Beef

Whole Muscle Jerky: A Step-by-Step Tutorial

Making jerky at home is easy with our step-by-step tutorial.

You'll need:

5 lbs of any lean meat
1 package Jerky Seasoning
1 package Jerky Cure (included in all PS Jerky Kits)
1 cup cold water
Wire racks
Smoker (We used the Pro Smoker PK 100)

Instructions:

1. Choose any lean cut of meat (we're using an eye of round beef roast). To view more options and recommendations read our Ultimate Guide to Jerky Making.

2. Remove all visible fat and silverskin, as they'll prevent your jerky from drying thoroughly.

Trim the Fat - Jerky Making

3. Mix one seasoning and cure packet from a PS Seasoning Jerky Kit with 1 cup of cold water.

4. Slice against the grain for tender jerky (shown), with the grain for traditional chewier texture, no more than ¼” thick. Any thinner, it’ll be too dry and any thicker you will have problems drying it and preserving it as it will hold too much moisture.

5. Add sliced meat to a food-safe plastic bag and pour in seasoning/cure mixture.

6. Place in refrigerator and marinate 8-24 hours. The longer the marinade, the better the flavor. Stir or squish meat around every few hours to ensure it’s evenly coated.

7. Lay slices on wire racks. Preheat smoker to 140 degrees before loading. Smoke for 1 hour with smoke off and damper closed. Increase temp to 150 degrees and smoke for 1 hour with smoke on and damper open. Smoke at 160 degrees with smoke off and damper open until jerky shrinks 50%. To view instructions on using a smokehouse, an oven or dehydrator, view our Ultimate Guide to Making Jerky.