Beef Jerky

Ingredients

500g      Topside or silverside beef joint

125ml.   Worcestershire sauce

60ml.     Dark soy sauce

50ml.     Date syrup

2 tsp.     Fermented chilli sauce

1 tsp.     Black pepper (course ground)

1 tsp.     Smoked chilli flakes

Method

Remove all the sinew from the surface of the meat and slice the meat thinly (3mm) You can freeze the meat for a few hours before to assist in making the slices uniform. This helps if you are using a mechanical slicer.

Mix all the ingredients together in a bowl and then immerse the slices of meat in the marinade. Do this one piece at a time to ensure you get the marinade on all sides of the meat. Cover the surface of the meat with cling film and place in the fridge for 24 hours to marinade.

Lay the meat onto wire racks trying not to overlap the slices. Place in a pre-heated oven at anywhere between 30C and 50C. Wedge the door open using a wooden spoon. The drying process can take several hours depending on your oven. Check every hour or so and after three hours, turn the meat slices over and rotate the racks to ensure the drying is even.

After the jerky has dried, turn up the oven to 80C and allow the meat to be heat treated for 5 minutes to kill any nasties which may be on the meat. This safety step is something the commercial makers always follow so it’s worth doing for safety.

Remove the jerky from the oven and allow to cool. Slice into 1 to 2cm slices and vac bag. Your jerky will freeze well for up to a year.