And wanted you to know that it’s my featured pick this week in tomorrow’s Homestead Barn Hop! Keep up the great work- this is definitely on my list to try. 🙂
cjwinger Thanks so much for the feature 🙂
do you think you could use tarmari in lue of the soy sauce ?
deliat Tamari would work out just fine.
Just an FYI..while everyone says to cut with the grain…Alton Brown says the opposite..to cut against the grain…made this for my kids two years in a row…and they LOVED LOVED LOVE it!! I’ have not made it cutting with grain..so I don’t know..but they are jerky eaters and said the consistency was fab!
Thanks for sharing this beef jerky recipe with me! I made it tonight…amazing! Just shared your post on FB 🙂
So glad you enjoyed it 🙂
I have heard that Bragg’s liquid aminos becomes MSG when heated. Is this true?
Is there a “natural” liquid smoke out there? I notice it has caramel coloring usually… I won’t be using that (gluten). 🙁
Jen