Smoked beef jerky recipe

Best Smoked Beef Jerky Recipe

Beef Jerky in a smoker is the way to make beef jerky. You can add your favorite wood smoke, which involves slow-cooking the meat for a rich infusion of smoky, savory flavor into your jerky. The smoker beef jerky recipe is simple with minimal ingredients. In this post, I will teach you how to make beef jerky in a pellet smoker or electric smoker.

Smoked beef jerky recipe

What Is Smoked Beef Jerky?

Smoked beef jerky is a conserved meat recipe that you can make by slicing lean beef into thin strips, marinating it overnight, and dehydrating it in the smoker. You can also make it in your pellet grill. Smoking is slowly cooking meat with wood smoke over a low temperature to make it brown or add flavor. Cooks use this technique to preserve meat for many years without refrigeration.

Making Meat Slices for Jerky

First, you must make a slice of your meat into 1/3 or 1/7 inch slices against the grain. The easiest way is to thaw your round steaks and then slice them against the grain. If you wait for a complete thaw, it will be hard to get consistent thickness. The silver skin and fat are not significant after it has been smoked. So it is better to trim them. The fat is not cooked very well, making the jerky extra hard to chew.

Ingredients

  • 3 pounds round steak
  • 1/4 cup honey
  • 1/4 cup soy sauce
  • 1/4 cup Worcestershire
  • 3/4 cup beer, IPA
  • 2 tsp onion powder
  • 1 tsp red pepper flakes
  • 2 tsp garlic salt
  • 1/4 cup brown sugar
  • 1 tsp curing salt, optional

A medium-sized bowl combines soy sauce, beer, honey, Worcestershire, garlic salt, onion powder, red pepper flakes, and brown sugar. Whisk all the ingredients and pour them into the zip lock with the sliced meat. Squeeze all air out of the zip lock, then seal and place it in the fridge. Let the meat marinate for at least 12 hours; it is best to wait 24 hours. So all the flavors get absorbed into the meat.

How to Make a beef jerky smoker recipe?

After the meat has marinated for at least 12 to 24 hours, remove the bag from the fridge, and put meat slices on a cookie sheet lined with foil and paper towels. Place the layers with sequences such as the first layer of meat, then add a paper towel layer and another layer of meat. Place the meat on the smoker and let it smoke at 150 to 180 degrees for 2 hours.

Check on the meat at 2 hours. A jerky rack is helpful if you run low on space inside your smoker. It only takes 2 to 2 and a half hours until the jerky is done.

Essential Instructions for Smoked Beef Jerky

  • Trim any excess fat off from meat.
  • Make slice thin 1/4 – 1/8 inch thick slices.
  • It is easier to slice the meat if it is still slightly frozen.
  • Pour the marinade meat into the bag and then seal. 
  • Remove the meat from the marinade and blot dry with a paper towel.
  • Cover the Drip Pan with Aluminum Foil.

How can you Store Smoked Beef Jerky?

When beef the jerky is smoked, place it on a rack to cool. When the meat has come down to room temp, please place it in a zip lock bag or sealable container, and put it in the refrigerator. You can store it for a few weeks in the fridge or for months in the freezer.

Tips for a beef jerky smoker

Properly Slice your meat: Trim off any visible silver skin and fat from your meat Slice before smoking it. Using a sharp knife or meat slicer, cut the meat against the grain into thin strips. The slices should be as uniform as possible for consistent smoking times.

Switch up the wood chips: You can add the flavor varieties of wood chips to your pellet smoker to achieve variations in smoke flavor. Likewise, apple wood and cherry wood infuse the meat with a mild smoke flavor. While hickory, pecan, and mesquite will offer you a more distinct smoky taste. 

Use of smoker: A pellet smoker is the most straightforward smoker to use for beef jerky than an electric smoker.

Smoke flavor: If you are cooking on thick white smoke, increase the temperature to achieve a lovely clear, while on blue smoke, avoid it giving an unpleasant flavor.

FAQ

How long does beef jerky take in a smoker?

2-5hrs in a pellet smoker and 4-10 in an electric smoker or traditional.

What temperature does your beef jerky take for a smoke?

It would be best if you had a low temperature and little smoke for smoking jerky, do not use extra smoking chips in your smoker when making jerky. The ideal temperature is under 150 F/65 C. 

Do you flip the jerky during smoking?

No. There is no need to flip the smoker.

Is it better to smoke or dehydrate beef jerky?

Beef jerky is as American as apple pie. Most people do not realize there is a better way to make jerky than your typical dehydrated meat. Smoked to perfection for the best beef jerky.

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