HISTORY OF BEEF JERKY

Jerky is an ancient form of preservation used in America and throughout the world. Native Americans took advantage of the technique of drying red meat in strips, and cowboys always had a great need to preserve beef—some still do. A contemporary of ours, a former cowboy who worked the land from Texas to Canada, tending and protecting cattle over huge expanses of territory, often alone for long stretches, says he dried, or jerked, meat whenever he killed anything, such as a deer. When his food ran out, he’d butcher one of the cattle. As that would give him, even if he was traveling with several others, too much meat to keep fresh, he would cut the meat into thin strips, salt it if he had salt, and keep it in a shady cool spot during the day (it would spoil in the sun), then hang it each night. If he was on the move, Robert said, jerky was important because you can carry a lot of it easily, it weighs so much less than fresh meat.
For that reason, jerky remains a great item for long camping trips. The same method works well with venison. Traditionally lean meat was used, because it dried more thoroughly and lasted longer, since even preserved fat can become rancid. Beef round is about as bland and tasteless a cut as you can find, but by curing, seasoning, and drying it, you can transform it into something both superlative and useful.
Beef jerky recipes are as varied as your imagination. Robert liked to season his with a variety of chile peppers. Be sure to trim away all the fat, which could become rancid.

2 1⁄4 pounds/1 kilogram boneless beef, eye of the round or lean round, all fat trimmed away 
3⁄4 ounce/20 grams kosher salt (about 11⁄2 tablespoons) 
1 3⁄4 teaspoons/5 grams garlic powder 
1 3⁄4 teaspoons/5 grams onion powder 
1⁄4 cup/60 grams finely chopped chipotle peppers packed in adobo sauce

1. Cut the beef into strips about 1⁄8 inch/0.25 centimeter thick and 1 inch/2.5 centimeters wide (length is not critical). In a dish or bowl, combine the remaining ingredients, add the beef, and toss to coat evenly. Cover and refrigerate for 24 hours.

2. Place the strips of beef on a rack set over a baking sheet, so that all sides dry. Turn the oven to 90 degrees F./32 degrees C., put the pan in the oven, and dry the beef for 16 to 20 hours. (If your oven cannot be set so low, try the lowest setting with the door propped open, and check every so often; it may take less time. Depending on the climate and conditions where you live, the beef may even dry well at room temperature.) The beef should be completely dry to the touch, dark, and very stiff.
3. Stored in an airtight container, the jerky will keep for several months or longer at room temperature.

Yield: Approximately 1 pound/450 grams beef jerky

See Also:

Charki (Charqui)

By Michael Ruhlman & Brian Polcyn in the book 'Charcuterie- The Craft of Salting, Smoking and Curing', W.W. Norton & Company Ltd, New York, 2005. Adapted to be posted by Leopoldo Costa.

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