Deer (Venison) Jerky

Ctraugh's Note:

I am a hunter and I love jerky. I came up with this recipe from about 3 others that I like.

• Total Time: 54 hrs
• Prep Time: 24 hrs
• Cook Time: 30 hrs

Ingredients:

Servings: 6

• 1 lb venison
• 1 teaspoon liquid smoke
• 1 tablespoon A-1 Steak Sauce
• 1 tablespoon Worcestershire sauce
• ½ teaspoon fresh ground pepper
• ½ teaspoon salt
• ½ teaspoon onion powder
• ½ teaspoon garlic powder
• ¼ cup soy sauce
• ¼ cup whiskey , i like seagram's 7 (optional)

Directions:

1. Take your meat to the local butcher and have it cut thin.
2. You can do this yourself by semi-freezing your meat then cut it into 1/4-inch strips.
3. Note: meat cut with the grain will be chewy, and against the grain will be tender.
4. Combine everything but the meat in a large bowl and stir well.
5. Marinate meat over night in the refrigerator, then drain.
6. To use a dehydrator place meat on racks, do not overlap, and let dry for 24-36 hours.
7. To use an oven, preheat to 150-degrees then place meat on cookie sheets without overlapping for 8-10 hours.
8. Turn at least once during drying.
9. They are ready when the jerky bends without breaking.
10. Let cool, seal tight, and refrigerate for long-term storage.

Reviews

[Sarah Z]

My husband got really lucky this year and shot three deer. So, I have an over abundance of venison in my freezer! When I saw this recipe I got super excited because my husband loves jerky and venison. Perfect! The only things I changed on this recipe were some of the ingredients. I'm Canadian and therefore have a healthy obsession with HP Sauce (it's a steak sauce from England). So, I used that instead of the A-1. I also used Johnny Red instead of Seagram's 7 for the whiskey because that's what I had on hand. I didn't have to cook the venison as long as it says (I believe I only baked it for about 6 1/2 hours). I also flipped the meat more then once and every time I turned it over I used a pastry brush to apply a mixture of the HP and Johnny Walker to make sure it didn't dry out too much and become shoe leather. My husband loved it and wants me to make it again after he eats it all. :)

[Tina Stamm]

I also like to hunt and most of my deer meat ends up as jerky i have tried about six different recipes and this is the first one i will keep and make again, my friends all like it to. A few people said i could add black pepper to it before drying it but i liked it just the way it tasted, and that was great.