Let's start with the cut of meat. There are many options when it comes to making jerky. I've had venison jerky, antelope jerky and of course, beef jerky. Looking at my list of beef cuts in my 2014 quest to cook everything in the Paulina meat case, I opted for a beef cut. And within beef, there are yet again more options. A favorite of many for jerky is the flank steak. Paulina Market's favorite for beef jerky is London Broil, and because it's their favorite, it's mine as well. Let me digress for a moment.
I used to host a golf tournament on the morning of Day of Meat every year. We started off by calling it the Meat Masters. Other manifestations included the USDA Open, the London Broil Open and of course the PGA (Prime Grade A). Yes, I know, I am not normal. Anyhow, one of the "party favors" I gave everyone on the first tee was teriyaki beef jerky cured, marinated and smoked at Paulina Market. The way Paulina does it is they actually smoke the entire London Broil cut, uncut. So when you order their jerky, they are slicing it for you. By doing it that way, they eliminate some of the drying in the center. It's purely a matter of preference (and of course time, since the larger the cut, the longer the smoking).
OK. So back to my cut of London Broil. I have a homemade salt mixture for curing. A half pound of regular salt, a quarter of a pound of sugar and 5 teaspoons of pink curing salt. Everyone has their own combinations. This one is simple, does the trick and stores easily. Please note, the is NOT the volume I use for this one cut of London Broil. That is the just the ratio. And I use it until it's gone, and then make a new batch.. So, I let the London Broil sit at room temperature for about an hour, and then give the entire thing a rub down with the curing mixture. You don't want to overdo it, but at the same taken, you want every aspect of it covered. Now, some will tell you to refrigerate it immediately. Me? I say let it sit at room temperature for a day or two. Room temperature will allow the salt to penetrate. Refrigeration makes the meat firmer, and will make the salt take longer. You can let this curing process take place for weeks. I did 36 hours at room temperature and another 5 days in the fridge. On the night before you plan to smoke the meat, you need to rinse off the cut. The salt by now has done the trick, but you don't want all that excess salt in the flavor of the meat. Put the cut in a wide, deep container and let it sit under a steady stream of cold water in the kitchen sink for an hour or two on each side. Move the location of the stream so that it is rinsing every inch of the cut. Then lay the cut out on a bed of towels (paper towels will do) to fully dry it out. Now, it's time for your jerky flavor du jour.
You can do dry rubs or marinades. For teriyaki, we go marinade. A simple homemade teriyaki sauce recipe of soy sauce, ginger, garlic and pepper does the trick. I sliced the London Broil against the grain (very important for tenderness of each bite) as thinly as possible, and let these slices marinate overnight in a ziploc bag. Meanwhile, in a bowl of water, I soaked a big Oak wood chunk. Some use wood chips, I use a veritable log.
To the Big Green Egg we go. I use about half as much charcoal for smoking as I do for grilling. Make a little chimney of charcoal, get them lit, get the soaked Oak wood on top and bring the Egg up to temperature. This is the tricky part. You want the coals lit so they sustain over time. But you want the flow of oxygen to be minimal to maintain a temperature of roughly 150 degrees. For this round of jerky, I will confess things got a little hot. Although I was able to regulate it down to 150 when things got too hot, I will admit the smoking averaged about 180. Not my preference, but again, tasty deliciousness can result from human error (assuming top notch ingredients).
Well, when I bit into this jerky about 5 hours later (it would have been 8 hours later if I kept the temp down better), I was wondering if Jack Links' Sasquatch was going to send me airborne over my neighbor's fence. This jerky (mistake though it was) has an outer crunch and an inner chew that makes texture fans roar their approval. It lasts weeks in the fridge, but mine won't last another day at the rate I'm going.
14 down, 45 to go!
For those curious, here is the list of cuts, with the completed ones crossed out. And due to terrible photography skills when I took pictures of all the cuts, the list is growing. I missed Skirt Steak in my list below. The irony is that I knew I had to cook it, and already did and wrote about it. Problem was that it wasn't in my "total count". So, I've got 59 cuts for the year. And I've done 14. So, 45 to go.
BEEF:
New York Strip Steak
Boneless Top Sirloin Steak
Sirloin Steak
Tenderloin/Filet Steak
Flat Iron Steak
Tomahawk Steak
Bone-In New York Strip Steak
Bone-In Rib Eye Steak
Prime Rib Eye
Prime Rib Eye
Prime New York Strip Steak
London Broil
Flank Steak
Round Steak
Beef Stew (just meat)
Boston Rolled
Roundbone Potroast
Sliced Liver
Sirloin Tip Roast
Bottom Round
Eye of Round
Rump Roast
Rib Roast
Oxtails
Short Ribs
Shank with Bone
Cubed Steak
Hanger Steak
VEAL:
Rolled Roast
Osso Bucco
Boneless
Ground Veal
Veal Stew (just meat)
LAMB:
Loin Chops
Shoulder (Blade Bone)
Shoulder (Round Bone)
Ground Lamb
Rosettes
Leg with Bone
PORK:
Center Cut Chops
Pork Chop Suey (just meat)
Pork Stew (just meat)
Loin Rolled (Boneless)
Baby Back Ribs
Shoulder
Shanks
Center Cut Pork Roast
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