Jerky Question

[HuntingEd]

What makes better jerky, ground meat or sliced meat?

I'm going to make some jerky this weekend, and I have a bunch of ground deer and deer steaks. Last time I made jerky I just sliced up some steaks, an older roast, and even a backstrap (that was excellent). But it was a PITA to slice the steaks evenly, even when slightly frozen. The backstrap sliced the best and made very consistent slices, but I'm not willing to use my last backstraps for jerky!

I'm thinking a buying a grinder to process my own meat, and I could use it to grind up the steaks/roasts for jerky making... but I've never made jerky w/ ground meat. So thats why I'm askin.

Thanks!

[Windwalker7]

Its all good, but I actually prefer sliced muscle meat over burger.

I bought a deli slicer off ebay that I use to slice down semi frozen/thawed roasts for jerky. It works great and is much faster that doing it by hand.

I use a jerky shooter for burger jerky. It is similar to a caulking gun. Got it from cabelas. Its quick and simple. Much less work that rolling it out, trying to keep it the same thickness.

I use various home recipes, but one of my favorites is the Hi Mountain brand. The Cracked Pepper and Garlic flavor to be more specific. It is awesome!!!


One thing to note is that Hi Mountain recommends different amounts of seasoning depending on whether its muscle meat or burger.

Even if the weight is the same, it matters if you are using burger or muscle meat. They recommend more seasoning if using burger. Just someting to keep in mind when using a home recipe.

[dstubb]

Sliced meat for sure. I don't even consider the ground stuff jerky, more like a sausage/slim jim.

[HuntingEd]

Just an FYI:

I made jerky from ground meat this weekend and boy is it tastey! Saved me about 3-4 hours in prep time and 12 hrs in marinating time... The dehydrator I bought came w/ a jerky gun and some trial seasonings, took me about an hr to get 2lbs of meat in the dehydrator and it was frozen when I started!!! Dried it in 5.5 hrs... I like this jerky a lot more than hand-sliced, i think because its very consistent... The dry seasoning is really easy to use.

It was so easy I think I'm going to make all my jerky from ground meat now, and in fact I'm probably going to grind a whole lot more of my deer up during processing...

[louddrummer69]

Sliced meat is IMO superior to the ground meat. Windwalker hit it on the head. Get a meat slicer and slice it half frozen. Marinate for a day and put it on the dehydrator for 4-5 hours. Great healthy snack.

[superstrutter]

Guys, the sliced meat is the same meat used as ground meat. It all tastes the same when made into jerky. Ground meat is much easier. I used to slice my meat, but now I grind my own and make jerky out of it. I also add a little ground beef while grinding my venison. This helps it stick together better. You don't have to marinate it. You save so much time by using ground, and it tastes great. I made some a few days ago and it is delicious. The only problem is it's like candy. It's hard to stop eating it. I have to make myself stop eating so I'll have some left. I used 2 pounds this time, so it should last me a few days longer. If you love jerky and you don't have a dehydrator, get one. With ground meat it takes about 5 to 5 1/2 hours. I think I'll go eat some now.

[badassbowtech]

sliced by far. Taste better and has the jerky testure.

[Talondale]

Sliced tends to be more moist and tender. But ground is easier.

[Rhody Hunter]

I prefer the sliced meat . I like the texture better. both are good but i like slice better
I never had a problem when it is semi frozen. a meat slicer would probably work very well for this

[Bible_Man]

I love to eat either, but I prefer whole muscle...better texture.