Ground Beef Jerky

[tdiowa]

Ok, I'm about to give up on this experiment.

I have a homemade ground beef jerky recipe that really has a great taste to it. My problem is that when after dehydrating the meat it falls apart. In the two batches I have made I have cooked it to long and not long enough. What I am left with are crumbs that would make a average sloppy joe.

I have watched all the You Tube videos and tried to pick up where I am going wrong. All that I have watched shows ground beef jerky that comes out consistent, firm and pliable. How do you get that consistency? One thing I have noticed on You Tube is they can pick up the pieces and flip them. No way with mine. It just falls apart

Mix it longer? Maybe to a puree consistency?
Use a binder?
I use Tender Quick should I use Prague #1
Am I cooking at the wrong temperature? I have cooked at 150 degrees and at 135 degrees. No noticeable difference
Do I add more liquid or am I using to much?
I use the LEM Jerky gun. Should I just use a rolling pin?

Any suggestions would be welcomed.

 

[Oldskewl]

I usually make my jerky from sliced top or bottom round. But the few times I made it from ground beef I used LEM seasoning packages and the jekey canon as well. Jerky tuned out fine. It recommends adding the seasoning to 5oz water to help mix it in. You want the fat content to be low, I usually use 85/15 or 90/10 beef. Also your heat should be higher. I run my dehydrator at its highest setting of 165F or my smoker at 175F. Time varies but usually 6-8 hours depending on how wet the meat is. You still want it to be pliable. Here are the directions from the LEM site.

https://www.lemproducts.com/product/backwoods-sriracha-jerky-seasoning/jerky-seasoning

 

[Shalenkur]

Here is what you need to do:
Put meat and seasoning together and mix and mix aggressively until it gets sticky. I put mine in a kitchen-aid type mixer for a few minutes. This develops the myosin which is like glue. You can see the meat start to stick together then mix it some more. If you do this it will bind together and will get the results you are looking for. Make sure you are using low fat meat also.

Do you use a dehydrator or oven to dry it?

 

[tdiowa]

I use a dehydrator. I think you are dead on with the mixing. I am trying a new batch and mixed it four 3 - 4 minutes. Definitely could see a difference. In addition I picked up some tips to avoid using anything with vinegar. Will keep everyone posted

 

[tdiowa]

Did a batch this weekend. I mixed the mix until it was emulsified. Put in in the Jerky Cannon and pushed out my strips onto the dehydrator trays. I could tell right away that this was going to be different. Laid down nice and smooth. Cooked on at 150 - 160 for 6-7 hours. Perfect

 

[Oldskewl]

Lookin’ good!

 

[Shalenkur]

Awesome looks great!