Recently I went on a four day rafting trip. Before I went, I made some beef jerky. Here's how I did it.

My method is based on my father's method, as I was taught as a boy.

We start with a few pounds of flank steak.

Flank steak is a long cut. I cut with the grain as thin as I can, a little less than 1/4 inch thick. I cut about 3 pounds of beef.

I gathered up all the ingredients.

1 1/2 cup Soy Sauce
1/2 cup Worcestershire Sauce
1 cup light brown sugar
2 teaspoons liquid smoke
1/2 teaspoon garlic salt
1 teaspoon onion powder

I actually smoke the jerky, but if you aren't going to smoke it, you can add 2 teaspoons of liquid smoke.

Once the marinade is mixed up and the beef is cut, you'll need a container to soak it in.

I soak the beef at least overnight. The salt in the sauces will cure the meat to help preserve it as well as let the flavor get deep into the meat.

The next day, I set up my smoker and laid out the strips.

After about 6 hours, the jerky was ready. It depends how dry you like your jerky. I tend to like is a little dryer.

When you fully dry out the meat, you have basically preserved for a good long time. It's interesting to think that preserving meat like this was an essential task our ancestors used before the invention of refrigeration.

Posted by michael at May 31, 2008 07:09 PM