Crafting mouthwatering homemade beef jerky in a dehydrator is much simpler than you think. With minimal effort, you can enjoy better than store-bought beef jerky at a fraction of the price.
Whenever I go backpacking, my favorite snack to pack is beef jerky. It is pretty much the only time I buy it. At upwards of $20 a pound at grocery stores, it just doesn't make the final cut on the everyday shopping list very often. Yet, it still remains one of my favorite snacks. However, I enjoy making my own homemade beef jerky far more often, which is more affordable and tastes every bit as good!
Homemade Beef Jerky
There are two ways to make homemade beef jerky in your dehydrator. You can make ground beef jerky using a jerky gun, or you can use thinly sliced lean beef for traditional beef jerky. This is a fairly simple beef jerky recipe using thinly sliced lean beef.
Not only does using thinly sliced beef not require specialized tools, like a jerky cannon, but it is also healthier because you aren't using fatty cuts of meat.
What cut of beef is best for jerky?
The best cut of meat for beef jerky is any type of round roast. This includes the eye or round, top round, and bottom round roasts. They are nice and meaty, reasonably priced, and almost fat-free! Fat adds flavor to many dishes, but in beef jerky it just gets stuck in your teeth! I like lean cuts of beef without too much fat, like round roasts, because each bite is consistently meaty.
An honorable mention would be a London broil. London broils are also a great lean cut of meat for jerky, although it is typically a flank steak the name is used interchangeably with a variety of cuts at times.
Ingredients and Substitutions
- Beef round roast - Wildgame, such as venison, can also be substituted.
- Worcestershire sauce
- Soy sauce
- Liquid smoke
- Smoked paprika - Regular paprika works equally well.
- Brown sugar
- Ground black pepper
- Cayenne pepper - You can substitute crushed red pepper flakes.
- Garlic powder
- Onion powder
How to make Beef Jerky in a dehydrator
To make homemade beef jerky you simply cut the beef into thin slices with a sharp knife, let it marinate in the refrigerator overnight to soak up flavor, and then dry it at a low temperature in a dehydrator. My recipe is a great "original flavor" recipe that can easily be customized to fit your tastes. For example, if you want a spicy beef jerky recipe just add another teaspoon of cayenne pepper.
Using a dehydrator is the best method for making homemade beef jerky. Set the food dehydrator at 160 degrees, or up to 175 if your model allows you go to go higher, and place the thin strips of meat on the dehydrator racks. Rotating the racks hourly will ensure all of your jerky cooks evenly. Your jerky slices will be done in about 4 hours.
When is beef jerky done?
Beef jerky is done when it is no longer moist to the touch and does not bend without cracking. The jerky should bend slightly and then break, having an internal temperature of at least 160 degrees. If it breaks immediately, like a cracker, it is overdone. You should check the jerky throughout the cooking process to check for doneness. If you cut your jerky sufficiently thin it should finish cooking in under four hours.
How to dehydrate beef jerky in the oven
Some ovens will have a dehydrate setting, though even if they do not, your convection feature will work spectacularly as long as your oven lets you bake at low temperatures. Set your oven on convection at 175 degrees, and your jerky should be done with the drying process in around three hours. The beef jerky can simply be dried on wire baking racks. It is still recommended to rotate the racks in case your oven has any hot spots.
Tip: I have found ovens have difficulty maintaining consistent temperatures when set extremely low, such as 175 degrees. I use a digital oven thermometer to monitor the temperature swings and open the door slightly as needed to let heat out when it gets too hot.
Does Beef Jerky Need to Be Refrigerated?
According to the National Center for Home Food Preservation, when properly prepared homemade jerky does not need to be stored in the refrigerator. Dry jerky can be stored at room temperature, however, to preserve freshness it is best stored in an airtight container. Glass jars or a large ziploc bag work well for storage. Place the sealed container in a a cool dry place.
