Shaun I would need to look back on old backups that I have but long, long ago on Martha Stewart's old show she had the father on of one of her employees. He made a really good Beef Jerky and it was done in the oven. I remember it well. I tried to do a quick search on Google and it does show one of hers done in the oven but I'm not sure if it was the same one that I saw long ago and liked.

Thanks dixiedog! I googled it and found some recipes; looks like a lot of work for some reason. Maybe I'll just buy some.

Shaun,
I have a great beef jerky recipe that my mother gave me if you would like it. I need to look it up in her book but would be happy to copy it over tomorrow after work. It's not a lot of work but does take some time. Let me know I would be happy to share. Jackie

Jackie I would love to see it! Thanks!~~

Here's a recipe which I have worked up for my dehydrator; it makes terrific jerky. Please note that it is used to dry and flavor the beef, and it is NOT cured; that is, I don't know if it will be safe to store this stuff at room temperature or not. I keep the product in the freezer anyway.

I've never used an oven to dry the stuff, although I suppose you could if it came down to a low temp. At any rate, this recipe is a good starting point:

Guinness Beef Jerky Marinade

(This amount of marinade is sufficient for about 5 to 6 pounds of beef, which I find fill my eight trays fairly full)

6 lbs lean beef, sliced thinly--see Note 1
2 bottles (12-14 oz each) Guinness Stout
2 tablespoons kosher salt
2 tablespoons garlic powder
2-4 tablespoons hot stuff (see Notes 2 and 3)
optional: liquid smoke, 1 to 2 tbsp

In a large bowl pour stout and add salt, whisking to dissolve salt and decarbonate the stout. Add the garlic powder and hot stuff and mix well. Put the beef strips in the marinade by handfuls, swirling around to make sure all surfaces have come in contact with the marinade. Place the beef in a nonreactive container (a stainless stockpot works fine, pour the remaining marinade over the beef and refrigerate for at least an hour (more is better, mixing the beef strips every so often in the pot)

Place the strips flat on the trays and dry until done.

Note 1: I like to use round roast because it's very lean; eye of round is very easy to slice across the grain, and that yields a less stringy product. Don't use a fatty cut because it won't dry as thoroughly and won't have the storage properties of a leaner cut.

Note 2: I have used chipotle powder with good results; 4 tablespoons in this recipe makes a quite hot product, and 2 tbsp makes a pleasantly zingy one. If you want something quite mild, use sweet paprika which would make a product not at all hot but with pleasant flavor. Next batch I make, I'll use sriracha and see how it comes out.

Note 3: The last batch I made, I used a can of chipotle peppers in adobo sauce instead of the tablespoons of hot stuff, blended in the blender until smooth, then I added the other ingredients and blended until mixed. Worked great, athough next time I will cut back a little on the salt.

THanks!

Shaun I searched for that recipe that was on Martha's show years ago but I can't find it. I saw the show and wrote out the recipe. My husband is the one who made it. I don't recall it being difficult to make but it did take a long time due to the timing in the oven. But I did eat it and it was good!

OH that's okay Dixie! No problem. One of my friends has a dehydrator and she said she will let me use it. She also has a recipe that she said is very good. We'll see!

Shaun here is my mom's recipe which is definitely a keeper and actually is not as bad as I remembered. I rarely make it now that I live in South Florida. This was more of a winter recipe I used up north when keeping the oven on for hours was a benefit. There are really no exact measurements, it depends on how much you want to make.
Ingredients:
London Broil
Salt & Pepper
Liquid Smoke
Hot sauce
Cayenne Pepper (optional)
-Remove any visible fat from london broil and partially freeze to the icy stage. Slice in thin slices - across/against the grain for crisp and with the grain for chewy (If you are lucky sometimes the meat market or grocery store will slice it for you). Using a marinating container (I have an old tupperware one) place a single layer of meat, sprinkle with S&P, Liq smoke and hot sauce to taste. Continue the layering as above until meat is used up. Finish off with the S&P, Liq smoke and hot sauce on top. Let marinate in the fridge for approx 2 days, flipping the container once or twice a day. Place cookie cooling rack on a cookie sheet that you have lined with foil. Place your strips of marinated meat on the cookie racks and bake at 300 for 3-4 hrs or until desired consistency (chewiness). Store in airtight container in fridge. Keeps a good long time but will not last that long once you start eating it.
Sorry this is not a more technical/traditonal recipes but my mom wrote it down exactly like she made it. Hopefully it will be understandable. Any questions let me know and if you make it enjoy.
Jackie

Jackie, I'm using this recipe! My friend is bringing her dehydrator over Thursday and we're gonna do this.

