Smoked beef jerky is a tasty, protein-packed snack that can be enjoyed anywhere. Making your own jerky at home is easy and allows you to control the ingredients. With a few simple steps you’ll be able to make tender flavorful smoked jerky from the comfort of your own kitchen.
Choosing the Right Meat
The first step in making great smoked jerky is selecting the right cut of beef Look for lean cuts like eye of round, bottom round, or flank steak Trim off any excess fat, as you want the leanest meat possible. Fatty cuts can go rancid quickly in jerky.
Cut the meat into long, thin strips. Many recommend cutting against the grain for more tender jerky. The thickness is up to you, with 1⁄4 inch being a popular choice. If you have a meat slicer, set it to your desired thickness for uniform cuts.
Creating a Flavorful Marinade
A good marinade is key to infusing your jerky with lots of flavor. Soy sauce and Worcestershire sauce make a classic marinade base. Brown sugar or honey lend sweetness. Spices like garlic powder, onion powder, black pepper, red pepper flakes, liquid smoke, and paprika amp up the flavor.
Mix your desired marinade ingredients together in a bowl or resealable bag. Add the meat and make sure all the strips are well coated. Let it marinate for at least 2-3 hours, or up to 24 hours for more intense flavor.
Preparing Your Smoker
Now it’s time to fire up your smoker and get it ready for the jerky. Bring your smoker up to around 200-225°F. Soak some wood chips in water for about 30 minutes beforehand. This allows them to smolder and produce smoke instead of catching fire.
Apple, hickory, mesquite, and oak all make good wood choices for smoking jerky, depending on if you want a sweeter, bold, or more subtle smoky flavor.
Smoking the Jerky
Once your smoker is up to temperature, drain any excess marinade from the jerky strips and pat them dry. Lay them directly on the grates or use hooks to hang them. Load a few soaked wood chips into the smoker box or charcoal basket.
Maintain your smoker temperature between 160-180°F. Smoke the jerky for 2-4 hours, until it reaches an internal temperature of 165°F. Wood chips can be replenished once they burn out after about an hour.
Testing for Doneness
There are a few ways to check if your jerky is fully done smoking. Carefully take a piece out and let it cool slightly before testing. Properly dried jerky will bend but not break when you fold it. It will also tear apart into strands or shreds.
The meat should have a lightly shiny sheen from the sugars caramelizing. If it still looks very raw and wet, it needs more time to dry and smoke. Don’t over-dry it though, or it will turn out crispy instead of tender.
Enjoy Your Smoked Jerky Creation
Once your jerky has finished smoking and cooled, it’s ready to enjoy! For longer shelf life, store it in an airtight container in the fridge. Otherwise snack on it straight away. Homemade smoked jerky always tastes better than store-bought.
Experiment with different meats like venison or turkey, or get creative with your own marinade flavors. Smoking jerky is so satisfying and lets you make customizable, flavor-packed snacks.
Here are some tips for success when making smoked beef jerky at home:
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Use lean cuts of meat like eye of round or flank steak. Trim off excess fat.
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Cut meat into long, thin uniform strips against the grain for tenderness.
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Marinate strips for at least 2-3 hours in a flavorful mix of soy sauce, spices, etc.
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Bring smoker up to 200-225°F. Soak wood chips beforehand.
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Smoke jerky at 160-180°F for 2-4 hours until 165°F internal temp.
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Test doneness by bending strips – it should crack but not break when ready.
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Store in airtight container in fridge for long shelf life.
With the right techniques, you’ll be making restaurant-quality smoked jerky from the comfort of your own kitchen in no time!
Introduction: Smoked Beef Jerky
Nothing beats beef jerky for a quick and tasty snack! Though its easy enough to pick up jerky from the checkout at your grocery store, making your own at home on your smoker is really easy, and you can get any flavor you like!
Having an outdoor smoker is such a fun hobby, and once your friends try your smoked foods they will be begging to be invited over again. Any type of charcoal or electric backyard smoker will work. If youre unsure, check out this part of my Smoker Lesson to learn more.
Heres what well need for this lesson:
This Instructable is a companion to the Meat Smoking Lesson, and relies on a basic understanding on how smokers work. Check out the smoking lesson and get a primer on outdoor smokers, and the difference between hot and cold smoking. For making beef jerky well be cold smoking.
Cold smoking is done at a low temperature (under 120°F (49°C)). Cold smoking meat is contentious because it doesnt raise the temperature above 140°F (60°C), the requirement for killing any surface bacteria that could be present on the meat. However, if done correctly, beef jerky can effectively be made on the smoker and will dry the meat completely. Dehydrated food has its moisture removed, and harmful bacteria cant efficiently contact or react with dry food.
If you like this smoker recipe youre sure to like some other great food to make on the smoker, like pulled beef, homemade sausages, and even smoked almonds.
Step 1: Meat Preparation
Jerky is very lean with almost no fat, this is because fat will cause the jerky to spoil faster since it cant be dried as effectively as the meat.
You can make jerky out of any lean cut of beef, but flank steak that you find at your butcher is already prepared nice and thin, so thats what I use. Id advise against pork and wild game jerky until youre comfortable with the process, since the risk of trichinosis is a thing.
Although flank steak is already a lean cut, there may be some fat on your steak, so use a sharp knife to remove as much fat as possible from each cutlet.
Theres debate on whether to cut the steak strips with the grain or against it. Cuts with the grain will produce longer strips, but cuts against the grain are easier to chew. I suggest trying both to determine your personal preference.
You want a thin cut of steak with almost no fat. Next the beef needs to be cut into strips. Its up to you how wide to make the strips, but I would stay below 1/2″ so you have smaller strips that can dry faster.
Before we can smoke the steak well need a marinade. As with the smoked almonds, theres no wrong way to mix up the ingredients, and it will depend on your personal tastes. Heres a basic jerky marinade:
Smoked Beef Jerky:
- Flank steak: about 2 lbs
- Honey: 1 tbps
- Garlic powder: 1 tbsp
- Soy sauce: 3/4 cup
- Worcestershire sauce: 3/4 cup
- Salt + pepper: a generous amount of each
I find it easiest to add all the ingredients to a large resealable plastic bag with the cuts of meat, seal the bag up and coat the steaks with the mix. Place in refrigerator and leave to marinate overnight.
The next morning your steak strips have marinated for a few hours and are now ready for the smoker.
Smoked Jerky | PLUS No Dehydrator Jerky Recipes
FAQ
How long does it take to smoke beef jerky?
What is the best cut of meat for smoking jerky?
The best cuts of meat for beef jerky are Top Round, Bottom Round, Lifter and Pectoral, but a variety of cuts can be used such as Flank Steak and Skirt Steak. These cuts of beef check all the boxes for beef jerky—economical, lean, and full of flavor.Feb 4, 2023
Is it better to smoke or dehydrate jerky?
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Flavor:Adds a distinct smoky flavor, often with a hickory taste, according to Mountain America Jerky.
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Texture:Generally more moist and chewy, compared to dehydrated jerky.
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Juice:Smoker seals in the meat’s juices, resulting in a more flavorful and satisfying experience.
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Time:Smoking can take a few hours, but some prefer to finish smoking before dehydrating.
How much jerky will 5lbs of meat make?
- Weight Loss: Jerky undergoes significant weight loss during the drying process due to the removal of water.
- Dehydration: The amount of water removed varies depending on the method used, with some methods resulting in more shrinkage than others.
- Meat Type: Leaner cuts of meat will generally yield more jerky than fattier cuts.
- Desired Moisture: The more dehydrated the jerky, the less weight it will have.