For True “Western” Jerky Slice WITH the Grain
“Western” style jerky is tough with simple ingredients; The best way to make it tough is to slice with the grain.
If you slice against the grain, this will make it softer and more tender.
Slice strips to 1/8 – 1/4″ thick.
1/8″ is usually too thin and pieces from a stereotypical “Western” style brand are bigger slabs.
Western Style Marinade Ingredients
The marinade is savory and salty – this is for ~1 lb of beef.
- 1/3 cup low-sodium soy sauce
- 1/4 cup water
- 2 tbsp Worcestershire sauce
- 1 tbsp Evaporated cane sugar (or dark brown sugar)
- 1 tsp smoked paprika
- 1 tsp black pepper
- 1/2 tsp granulated garlic
Marinate the meat overnight or for 48+ hours.
The only reason we’re using some sugar here is to help with moisture retention when we go to dehydrate.
Set Your Dehydrator to 160F
Dehydrate like this for ~3 hours and then start checking for doneness.
Take a piece out and allow to cool for 10 minutes.
Then bend it – if the bend has spider webbing, it’s done.
If the bend feels like rubber bands and has hues of pink/purple, it’s not done and needs to keep dehydrating.
Once Done, Put into a Ziplock Bag and Allow to Aerate
Leave the bag open for ~15 minutes and then seal and store in a cool, dry, dark place.
Eat within 2 weeks.
OR store in your refrigerator and eat within a month.
Western Style Beef Jerky
Ingredients
- 1 lb London broil
Western Beef Jerky Marinade
- 1/3 cup low-sodium soy sauce
- 1/4 cup water
- 2 tbsp Worcestershire sauce
- 1 tbsp Evaporated cane sugar or dark brown sugar
- 1 tsp smoked paprika
- 1 tsp black pepper
- 1/2 tsp granulated garlic
Instructions
Slicing and Marinating Jerky
- Take 1 lb of lean beef and cut against the grain. Slice so that the strips are 1/8-1/4" thick.
- In a bowl combine the marinade ingredients in the specified quantities. Ensure the powders and sugars are well combined.
- In a non-reactive container or ziplock bag, add your marinade and sliced jerky. Massage the marinade into the beef.
- Put in your refrigerator to marinate for 2 hours; Ideally, you'd marinate overnight for 16+ hours.
Dehydrating the Beef Jerky
- Set your dehydrator to 160-165F. Place your beef jerky in your dehydrator. Ensure pieces aren't touching or overlapping.
- Allow the jerky to dehydrate for 3 hours and then start checking for doneness.
Testing Beef Jerky for Doneness
- After 3 hours take a few pieces of beef jerky out of the dehydrator and allow them to cool for 5-10 minutes.
- Once cooled, bend the jerky.
- If at the bend you notice a "spider webbing" – it's done. If at the bend you notice the jerky is rubbery and has hues of red/pink, it's not done.
- At most it should take around 5 hours.
Storing the Jerky
- Once done, place in a ziplock bag with the top open and allow the jerky to aerate for 30 minutes. Once aerated zip the top and store in a cool, dry, dark place.
