i got a dehydrator for christmas and i've been experimenting with jerky making. so far only tried beef, but i have several pork tenderloins in the freezer (and the other freezer.....and the other other freezer....) that i may thaw out and attempt.
what i have learned so far is soy sauce marinades work great, i can get a texture basically like that of old style beef jerky, the kind you have to really let rehydrate in your mouth and chew on for a while.
but if i try something that uses something fatty like olive oil for a base then it basically just......fries. like i can't figure out the right combo of temp/time (i mean it's only two variables!) to keep the jerky from going limp -> crispy. it's like once it goes; it goes. and i don't like crispy jerky, even if the flavor is good.
i've read people take their overdone jerky and process it into pemmican or just a general meat paste/dip, but man i think i'm going to toss this stuff because it just ain't good.
anyone use olive oil as a marinade base for jerky successfully? i think i'll just stick to the soy/fish sauce marinades. my favorite so far is red curry paste in fish sauce with some garlic. or a korean bulgogi marinade of just soy sauce, garlic, and sesame oil. that one worked fine because the base was still the soy sauce with a bit of oil, i tried one that used like 1/2 cup of olive oil for 2 lb of beef and holy crap it's just grease.
also: do you guys pat dry/squeeze after marinating, or leave the marinade on? i have tried both, and this last time i didn't pat dry or scrape any off and that oil based marinade ruined it imo. so it may come down to the reactions taking place depending on the marinade on if that's a good idea or not.
what i have learned so far is soy sauce marinades work great, i can get a texture basically like that of old style beef jerky, the kind you have to really let rehydrate in your mouth and chew on for a while.
but if i try something that uses something fatty like olive oil for a base then it basically just......fries. like i can't figure out the right combo of temp/time (i mean it's only two variables!) to keep the jerky from going limp -> crispy. it's like once it goes; it goes. and i don't like crispy jerky, even if the flavor is good.
i've read people take their overdone jerky and process it into pemmican or just a general meat paste/dip, but man i think i'm going to toss this stuff because it just ain't good.
anyone use olive oil as a marinade base for jerky successfully? i think i'll just stick to the soy/fish sauce marinades. my favorite so far is red curry paste in fish sauce with some garlic. or a korean bulgogi marinade of just soy sauce, garlic, and sesame oil. that one worked fine because the base was still the soy sauce with a bit of oil, i tried one that used like 1/2 cup of olive oil for 2 lb of beef and holy crap it's just grease.
also: do you guys pat dry/squeeze after marinating, or leave the marinade on? i have tried both, and this last time i didn't pat dry or scrape any off and that oil based marinade ruined it imo. so it may come down to the reactions taking place depending on the marinade on if that's a good idea or not.