I have the london broil in the freezer now and I'll try to slice it as thin as I can. I wish I had asked the butcher to do it for me. Darnit!

Hey were in South Fla do you live anyway??

FWIW: I just made another batch of my recipe listed above, and used sriracha for the hot stuff. DON'T DO IT; it's tasty, nice and zingy, but there is some residual vinegar-ish taste from the sriracha. Next time I'll go back to cayenne or (better still) chipotle powder or canned chipotles-in-adobo which I have run through a blender.

The moral of the story is not to use a hot sauce with vinegar in it to flavor the beef, because a touch of the vinegar taste will remain in the finished product.

A cautionary tale: note that these recipes (mine and Jackie's) don't have any curing salt (nitrates) so the resulting product should probably be stored in the fridge. I wouldn't recommend allowing it to stay at room temp indefinitely, although if you put it out for a party or a ball game I'm sure it wouldn't spoil in the time it takes to consume it. What I've done is used small ziploc bags to store the stuff in the freezer, moving one bag at a time into the fridge and consuming it a bit at a time.

What got me in to jerky making is that I'm trying a low carb diet right now, and acceptable non-boring snacks are hard to find. Homemade jerky is virtually carb-free and very low in fat, and if you use enough spice, it packs a nice flavor punch with very few calories. Only 'baddy' is the amount of sodium, but my blood pressure is okay.

arley thanks for that info. I'm also low carbing it and I need something chewy and full of flavor. Jerky is the ticket. I just sliced up my beef and am going to use Jackie's recipe above.

Here is my friend Linda's recipe which I have had forever! I have only made it a few times, as I am only a casual fan of jerky. But this one is really good!

Beef Jerky
from Linda Schmidt

Solid piece of sirloin, trimmed of all fat, cut into 1/4" slices. Place slices into a bowl.

Stir in:
1/2 c teriyaki sauce
1/2 c soy sauce

Let marinate 10 minutes.

Place on wire rack over sink. Sprinkle with garlic salt & lemon pepper on both sides. Place rack on foil covered baking sheet. Bake 12 hours at 140F.

Linda

Thanks Linda, sounds good too. I'm copying and pasting.

I never realized how expensive Beef Jerky is in the stores! It's more than a pack of cigarettes fercrissakes; I'm not kidding. Yesterday I picked up a bag to look at and there was only a handful in the bag and it was $6. Wassssssssup with that?

Shaun, it's a regional thing I think. You would think that in Florida, which produces a large portion of the country's beef, that beef jerky would be cheap!

When DH and I went up to the PNW a couple of years ago, we were shocked at how CHEAP beef jerky was! That $6 package cost less than $2 in Washington state!!! What's up with that????

Either way, I got a dehydrator for xmas and I want to make some jerky too. Maybe this weekend.

I live in Florida too (central) and we have a big flea market here where someone makes and sells gator jerky, not bad but a little to greasy for me

Gator jerky??? (shudder)

Well I couldnt wait for my friend so I took out a few pieces of the beef and tried to do it in my oven today. It tastes terrible and looks like cat sh*t.

"Smell my finger."
"WHAT?!"
"Smell my finger! Smell it!!"

I shoved my right hand under his nose and he took a cautious sniff. He stopped in mid-smell, looked up at me, and I swore I saw his pupils dilate. He then buried his face into my palm and inhaled long and deep.

"Oh my God, that smells SOOOO good! I am going to EAT YOU UP!"

Ahem.

Ladies, listen closely. If at any time you find yourself making beef jerky, be sure to dab a drop of Liquid Smoke in a few strategic locations on your body. You will be ravaged!

Now, if I could only figure out a way to bottle it with some beer and give it some foo-foo French name, IÂll make MILLIONS!

Shaun, I started marinated some thin slices I cut from a bottom round roast last nite (Albertsons has BOGO on bottom rounds this week), so we'll see how it goes. The Liquid Smoke was a big hit!

ROTF!! Did you let yours dry long enough? Cat sh*t jerky...bet that would make a great doggie treat though! I used to have a dog that thought "Kitty Box Crunchies" were da' bomb! (gag)

which recipe did you use shaun? I was tempted to try Linda's.