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Homemade Beef Jerky in a Dehydrator
Equipment
Ingredients
- 2 pounds beef round roast (thinly sliced)
Jerky Marinade
- ⅔ cup Worcestershire sauce
- ⅔ cup Soy sauce
- 1 teaspoon Liquid smoke
- 1 tablespoon Smoked paprika
- 1 tablespoon Brown sugar
- 2 teaspoons Freshly ground black pepper
- 1 teaspoon Cayenne pepper
- 1 teaspoon Garlic powder
- 1 teaspoon Onion powder
Instructions
- (Optional) Place beef in freezer for two hours. This will make it easier to slice thinly.
- Slice beef thinly against the grain. (approximately ⅛")
- Add all marinade ingredients into a bowl and mix to combine.
- Place sliced beef in ziplock plastic bag (gallon sized) and pour in marinade. Ensure it is evenly coating the meat and place in the refrigerator overnight.
- Remove beef from bag and pat dry with paper towels (drying with a paper towel will speed cooking time). The excess marinade can be discarded.
- Lay the jerky strips a single layer on dehydrator trays and set your food dehydrator at 160 degrees. (this can be done on wire racks in the oven as well)
- Dehydrate, rotating racks each hour, for 4 hours, or until the beef jerky is dry and cracks when you bend it.
Notes
Nutritional Information
This recipe was originally published on FoxValleyFoodie.com April 4, 2018.
Phillip Frost
Worst recipe I have used. Too much Worcestershire. Positive ratings must be friends and family. I feel I just wasted 5 lbs of meat.
Steve Kinley
Made this for the first time this past weekend using venison after my co-worker brought in some that he had made with your recipe. Mine turned out fantastic and my wife loved it as well. I think the naturally lean meat helped to reduce the time to about three hours in the dehydrator at 165. I will try using beef next time to compare.
Darling
Love that this recipe is from scratch with no nitrates/nitrites. I also subbed out the brown sugar with raw honey as we are on a specific gut healing diet. It was great jerky!!
Robin
Been using this recipe ever since you first posted it. My son will not buy jerky in a store anymore. He takes it to work and they go crazy over it! We change it up sometimes but typically leave it well enough alone! We don’t worry about how long it’ll last because it’s gone before 7 days.....even when I use over 10lbs of beef.....😳😂! Thank you again, Y’all are AWESOME!
Chris
Just did this recipe and peppered it before dehydration and 2 other recipes added 2/3 cup of teriyaki to one batch to make a kind of teriyaki batch as my 2nd batch. For the 3rd batch I added another table spoon and a half of brown sugar to it and 1 tablespoon of crushed red peppers for a sweet and hot flavor. We will see if I ruined your recipe or if it turns out good. Thanks for the original!
Jack Kamoske
I just made this and had good results. I did notice that there are no stabilizers/nitrates to ward off bacteria. Should there be a concern if keeping the jerky for more than a week or so?
Darshan Murphy
Jack, I use this recipe as my flag ship! I use nitrates now, for other reasons, but I have made this nitrate free, and kept it in pantry for 1 month plus..... there is enough sugar and salt, plus the organic fluids bacteria like are gone, not much really is interested in growing on this jerky.... the rule of thumb is 1 week.... I have seen some nitrated homemade jerky (another recipe) start forming a white mold after 6 weeks. So nothing is bullet proof. hope this helps
Melinda
I am in a time pinch , I've made may jerky it's in the refrigerator for the night . Has anyone ever froze the marinated beef , to dehydrate another day ?
Thomas
Well I vacuum seal my beef jerky and vacuum seal bags and freeze them in like 6 oz bags of jerky and they last me all year I just pulled one out when I'm ready to nibble on it I usually do 25 lb at a time
Fred Shelton
Placing in referPlacing in the refrigerator overnight is a good idea. However, if you have a Food Saver system you can use the quick marinator and do it in two hours. The marinating process forces the marinade into the meat fiber. But this is a very tasty recipe.