Appetizers How Do I ?

Mike’s Teriyaki Beef Jerky

It seems we are all falling into a few food situations right about now…maybe all three in any given day; Standup Solutions, Pantry Pursuit & Cooking Crazy.  A super good snack we enjoy falls into the Cooking Crazy situation,  my husband’s delicious beef jerky. 

  • Standup solutions; your working so much it’s all you can do to eat something quick while standing up before you collapse to be ready for your next shift.  I can’t even begin to thank these folks, honestly get teared up thinking about how to even write about what we owe all of the hero’s helping get us through this!
  • Pantry pursuit; looking in the pantry and finding a can of corn you didn’t know you had-bonus!
  • Cooking crazy; yep you don’t make it often, or it’s comfort food, or your home more than ever and by cooking like crazy it helps with the sanity…

So let’s talk about cooking like crazy, we have been doing a bit of that.  We never seem to always have enough time to cook normally but right now we definitely have some extra time to make some beef jerky.  I say we, but honestly this is my husband’s “famous” beef jerky.  He does the work and I get to enjoy one of the best snacks ever.

He normally makes it and tries to share with our kids and other family and friends but it is often gone before it goes very far.  A few months ago at a neighborhood gathering he brought it, yep it caused a straight out yelling match between two ladies on who would get the last few pieces.  Seriously they were best friends and being funny but we didn’t want to get in-between that.  

Mike’s secret ingredient is patience and care, he doesn’t hurry in the kitchen and spends days making sure that ever piece is perfect for everyone that will enjoy it. 

Mike’s Teriyaki Beef Jerky

2/3 cup Kikkoman Teriyaki Marinade

1/2 cup no-pulp orange juice

1/4 cup water

1 Tbsp honey

1 tsp soy sauce

2 tsp liquid smoke 

1 Tbsp brown sugar

1 1/2 tsp kosher salt

1 tsp onion powder 

1/2 tsp garlic powder

1/2 tsp black pepper

1 tsp crushed red pepper flakes

1 pound lean beef, such as eye round

Partially freeze the beef for about 2 hours to firm up, this makes it easier to slice it.  After partially freezing, slice across the grain into 1/8-1/4” thick strips.  A slicer works best but a sharp knife works as well.

  • In a medium bowl whisk everything but the beef together, whisking the marinade until the salt has dissolved.
  • Place beef strips into large freezer tiptop bag.  Add marinade, seal and toss to coat the beef well.  Unseal, squeeze out all of the air, reseal and place on a large pan or baking sheet.  Refrigerate for 1-2 days.  
  • Pat strips dry with paper towels.  Distribute beef strips in a single layer on dehydrator racks.  Dry 4 to 8 hours, turning racks every hour, and turning jerky strips over midway through the drying process.
  • When done, the jerky should have no signs of redness and be pliable enough to bend in half without breaking.
  • Use kitchen shears to cut into smaller pieces if you want.

Note: if you don’t have a dehydrator, your oven at 175 degrees for 4 hours or so will work.

Take care

-Angie