This is what I put on it:

London Broil
Salt & Pepper
Liquid Smoke
Hot sauce
Cayenne Pepper (optional)

I guess I needed to be more generous with the seasonings; I was too careful w/the salt. Needed more salt. And maybe I dont like london broil? Maybe I should try the bottom round next time.

I think I baked it too long. You think I'm kidding about the appearance of this jerky? Here, look for yourself:

Anyway, since it had no taste except for hotness I added some soy sauce, teriyaki glaze and brown sugar. It's still marinating.

Today my friend is bringing over her dehydrator. Stay tuned.....

Do you have a Buc-ee's nearby? They have the most fabulous selection of jerkey--more than beef. It's worth the drive if you have to just to look at all the stuff they have.

Here is a link that might be useful: Buc-ee's

dktrahan looks like Buc-ee's is only in Texas..... little too far to drive for jerky. hahahah!!!

Oh my, Shaun! Catsh*t jerky, huh?
Well, try it again, I am sure the next batch will be better! LOL

I am not crazy about liquid smoke, so I'd have to find a sub for that.

It does look like you baked it for too long, too. Maybe a little less time or a lower temp.

Linda

Well folks, using the dehydrator, this beef jerky came out fabulous!

Trust me, it doesnt photograph well. Just believe me when I tell you, it's so good I won't ever buy it again.

I hope I can duplicate the marinade I used.

It was part Jackies and part my own........ oye

Tips-partially freeze your mouth to make it easier to slice thinly. If you do the jerky in your oven, leave the door open to let the moisture out.

You can make jerky from hamburger....WalMart and others sell American Harvest Jerky Works Kit and seasoning packs in their housewares departments. The packs include a cure that is a mix of salt and sodium nitrite.

Here's my favorite recipe - I up the hot sauce in it, though

http://allrecipes.com/Recipe/T-Birds-Beef-Jerky/Detail.aspx

Sorry I can't help with technique in the oven, as I use a dehydrator, but this marinade is killer.

Here is a link that might be useful: http://allrecipes.com/Recipe/T-Birds-Beef-Jerky/Detail.aspx

Thank You!

"Tips-partially freeze your mouth to make it easier to slice thinly"

HUH?

Linda

My jerky came out great too but a little on the too-dry side for my tastes, even though I cooked it for the amount of time required and not too long.

Anyone know of how to make it like the kind you buy in the store where it's still a little sticky and not as hard? Is it the marinade?

I used the salt/pepper/sauce/liquid smoke layering and marinading technique Jackie posted.

Arley, I keep saying I'm going to make jerky, but I just haven't, although I have a dehydrator and a freezer full of beef.

How long do you keep your jerky dehydrating and at what temperature?

Annie

Annie, I generally prefer to dry the beef rather thoroughly. It comes out actually a little crunchy, almost like a potato chip. Now a lot of people would prefer to dry them not as thoroughly so you end up with a pliable product rather than a crisp one. But part of the reason I'm on a jerky kick right now is that I'm on a low carb diet for the time being, and most crunchy stuff is verboten.

I usually dry the stuff a minimum of 10 hours, usually overnight. Because the trays are a PITA to clean, I usually make several batches of jerky in sequence so I don't have to clean them between each batch. (The lazy way to clean them when you're finished: throw the dirty trays in the bathtub, cover with hot hot water, add a cup or so of chlorine bleach; in the morning you can pretty much rinse the trays off with warmwater, maybe having to use a bottle brush to dislodge any stubborn stuff.)

A thin piece of beef, dried on the dehydrator overnight, ends up nice and crisp. I unload the dehydrator trays and reload them with beef that has been marinating in the fridge overnight; repeat this sequence until you have all the stuff processed.

I just got an order from Penzey's, so this weekend I'll be experimenting with using their chili powder on jerky, as well as their curry powder.

As I mentioned above, I'm storing the stuff in plastic bags in the freezer. I haven't added any cures like nitrates or nitrites to the mix, so I don't know how safe it would be to store this stuff at room temperature.

Shaun...I live in Boynton Beach. The picture of your jerky looks like it baked too long. Glad the combo of my recipe and yours worked for you.

Yes I'm sure it did. I shouldnt have used such a high temp. The stuff I did in the dehydrator came out really good. Made two batches of it.

RE: cleaning the trays, I stuck them inthe dishwasher and took them out before the dry cycle started. All clean!

Boynton Beach? Not far at all.

Shaun...Where are you from in FL? Jackie

Jackie, I'm in west palm beach.